Shyamhari Chakra
Bhubaneswar: You need no proof of your despatch. Nor are you required to pay for the service. But, be sure that it would reach its destination without fail. All that you need to have is faith in this incredible coconut-courier system of Odisha.
Since several decades, the Tarini temple at Ghatagaon in Keonjhar district – 190 kilometres far from the capital city of Bhubaneswar – has been the singular destination of this unique service from all over Odisha apart from some regions of neighbouring states of Jharkhand, West Bengal and Chhatisgarh which are connected with Odisha by public transport network.
The devotees of the deity believe that Maa Tarini, as all of them refer to, is very fond of coconuts. Hence they offer a coconut with a prayer to grant them their wishes.
“On an average, the temple receives 15,000 coconuts in a day sent by various buses that ply via Ghatagaon. The large number of trucks that transport goods on this national highway and pass through the town also bring a large chunk of these offerings,” informed Rajendra Kumar Patnaik, president of the temple Trust Board.
Usually the devotees wrap the coconuts with a piece of red cloth and stand beside the road. Any bus or truck passing by halts to pick up the devotees’ offer as soon as they wave their hands with the coconut.
Even if the vehicle does not pass through Ghatagaon, the driver picks up the sacred coconut and ensures that it is sent through another carrier heading towards the destination like passing of the baton in a relay race.
To streamline the coconut-courier service, the temple management, in association with various bus and truck owners’ associations, has set up collection points at major bus-stands and stops. Devotees leave the coconuts at these points and the buses pick up the stock voluntarily.
The Baramunda inter-state bus terminal in Bhubaneswar receives such parcels from far off towns across Odisha and from neighbouring states as well, queries confirmed.
“At Ghatagaon, we have ensured round-the-clock service to receive the coconuts from the buses and trucks and bring the same to the temple for offer to the deity.”, added the Trust Board president.
“What moves our hearts the most has been the respect of the non-Hindu drivers towards this decades old free transportation system for a temple. We have never heard of any such complain from any devotee. Belonging to a different faith has never deterred them to respect the faith of millions in their Mother Goddess,” he acknowledged with gratitude.
