Graffiti, Ram dhun, diyas in Ayodhya ahead of Aug 5
RAM TEMPLE Nearly 500 sanitation workers are working at site
LUCKNOW: Preparations are in full-swing in Ayodhya ahead of the bhoomi pujan (foundationlaying ceremony) for the Ram temple on August 5 -- all temples, ghats, streets are being spruced up ahead of the event.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to lay the foundation stone of the Ram temple in a grand ceremony, which will be attended by several dignitaries, on Wednesday.
Every nook and corner of the town is being spruced up. Walls have been painted with graffiti and images depicting scenes from the Ramayan. Buildings on main streets across the temple town are being painted yellow.
“Yellow is an auspicious colour. In Hindu tradition, yellow is used in all ceremonies. It symbolises purity and light,” said Mahant Kamal Nayan Das, successor-designate to Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, chairman of the the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra, the organiser of the event.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to offer prayers at Hanuman Garhi (on August 5). The entire temple is being spruced up,” said Raju Das, a priest at Hanuman Garhi.
“Around 3000 sound systems are playing ‘Ram Dhun’ across Ayodhya,” said Rishikesh Upadhyay, mayor of Ayodhya. These sound systems will play Vedic hymns during the bhoomi pujan. These sound systems will also be used by the Ayodhya administration to issue directives to public in case of any emergency situation.
Nearly 500 sanitation workers are working round the clock to keep the city clean. More than a lakh diyas will sparkle in Ayodhya for two days from August 4, a day before bhoomi pujan. Around 20,000 temples across the pilgrim town have been given a new look for the ceremony.
“We have requested everyone to decorate their houses with rangoli, diyas and lights to mark bhoomi pujan for construction of the Ram temple,” said Ved Prakash Gupta, Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Ayodhya.