The Puri Konark Development Authority (PKDA) on Friday sealed six shops of the Emar Mutt located in front of Simhadwar of the Shree Jagannath Temple for flouting norms of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and its norms.
The mutt had constructed six new commercial outlets and they were being operated by Khaja sellers. The PKDA had issued notices earlier that the shops were constructed without obtaining plan approval from it and it also did not get clearance from the ASI as the shops were located in close proximity of the temple. The ASI Act prohibits any construction within 100 meters of the temple.
The Mahant of the mutt had filed an appeal in the court of Secretary, Urban Development Department, which did not grant stay on the order of closure passed by the PKDA. On Friday, PKDA secretary Dillip Kumar Parida and Magistrate Sudhananda Mahapatra along with police sealed the shops.