Umerkote: On the occasion of completing 12 years of the uninterrupted burning of the sacred lamp, 1008 lamps were lit on Sunday at the Maa Santoshi Temple located in DNK area of Umerkote town, Nabarangpur district.
Manoj Kumar Pattnayak, the district head of Gayatri Parivar, along with the temple committee, lit the lamps praying for universal well-being. Chief priest and temple committee president Babu Dalei stated that the ceremony was held under his direct supervision.
Among those present were Secretary Sushil Panda, Treasurer Uday Ghosh, Legal Advisor Jhadaeshwar Mohanty, and temple priests Srikant Panda, assistants Ravi Panda, Prashant Dash, Tripati Nayak, Shiva Pradhan, Satish Mandal, Prashant Swain, Poornima Mahanti, Urmila Bishoyi, and Saudamini Mishra — all of whom actively supported the event’s management.
It was revealed that the temple is still under construction. Devotee Shantilata Patra had received a divine vision 12 years ago inspiring her to light an eternal lamp in the temple. Following this, on June 1, 2013, the Akhanda Deepa (uninterrupted sacred lamp) was lit, and it has been burning continuously for the past 12 years.