Puri Shree Jagannath Temple will soon use organic rice and vegetables to prepare the Mahaprasad (food offering to the deity). The move aims to make the Mahaprasad chemical-free, temple officials said.

A consultation meeting on the use of organic rice in the preparation of Shree Mandira Mahaprasad was held at Krushi Bhavan Conference Hall on Wednesday under the chairmanship of Shree Jagananth Temple chief administrator and principal secretary, agriculture and farmers empowerment department, Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee.

Considering the huge demand for organic rice and vegetables to prepare the Mahaprasad for nearly 50,000 devotees per day, the administration has decided to introduce this scheme on a pilot basis.

Padhee said, “In the initial phase, this organic rice will be used in the Kotha Bhoga (the thali offered to the deities) of the temple. Along with this, there is a proposal to use organic rice and vegetables in the bhoga that is being offered during Ratha Yatra. A special project called "Amruta Anna" will be implemented and Mahaprasad prepared from organic anna (rice) will be available for devotees at Anand Bazaar. For this, there is a proposal to open a special counter at Anand Bazaar.”

Officials maintained that along with this, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) will be encouraged to produce organic rice through cluster approach and a steering committee will be formed to implement the entire process smoothly. The committee will have representatives from the temple administration, Suara-Mahasuara niyog ( servitors), other producer groups, NGOs and departmental officers as members.