From prasad to prison inmates: How Indians are gearing up for Ram Mandir Inauguration in Ayodhya

While some of us are decorating our homes and offices, or partaking in a ceremonial congress for the Ram Temple inauguration in Ayodhya - the upcoming Pran Pratishtha ceremony on January 22, has sparked diverse reactions and debates amongst Indians.

While the Maharashtra government has declared a public holiday for Ram Mandir inauguration, a petitioner from Kerala has objected to the Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research in Puducherry announcing a half-day holiday barring the emergency services. The Chief Justice has accepted a request for an urgent hearing since JIPMER issued the circular regarding the closure only on Friday.

The festive mood has rung in mixed reactions from priests, citizens, politicians and lawmakers alike. Acharya Satyendra Das, the chief priest of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, has reacted sharply after several opposition party leaders refused to attend the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony in Ayodhya on Monday.

He emphasised that Lord Ram does not belong to any one political party but is a symbol of collective consciousness and unites millions of Indians living in the country and elsewhere. He has been living in Ayodhya since his early childhood and has been worshipping in the same temple for the last 32 years, much before the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992. He continues to be the chief priest of the newly constructed Ram temple.

Public figures said to be spotted at Ram Mandir
Nearly 35 chartered planes, including those flying Amitabh Bachchan and filmstar Pawan Kalyan, apart from other dignitaries will be parked at the Chakeri airport in Kanpur and Amausi airport in Lucknow.

Amitabh Bachchan and Pawan Kalyan will land in Ayodhya on January 21. These aircraft will be parked at Chakeri after dropping the dignitaries at Ayodhya airport. After the Pran Pratishtha ceremony, these aircrafts will again reach Ayodhya to take back the VIPs to their respective destinations.

According to official sources of Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport, only five aircraft, including those carrying ArcelorMittal chairman Laxmi Mittal, JSW Steel MD Sajjan Jindal, J K Group president Bharat Hari Singhania, spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Shankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Mutt Vijayendra Saraswati Swamigal, will have night stay at Lucknow airport after they drop the guests at Maharishi Valmiki International Ayodhya Airport.

There is a provision for parking a limited number of aircraft in Ayodhya, out of which four, including for the President, PM and a foreign guest, have been reserved. Planes carrying VIPs will be parked in other cities, including Kanpur.

A total of two dozen chartered and private aircraft will use Lucknow airport between January 21 and January 23 to drop and pick dignitaries. Parking space has also been sought from 12 other airports.

Kanpur Airport director Sanjay Kumar said that in view of the Pran Pratishtha ceremony in Ayodhya, arrangements are being made for parking of 10 to 11 aircraft of VIPs on January 21 and 22 here.

Specially curated veg meals for guests in Ayodhya
Mukesh Meshram, principal secretary, culture and tourism said,"At Ayodhya, renowned for its spiritual significance, the devotees arriving for Pran Pratishtha ceremony will be served satvik vegetarian food along with phalahari (non-cereal) and millet-based dishes."

Specially curated vegetarian meals, prepared in desi ghee, will be served to invitees who arrive in Ayodhya for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony on Monday. The guests, when they reach the temple premises, would be served prasad including ‘thepla', ‘almond barfi' and ‘matar kachauri'.

The guests would also be served ‘Ram laddoo and peda' as prasad. More than one lakh packets of these offerings are being prepared for the day. Chefs from Varanasi and Delhi are preparing these delicacies. The assembly hall of a school has been converted into a kitchen.

The Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust will exclusively handle the food arrangements for selected VVIPs on January 22. The ingredients for the ‘prasad' have been sourced from Varanasi.

Approximately 300 tonnes of ration, including essentials like rice, spices and vegetables, have arrived for the feast. The state government is anticipating a daily footfall of 2.2 million devotees in Ayodhya after January 22.

Action against Ram idol picture being leaked
"The rituals of Pran Pratishtha are being performed where the new idol is. The body of the idol has been covered with clothes for now. The idol that has been revealed with open eyes is not correct. The eyes will not open before the Pran Pratishtha. If such an image is appearing, an investigation should be conducted to determine who did it," Das said, while speaking to reporters in Ayodhya.

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust is contemplating action against those who leaked the photo of the Ram Lalla idol with its eyes uncovered. This image of Ramwent viral on social media on Friday. The Trust suspects that some personnel involved in the temple construction project leaked the photo and it is preparing to take action against them.

The new 51-inch idol, carved by sculptor Arun Yogiraj of Mysuru, was placed in the sanctum sanctorum of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple on Thursday. It was brought there on a truck on Wednesday night.

Jail inmates in UP send their ‘gifts' to Ram Lalla
Around one lakh inmates from 75 jails across Uttar Pradesh are creating handicrafts, related to Ram temple, to be displayed near the temple, at the airport, bus stations and tourist spots.

Director General of Prisons Satya Narayan Sabat, said, "Recently, a striking 8 ft x 5 ft wall carpet featuring a Ram temple design, crafted in Bhadohi jail, was presented to the Ayodhya commissioner by DIG (prisons) based in Prayagraj, for its display at a significant location in Ayodhya."

Sabat said, in Mainpuri district jail, inmates have crafted a Tarkashi art piece depicting the Ram temple and Ram Darbar. Tarkashi is a famous inlaying technique using brass, copper or silver wires in wood.

Saharanpur jail has produced wooden models of Ram temples, while Fatehpur jail inmates have contributed eco-friendly 'Ramnami' cloth bags for distributing prasad on January 22. The Fatehgarh district jail inmates have crafted exquisite woollen shawls featuring block-printed designs of the Ram temple and 'Jai Shri Ram' patterned on them.

In Pilibhit district jail, four skilled inmates, who are professional potters, are creating over 1,000 earthen lamps for illumination, both inside and outside the jail campus on the Pran Pratishtha day, said jail superintendent, Rajesh Kumar Pandey, adding that 673 women inmates will chant the 'Sundarkand,' the fifth chapter of Ramcharitmanas.

Meanwhile, apart from jail inmates, Muslim artisans -- Hina Parveen, 52; Shamshad Ahmad, 60; and Arman Nabi, 30 -- have made a 21.5-foot-long flute, claimed to be the ‘longest playable flute in the world'.

Special train to Nepal's Janakpur for Ayodhya-bound devotees
India would be operating a special train to Nepal's Janakpur -- the birthplace of Sita, to bring Lord Ram devotees to Ayodhya on the occasion of Ram Mandir inauguration on January 22 in the Himalayan nation's neighbouring Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

An official said here on Saturday that the Indian government would send a dedicated train to Nepal to bring the devotees even as thousands of people from Nepal have already left for Ayodhya. Nepal, a landlocked country, is one of the Hindu-majority nations, besides India.

The devotees will travel through the Jaynagar-Janakpur railway route -- the only cross-border rail connection between Nepal and India that was laid with Indian assistance. The Indian Railways would send a train having 20 coaches.

According to officials, the special train will leave for Ayodhya from Janakpur on Sunday, said Niranjan Jha, General Manager at Nepal Railway Company Limited. There is huge excitement among the devotees in Nepal over Pran Pratishtha ceremony.

Thousands of Hindu devotees from Nepal are expected to attend the ceremony on Monday. Several cities in Nepal have urged the local residents to celebrate the day with "Deepotsav". Authorities in some cities also banned selling alcohol and non-vegetable food items, among others, on Monday.