Berhampur: The sacred abode of Goddess Tara Tarini has stepped into a new dawn of devotion, technology and service. In a historic first for Odisha’s temple traditions, the Tara Tarini temple administration has installed a state-of-the-art Automated Cooking System, promising to serve ’Anna Prasad’ to thousands of devotees with greater speed, hygiene and affordability at a comparatively cheaper price.

Nestled in the newly built kitchen on the temple’s ground floor, the modern cooking units, powered by electricity, can prepare a divine spread of anna or khechidi, dal, mixed vegetable curry, dalma, khatta and kheer for as many as 5,000 devotees in just 30 minutes. This remarkable leap is part of the ₹68-crore infrastructure development plan undertaken by the Odisha government for the shrine, with nearly Rs 1 crore invested in the kitchen facilities and stainless-steel dining arrangements at ‘Prasad Seban Kakshya’.

“Earlier, cooking was confined to firewood or LPG gas, and only a limited number of devotees could relish the sacred meal. Now, this modern kitchen will open the gates for thousands every day,” informed temple official Pramod Kumar Panda.

During the Chaitra festival from March 15 to April 12 this year, the kitchen was put to an experimental run, delighting devotees by serving ’Anna Prasad’ free of cost every Tuesday. Encouraged by the response, the administration has extended the trial phase while training sevayats in the new system. An operator from Bhubaneswar is currently guiding 10 Sevayats on handling the automated equipment.

A high-power committee has been formed to study devotees’ inflow, preferences, the taste and quality of the ‘prasad,’ and mechanisms for bringing down the price—expected to be lower than the earlier Rs 100 per meal.

The kitchen will become fully operational once the committee submits its final report.

This milestone, sources said, has been made possible through the dedicated efforts of Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida and Commerce and Transport Minister Bibhuti Bhusan Jena signalling a new era of accessibility and grandeur.

With this union of age-old faith and modern technology, the Tara Tarini temple not only strengthens its spiritual embrace but also sets a precedent for how heritage and innovation can blend to serve the countless feet that tread its sacred steps.