London will get Jagannatha temple

A UK-based charity working on a project to build Britain's first Jagannatha temple in London has welcomed a pledge of £25 million from an Odisha-origin entrepreneur.

Shree Jagannatha Society (SJS) UK said global Indian investor Biswanath Patnaik made the pledge at the first Shree Jagannatha Convention held in London on Sunday (23).

Patnaik, the founder of FinNest Group of companies, joins the company's managing director, Arjun Kar, who is the UK-based principal donor of the project.

The FinNest Group is an early-stage private equity investment firm that invests worldwide in renewables, electric vehicles (EVs), hydrogen locomotives, innovative technology and fintech. Kar also revealed at the event that the group has committed £7m towards the purchase of nearly 15 acres of land for the new temple to be known as Shree Jagannatha Mandir London.

A suitable land has been identified and is currently in the final stages of purchase, and a pre-planning application has been submitted to the local government council to secure permission for the Mandir's construction, the charity said.

The SJS hopes to get the first phase of construction completed by the end of next year.

In his message to the convention, which coincided with celebrations of Akshaya Trithiya over the weekend, Patnaik pledged his financial support for the construction of the temple and exhorted devotees to work together with faith in Lord Jagannatha to make the dream of a Mandir a reality at the earliest.

The convention, attended by the deputy Indian high commissioner to the UK, Sujit Ghosh, and India's minister for culture Amish Tripathi, celebrated the UK tour of Gajapati Maharaja Dibyasingha Deb, the maharaja (titular king) of Puri, along with Maharani Leelabati Pattamahadei.

The most significant aspect of the tradition of Lord Jagannatha is its all-encompassing universality. He is also worshipped by Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs, Gajapati Maharaja said.

(PTI)