Banjara Hills Devotees Celebrate Jagannath Rath Yatra With Grand Processions

Devotees gathered in large numbers at the Jagannath temple in Banjara Hills on Thursday to celebrate the annual Jagannath Rath Yatra. The major festival, which featured grand chariot processions carrying the idols of Sri Jagannath, Subhadra, and Balabhadra, drew a massive crowd of worshippers across Hyderabad and prompted the local police to implement city-wide traffic diversions.

In the Banjara Hills neighborhood, a large number of devotees made a beeline to the local Jagannath temple. Worshippers queued up for darshan at the temple before the official commencement of the Ratha Yatra procession, which started in the afternoon. The atmosphere in the area resonated with the enthusiastic chants of "Jai Jagannath" and "Haribol" as devotees gathered to pull the beautifully decked-up chariots.

In addition to the event in Banjara Hills, several other major processions took place across Hyderabad. The Ratha Yatra organised by ISKCON Abids commenced from the NTR Stadium. This particular procession drew a large number of devotees and eventually culminated at the Exhibition Grounds.

Simultaneously, the traditional Rath Yatra procession hosted by the Jagannath Swamy Ramgopal Trust was held in Secunderabad’s General Bazaar. This historic, 130-year-old traditional procession was conducted from MG Road and Ranigunj, drawing its own large gathering of local devotees.

The festival was also celebrated grandly at the Jagannath Dwara Math in Begum Bazaar. The religious event at this location featured a special "Chhappan Bhog" offering prepared specifically for the deities on this auspicious occasion.

To manage the multiple processions across the city and the high influx of devotees at each site, the Hyderabad Traffic Police implemented route diversions. The police department also issued traffic advisories, urging commuters to plan their journeys in advance to avoid traffic congestion.