Photos: PM Narendra Modi offer prayers at Bhubaneswar's Lingaraj temple, meets the families of freedom fighters

A day after landing in Odisha to attend the two-day BJP National Executive meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid a visit to Lingaraj temple in Bhubaneswar on April 16. PM Modi offered prayers to Goddess Bhubaneswari and Parbati and spent around 25 minutes in the temple premises.

CEO of the Lingaraj Temple Administration, Manoranjan Panigrahy said, “PM Modi offered flowers, bel leaves, milk, coconut water and water to the deity.”

The Prime Minister took to microblogging site Twitter and shared the picture of his visit to Lingaraj Temple. He wrote, “Prayed at the Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneswar. The magnificence of the Temple and Temple Complex leaves a lasting impression on the mind.”

Prayed at the Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneswar. The magnificence of the Temple and Temple Complex leaves a lasting impression on the mind. pic.twitter.com/ofoXs8rltr

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 16, 2017

With people after praying at the Lingaraj Temple. pic.twitter.com/DaHm7yXyif

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 16, 2017

Here are the pictures:

The Chief Priest of the temple said, “the Prime Minister was so enthusiastic to know about Lingaraj temple. He prayed for the welfare of the nation and ‘Swachh Bharat’.”

Encashing the moment, the ‘seveyats’ or temple priests did not miss a chance to take selfies with the Prime Minister.

The 54-metre high temple is spread over a 25,000 sq.ft area and has over 150 small and big subsidiary temples in its premises.

Before his visit to the temple, PM Modi met the families of freedom fighters who were part of the Paika rebellion against the British East India Company in 1817. He also felicitated them at the Raj Bhawan.

Later in the day, PM Narendra Modi will leave for a two-day Gujarat visit. He will begin his tour with a roadshow in Surat in the evening.