Makar Sankranti is being celebrated with religious fervour across Odisha today. People marked the occasion by preparing ‘Makar Chaula’ and offering it to deities at their homes, in keeping with traditional customs. Special rituals were performed at the Shri Jagannath Temple at Puri, where ‘Makar Chaula’ was offered to Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and the Digapalas.

Thousands of devotees visited the Shri Jagannath Temple to have darshan of the deities in the special ‘Makar Besha’. Large crowds were also seen at the Atri hot spring in Khordha district and the Chandrabhaga beach at Konark, where devotees took holy baths. Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi also observed the festival by taking a holy dip in the Baitarani River in his home district, Keonjhar.