2018 - Nabakalebar Rath Yatra

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The first release ceremony of Calendar year 2018 saw the release of the much awaited coins of Nabakalebar Rath Yatra. There was quite a bit of wait on this coin where the original event was in 2015. See the end for the details.

Nabakalebara is symbolic recreation of wooden forms of the four deities at Jagannath Temple, Puri. In Jagannath cult this is a periodical renewal of the wooden forms of Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subhadra and Sudarshana. The occasion occurs every 8th or 12th or 19th year of the previous Nabakalebara.

The principle adopted to fix the year of Nabakalebara is to find a year in which there are two Ashadhas (Doashadhas), or the month of Ashadha in which there are two full moons. In the Lunar Hindu calendar in every three years a lunar month is excluded from calculation to strike a balance between lunar and solar years. This period is called 'Adhimasa' or 'Malamasa'. A year with an extra (Adhika masa) Ashadha masa/month as per Hindu calendar is considered highly auspicious for conducting the ceremony. This usually occurs every twelve to nineteen years. The four deities undergo the process of Nabakalebara in the year in which falls the Adhimasa. The Deities are made from a special type of Neem wood known as Daru Bramha. Preparations for the ceremony start in the month of Chaitra. The most recent ceremony was done in the year 2015 and the one before that was in 1996.

Release Function:

18-Mar-2018: President Ramnath Kovind attends the centenary celebrations of Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan at Sri Sadasiva Campus in Puri . On the occasion, Kovind unveiled Rs 10 and Rs 1, 000 commemorative coins on Lord Jagannath’s Nabakalebara in presence of his wife Sabitri Kovind, Puri Gajapati Maharaj Dibya Singh Deb, Governor Dr SC Jamir, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Higher Education Minister Ananta Das.




History of the coins and the delay

10-Jul-2017: It seems everything is now sorted with Govt issuing Gazette notification for the release of the coins. These should be release soon. They will still have a date of 2015.

There is a press release that mentions that the coins on the occasion of Nabakalebar Rath Yatra will be released. See Press Release
However looks like given the year 2015 is lined up with quite a few coins, we may not see this theme.

The article on the Govt website also has the design for the proposed coins and stamps.

16-Jan-2016: There is controversy over the design of the coin. More details here. Thus the coin release looks to be further delayed. 6-Feb-2016. There is more news with STJA refusing to give opinion.
28-May-2016: More News.