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BHUBANESWAR, INDIA, January 19, 2005: A sacred metal wheel at the 12th century Jagannath temple in Orissa is safe, experts have said after examining it with the help of sophisticated equipment. Experts from the National Metallurgical Laboratory (NML) and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) spent three hours examining the wheel on the top of the temple in the coastal town of Puri using a high-resolution scanner and other gadgets. The examination, the third since a five sq cm hole on the wheel was noticed by devotees in May, revealed that the structure is safe, an official told IANS. The experts, including R.N. Ghosh, director of NML, and Jitendra Das, ASI’s Bhubaneswar superintendent, will issue a detailed report and make recommendations after all the data is studied. The Jagannath temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu, one of the Hindu holy trinity. The conical tower of the temple, on which the flag and the wheel of the deity are installed, is 58 metres high. Each day devotees climb the tower to tie a flag to the mast attached to the wheel. In May 2004, they told temple authorities about the hole in the sacred ‘neel chakra’ or blue wheel. The wheel, made of an alloy of eight metals, is 3.5 m high and 11 m in circumference. Experts say the wheel turns blue when the sun heats it. The state government had sought the help of the experts after an intense public outcry over allegations by the ASI that the temple, and especially the wheel, was being inadequately maintained.

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