Odisha government appoints IAS officer Arabinda Padhee as Jagannath temple chief administrator

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has appointed Arabinda Kumar Padhee as the new chief administrator of the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), replacing senior IAS officer V V Yadav.

A notification issued by the law department late on Thursday night invoked sub-section 19 of the Shree Jagannath Temple Act, 1954 to effect the appointment.

It states, "In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section 19 of Shree Jagannath Temple Act, 1954, the State Government do hereby appoint Arabinda Kumar Padhee, IAS, as chief administrator, SJTA, Puri in addition to his present duties for the time being and until further orders in place of V V Yadav, IAS." The decision to replace Yadav as chief administrator of SJTA followed criticism over his absence during the incident where the idol of Lord Balabhadra fell during the Rath Yatra festival, injuring 12 servitors.

Padhee, who currently serves as the principal secretary of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment and Handloom, Textiles & Handicrafts Departments, brings prior experience as the former chief administrator of SJTA, underscoring his familiarity with managing the affairs of the Jagannath temple.