Jun 02, 2025 08:04 PM IST

Sukhoi fighter jet tyres fitted on Lord Jagannath’s chariot for ISKCON Kolkata Rath Yatra

Kolkata, Forty-eight years after trundling on tyres used for Boeing plane, the chariot used throughout ISKCON’s Rath Yatra in Kolkata has acquired new tyres which might be used for Sukhoi 4th era fighter jets.

Sukhoi fighter jet tyres fitted on Lord Jagannath’s chariot for ISKCON Kolkata Rath Yatra

The chariot, with the brand new set of tyres, will carry Lord Jagannath on this 12 months’s Rath Yatra which might be held on June 27.

The ageing and worn-out outdated tyres have been changed by the brand new tyres used for Sukhoi 4th era fighter jets, based on the International Society for Krishna Consciousness .

Vice President of ISKCON Kolkata Radharaman Das instructed PTI on Monday that for the final 48 years, tyres used for Boeing plane have been used to drag the chariot of Lord Jagannath, however for the final 20 years they’ve been making an attempt to get a alternative as technical points cropped up with the 4 outdated tyres over time.

“We were looking for replacements but the maker of Boeing tyres, Dunlop had stopped operations years back. After thorough research, Sukhoi’s tyres closely matched our specifications as those have the same diameter size tyres used in Boeing,” he mentioned.

“We then contacted MRF which makes tyres for the Sukhoi fighter jets. The company’s experts came to Kolkata in December last year and inspected our chariot that carries the idol of Lord Jagannath on Rath yatra. After the tyres were fitted, the chariot had a test run for over 20 km in the city on May 31,” he mentioned.

Some structural changes needed to be made within the picket chariot to slot in the Sukhoi tyres, Das mentioned.

“So by the grace of Lord Jagannath his chariot got brand new tyres and we are confident of a smooth journey of the Lord on the day of auspicious Rath Yatra on June 27 and Ultorath-The return car festival on July 5,” he added.

Each of the 4 tyres can face up to a load of 16 tonnes. The chariots of different deities can have iron wheels as ordinary.

Asked if utilizing fighter plane tyres for pulling the chariot of the Lord is exclusive and unprecedented, Das mentioned, “We had fitted Boeing tyres with the main chariot in 1977 for the Lord’s journey on the roads of Kolkata. We have no information about such practices followed elsewhere in the country or Asia.”

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