Baipariguda, 17th July 2025: The first Monday of the holy month of Shravan, and over 10,000 Bol Bam devotees performed Jalabhishek (ritual water offering) on the head of Lord Gupteshwar.
Despite continuous rainfall, thousands of Kawariya devotees began their pilgrimage from Saturday, carrying sacred water in pots (kalas) on their shoulders. Chanting “Bol Bam, Har Har Bam,” the region was filled with a devotional atmosphere.
Volunteers had also set up service points at various locations along the route to provide assistance to the pilgrims. The devotees collected water from the Kolab River near Kota Square, located about 12 km from Baipariguda, and began their 45 km-long foot journey to the Gupteshwar shrine.
On Saturday, a large number of devotees had already gathered at the pilgrimage site. By Sunday night, the barefooted Kawariya devotees formed long queues and performed Jalabhishek on the deity. The ritual continued throughout the day today, with devotees peacefully returning after completing their worship.
On this first Monday, a large number of devotees had arrived from various places like Balasore, Nayagarh, Cuttack, Baripada, Jajpur, and Bhadrak. The number of devotees isy expected to increase significantly from the second Monday onward.
Keeping this in view, locals have urged the administration to provide better facilities and arrangements for the growing number of pilgrims in the coming weeks.