From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network – Bhubaneshwar – (SB)

Bhubaneshwar, July 13: The academic precincts of KIIT University, popularly known as  Kalinga University, is gripped with spiritual festive mood as the nine-day long  Lord Jagannath Rath Yatra Utsav similar to the world famous Puri Jagannath Utsav started on Tuesday July 13.

Dr Achyut Samanta, founder  of KIIT university and Kalinga Institue of Social Sciences, which has created history by providing free education, food, accommodation and vocational training for over 10,000 Adivasi students, performed the ritual of cleaning the three chariots of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra Devi  during the event, which brought festive enthusiasm into the campus.

Cultural events of various art forms and special pujas similar to the Puri Jagannath Yatra have been organized as part of the nine-day festival. The yatra will go through the campus and culminate at the Jagannath temple within the campus.

The festivities will draw to a conclusion on July 21 with the ‘Bahuda’ celebrations - return journey of the chariots of lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra Devi.

Apart from Adivasi students in the campus, the Adivasi populace in surrounding areas also participating in the Utsav, which is the special feature of the event. Those visiting Puri are now flocking to Kalinga University too and it includes a huge number of foreign tourists, which is making the event a truly international one.

Dr Samanta is personally supervising the arrangements for the event and various cultural programmes have been organized to entertain the huge gathering of Adivasis.