Bhubaneswar, Nov 15: Six individuals, including two night watchmen and four servitors, have been arrested in connection with the alleged theft of silver ornaments and cash worth lakhs of rupees from the Tara Tarini temple atop Kumari Hill in Odisha’s Ganjam district.
The arrested persons have been identified as night watchmen Kalia Dash (35) and Balaram Nayak (45), along with servitors Amulya Rana (28), Bikash Rana (20), Rabin Kumar Rana, and Goutam Rana.
According to Purushottampur SDPO Rajani Kanta Samal, a cutter machine was recovered from Kalia, electrical equipment from Balaram, and cash amounting to Rs 21,000 from Amulya and Rs 18,000 from Rabin. However, the police are yet to recover the stolen silver ornaments, including the face masks and decorated umbrella of the twin deities.
The accused reportedly gained entry into the temple by breaking the locks of the entrance gate and stole silver ornaments worth Rs 10 lakh along with cash from the donation box on November 4. The theft was discovered the following morning, and investigations are ongoing to identify any other individuals involved in the crime.