Ahmedabad, Jul 4 (IANS): Union Home Minister Amit Shah, along with his wife Sonal Shah, performed the 'Mangala Aarti' on Thursday morning at the historic Jagannath Temple here, to kick-start the annual Gujarat Jagannath Rath Yatra that coincides with the Puri festival.

Shah, who continues as the national Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President, was on his first visit to home state Gujarat after being inducted in the Union Council of Ministers. He inaugurated several projects on Wednesday.

Coinciding with the historic rath yatra in Puri, the 142nd Lord Jagannath Rath Yatra began in the wee hours of Thursday.

The nine-day annual chariot festival began amid heavy security in various localities of the walled city in old Ahmedabad. Beginning from the historic 450-year-old Lord Jagannath Temple in Jamalpur area, the procession would pass through the city.

The Jagannath Rath Yatra in Ahmedabad is among the three largest similar rath yatras which include the ratha yatra in Puri, Odisha.