Bhubaneswar, May 5: The Orissa government today decided to create more accommodation facilities for pilgrims, who would be visiting Puri for the 2015 Naba Kalebar festival of Lord Jagannath.

The festival, which marks change of the idols of Lord Jagannath and his siblings, is scheduled to witness a congregation of 50 lakh devotees.

During the last Naba Kalebar festival that took place in 1996, around 20 lakh devotees assembled in Puri, said an official of the Jagannath Temple.

At present, there are 20,000 hotel rooms in Puri. This accommodation capacity will not be adequate to cater to the lakhs of pilgrims expected to assemble in Puri during the festival.

The Puri district administration and the Jagannath temple administration were asked to create additional accommodation facilities for at least 50,000 pilgrims.

Low-budget accommodation facilities for at least 2,000 lower middle class pilgrims will be created in the town. Funds from the Lodging House Fund will be utilised for the purpose. The fund was floated in 1920 by virtue of the Bihar-Orissa Pilgrim Act.

The Jagannath temple administration will also construct yatri niwas (lodging) to accommodate at least 10,000 pilgrims.

These decisions were taken at a meeting chaired by chief secretary Bijay Patnaik here today.

Puri district collector Fakir Charan Satpathy was asked to identify land for the purpose, an official said.

It was decided to renovate the Bagala dharmasala, which has 54 single bedrooms and 24 double bedrooms. The dharmasala is being maintained out of the Lodging House Fund.

The meeting also reviewed the levy of pilgrim tax from the pilgrims. It was decided that collection of pilgrim tax from vehicles at three check gates en route Puri would be stopped. Instead, the tax would be collected at the parking place inside the town.

“This arrangement will prevent traffic jam and unnecessary harassment to daily commuters,” said an official. Patnaik also suggested to develop an alternative routeparallel to the main road in front of the Puri sea beach so that the tourists could have a better and safer passage.

Earlier on February 5, chief minister Naveen Patnaik had chaired a high-level meeting to review preparations for the festival.

Naveen had directed the officials to start the preparations from now on to ensure smooth conduct of the festival.

Widening of the Puri-Bhubaneswar national highway would start from next month and was expected to be completed by October, 2013, he said.