Bhubaneswar: Just nine days remain before the world's largest annual spiritual procession transforms the Grand Road of Puri into a sea of humanity.

For nearly a fortnight, millions of devotees have waited anxiously as Lord Jagannath remains away from public view during the ritual period preceding the annual Rath Yatra. The yearning reaches its emotional peak on the day of the festival, when the Lord of the Universe steps out of the sanctum sanctorum to dissolve the age-old barriers separating the divine from ordinary mortals.

Rath Yatra has always symbolised equality.

Kings, saints, labourers and pilgrims pull the same ropes.

There are no barriers before the Lord.

Ironically, however, one of the biggest barriers during the modern Rath Yatra has been created not by religion but by administration – the controversial inner cordon passes, popularly called VIP passes.

It is this invisible but powerful barrier that prompted Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday to issue one of his strongest directives before Rath Yatra 2026: not a single unnecessary cordon pass should be issued.

The order may appear administrative.

Its implications are anything but.

Why Did Chief Minister Single Out Cordon Passes?

Unlike traffic, sanitation or security arrangements that receive routine attention every year, the Chief Minister specifically warned officials against issuing "extra" inner cordon passes.

The reason lies in what experts increasingly describe as the single biggest man-made factor weakening crowd management during Rath Yatra.

The inner cordon is the most sensitive security ring surrounding the three chariots.

Ideally, this zone is reserved only for:

• Sevayats performing mandatory rituals
• SJTA officials
• Senior police commanders
• Emergency medical responders

Its purpose is operational – not ceremonial.

But over the years, this functional security zone gradually transformed into a VIP viewing gallery.

Politicians.

Influential persons.

Relatives of officials.

Corporate invitees.

Media personnel.

Administrative acquaintances.

Many found their way inside through special passes despite having no operational role.

The result was predictable – the very safety buffer designed to absorb crowd pressure became overcrowded itself.

How VIP Passes Destroy Crowd Dynamics

Crowd management during Rath Yatra works like pressure management inside a dam.

Police cordons are designed in multiple layers.

When lakhs of devotees surge forward, the empty inner buffer gives security personnel room to absorb pressure.

But when thousands of pass holders already occupy that space, the buffer disappears.

Instead of controlling devotees outside, police first begin controlling people already inside the protected zone.

The consequences multiply rapidly.

During Pahandi

The ceremonial procession of the deities requires a completely clear movement corridor from the Lion's Gate to the chariots.

Extra pass holders become stationary obstacles.

Movement slows.

Security personnel lose manoeuvring space.

During Chariot Pulling

Once devotees start pulling the ropes, police should focus entirely on crowd pressure outside.

Instead, officers become occupied in clearing unauthorised pass holders lingering near the chariots.

The security chain weakens.

During Emergency Situations

If a crowd surge breaches an outer barricade, the inner cordon acts as the emergency relief zone.

Medical teams.

Police extraction units.

Emergency responders.

All depend upon this space remaining clear.

Thousands of unnecessary pass holders eliminate that safety margin.

A Decade of Growing VIP Culture

The transformation of inner cordon passes over the past decade tells the story.

Period	Estimated Passes	Ground Reality
2016–2019	3,500–4,500	VIP culture expands; buffer zones regularly clogged.
2020–2021 (COVID)	500–800	Only essential sevayats and security personnel allowed. Crowd movement remained exceptionally smooth due to absence of non-essential persons.
2022–2024	Nearly 5,000	Massive post-pandemic expansion. VIP requests surged. Administrative and political pressure increased.
2025–2026	Proposed reduction by over 60–70%	Passes restricted strictly to operational requirement under CM's directive.

The contrast is striking.

During the COVID years, although devotees could not participate, operational movement around the chariots remained remarkably efficient because only essential personnel entered the cordon.

Post-pandemic, the system again became heavily burdened by discretionary passes.

2023 Became The Turning Point

The issue ceased to be merely administrative after repeated crowd management failures.

The fatal stampede near Gundicha Temple during Rath Yatra 2023 exposed how dense crowding close to the chariots severely complicated emergency response.

Investigations and subsequent discussions repeatedly questioned whether excessive crowding inside restricted operational zones had reduced the flexibility available to police during critical moments.

Although multiple factors contributed, the episode fundamentally changed official thinking on crowd control.

Even 2024 Raised Fresh Questions

Lessons from 2023 were expected to bring improvements.

Instead, reports from the festival indicated that numerous pass holders remained inside the cordon even after rituals ended.

As pulling of the chariots commenced, congestion reportedly complicated police movement and cordon management.

Security planners increasingly concluded that the issue was no longer merely about numbers outside the barricades.

It was about who occupied the protected space inside them.

From Administrative Courtesy To Security Threat

Perhaps the biggest change lies in how the government now views these passes.

For years they functioned almost as administrative privileges.

Influential recommendations often secured access.

Today, the administration is treating them as a security variable.

The Chief Minister's instructions reflect that philosophical shift.

His directions reportedly include:

• No pass beyond approved operational requirement.
• No VIP courtesy distribution.
• Passes only for duty-bound sevayats and essential officials.
• Immediate clearance of pass holders once assigned rituals conclude.
• Strict monitoring by the district administration.

Restoring the Spirit of Rath Yatra

The irony could not be sharper.

Rath Yatra is perhaps the world's greatest celebration of equality between the divine and humanity.

Lord Jagannath leaves the sanctum precisely because every devotee deserves darshan.

Yet the growth of privileged viewing zones through VIP passes created an artificial hierarchy around an event founded on inclusiveness.

The current crackdown is therefore more than a crowd-control measure.

It is an attempt to restore both safety and symbolism.

If the administration succeeds in keeping the inner cordon free from unnecessary occupation, police will regain valuable operational space, emergency response will become faster, and crowd pressure can be managed more effectively.

Nine days before Lord Jagannath comes out to meet millions of devotees, the state government appears determined to ensure that the biggest obstacle standing between the Lord and the people is removed – not by dismantling barricades, but by ending the culture of privilege hidden behind the VIP cordon pass.

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