Bhubaneswar, July 29: The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) today said the 12th century Jagannath temple in Puri was safe but the Jagamohan (the space near the sanctum sanctorum) requires urgent renovation.
The ASI statement coincided with the commissioning of air-cooling systems inside the sanctum sanctorum.
"We have undertaken the required repair work to the sanctum sanctorum as the shrine's presiding deities - Lord Jagannath and His siblings - were on a nine-day sojourn during rath yatra. But the inner part of Jagamohan needs urgent repair," said A.K. Patel, Odisha circle head of the ASI.
The deities will return to the temple tomorrow in a ceremony called niladri bije.
Patel said some cracks had been noticed on the upper part of one of the columns of the shrine. "We have given temporary support to the column. But, it needs to be repaired on a permanent basis," Patel said.
Patel said the deities had to be shifted to a new place from the ratna bedi for the repair.
The ASI chief said once the temple administration informed him about the decision to shift the deities, they would start the repair.
"Work on the outer side of Jagamohan is over already. Whatever little work is left will be completed shortly. But, our major concern is how to repair the inner part," Patel said.
Temple administration sources said they would shortly hold a series of meetings with the Chhattisha Niyog (confederation of servitors) and the ASI on how to shift the deities from the ratna bedi.
"A similar situation had taken place in 1993 when the deities were shifted from the ratna bedi. We will take a decision shortly," said a senior official.
An expert team, including ASI officials, examined the sanctum sanctorum of the temple today. They also checked the newly installed cooling systems.
In another development, Jagannath Swain Mohapatra, the chief servitor of Lord Jagannath, said: "I had replied to the showcause notice by the temple administration through my lawyer." Mohapatra had been asked to explain how a female devotee was allowed atop the chariot of Lord Jagannath even as it stood outside the Gundicha temple last week.
