The Bengal government has asked the public works department (PWD) to rectify construction faults of the chariot of Lord Jagannath before Ulto Rath on July 5, as it could not run smoothly during the Rath Yatra in Digha on June 27.
Sources said the PWD had set up a team of civil and mechanical engineers to identify the glitches in the chariot and fix them before its return journey to the Jagannath temple.
As the chariot of Lord Jagannath could not run smoothly and had to stop several times on its way to another temple, known as Masir Bari, it caused embarrassment for the government. Chief minister Mamata Banerjee was present during the Rath Yatra.
“The government does not want to face a similar situation during Ulto Rath when Lord Jagannath would travel about 1km to return to the temple in Digha. The PWD has been asked to check the chariot and do the needful to rectify the glitches,” said an official.
The team of engineers had already inspected the chariot and started the repairs. Although the chief minister did not make it clear whether she would be present during the Ulto Rath in Digha, the authorities don't want to take any chances after a glitch on the wheels affected the Rath Yatra in Digha.
Sources said it appeared that the steel frame on one of the wheels of the chariot came out when it was being pulled during the Rath Yatra.
“The glitch was serious as the chariot could have collapsed.... Primarily, it appears that the wheels of the chariot were not constructed with seasoned wood. As a result, the steel frame came out when the wood of the wheel shrank after the wood blocks dried up,” said a source.
A section of officials said the Hidco, which was entrusted with the construction of the Jagannath temple as well as the chariot, did not carry out trial runs properly.
“Only the chariot was drawn during the trial run. But on the day of the Rath Yatra, additional weight was put on the chariot with several people and the idol on board. The trial run should have been done with enough weight on the chariot,” said an official.
The officials asked whether the chariot had been given a fit certificate by any agency before it was allowed to run on the road.
“The Hidco can have expertise in the construction of buildings, but it should have secured a fit certificate from the PWD after the chariot was built. Now, questions have emerged whether any fit certificate was issued to the chariot at all,” said a source.