Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be addressing the attendees at the Ayodhya Ram Mandir Consecration Ceremony and a week-long celebration for the same will begin from January 16, 2024. Read to know all about the mega-event, we know so far..

New Delhi: The Ayodhya Ram Mandir Consecration Ceremony is in less than a month and there has been a lot of activity around the mega-occasion. Ahead of the ceremony, from Prime Minister’s Address to the attendees, Ram Mandir Aarti passes availability, locker facilities for the tourists and pilgrims to the week-long celebrations that will begin from January 16, 2024 – here’s all you need to know. The Consecration Ceremony will be the day when the gates of this grand temple will open for the visitors; the Prime Minister will also be addressing the attendees on this auspicious and special day.

PM Modi To Address Attendees During Ayodhya Ram Mandir Consecration

As mentioned earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address attendees at the grand consecration event of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya from the front of the ‘Singh Dwar’, the main entrance to the temple, sources said on Thursday. PM Modi will throw the gates of the grand temple open for visitors at the consecration event on January 22, next year. According to sources, lakhs of devotees are likely to pour into the temple town for the January 22 consecration.

According to media reports, the trust entrusted with the construction and management of the grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra, in its latest meeting will discuss the idol of Lord Ram which is to be installed inside the sanctum sanctorum of the grand temple at the grand opening or consecration of the shrine on January 22. Preparations for the consecration ceremony of the temple on January 22 will also be discussed in detail during the meeting, the reports added. There will be another meeting of the trust to select the idol of Ram Lalla.

Cleanliness Campaign Drive In Temple City

Earlier in the day, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya participated in the cleanliness campaign drive in the temple city ahead of the grand event. While speaking to reporters, he said, “With the resolve, ‘Swachh Rahe Shri Ram Ka Dham’ (Lord Ram’s place should be cleaned) the cleanliness campaign is going on in Ayodhya and today we have launched the cleanliness campaign. Everyone together will keep Ayodhya clean.”

Week-Long Celebrations To Begin From Jan 16

The consecration ceremony of Lord Ram Lalla at the Ram Janmobhoomi Mandir in Ayodhya will be held over a span of seven days starting from January 16, temple officials said. On January 16, the host appointed by the temple trust, Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra will conduct the atonement ceremony. The ‘Dashvidh’ bath, Vishnu worship and offering of cow will be held on the banks of Saryu river. Following that, on January 17, a procession carrying the idol of Ram Lalla will reach Ayodhya. Devotees carrying Saryu water in Mangal Kalash will be reaching the Ram Janmabhoomi temple.

On January 18, formal rituals will kick off with the Ganesh Ambika puja, Varun puja, Matrika puja, Brahmin Varan and Vastu Puja. On January 19, the holy fire will be lit, followed by the establishment of ‘Navagraha’ and a ‘havan’ (holy ritual surrounding the fire). The sanctum sanctorum of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple will be washed with Saryu water on January 20, after which the Vaastu Shanti and ‘Annadhivas’ rituals will take place.

On January 21, the Ram Lalla idol will be bathed in 125 urns and will finally be laid to rest. On the final day, January 22, after the morning puja, the deity of Ram Lala will be consecrated in ‘Mrigashira Nakshatra’ in the afternoon. Speaking about the Ram Temple Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur said that the long wait of 450 years has come to an end and that much dreamt-of Ram Temple has come to completion. “The long wait of 450 years has come to an end and the grand Ram Temple that many generations of Indians had imagined or dreamed of has come to a completion,” Thakur said.

When Should Devotees Visit Ayodhya Ram Mandir?

Thakur said that people from every corner of the country who want to visit the grand Ram temple will start coming after the consecration day. He added that devotees should come only after receiving proper information. “Those who have received the invitation on January 22 must go for darshan and after that, as soon as the temple opens to the public, people must come for darshan. There should not be much crowd on the first day because there will be an event there. No one should be inconvenienced. People should go to Ayodhya for darshan of Lord Shri Ram only after getting information,” he said.

Speaking about the projects undertaken by the Narendra Modi government in the field of religious tourism, the Union Minister said, “In the last 10 years, Modi government has opened the Kartarpur Corridor, built the ropeway to Hemkund Sahib and constructed the Buddhist Circuit. After the divine and grand Somnath Dham, Kashi Vishwanath Dham, Kedarnath Dham and Mahakal Lok, now the divine and grand Ayodhya Dham has been constructed.”

Booking For ‘Aarti’ Passes Available, Check Timings

The booking for obtaining ‘aarti’ passes kicked off on Thursday at the Ram Janmabhoomi temple ahead of the consecration ceremony of Ram Lalla on January 22. Aartis are performed three times a day (6:30 am, 12 pm, 7:30 pm) for Lord Ram Lalla for which passes are generated for the devotees, the section manager for ‘Aarti pass’, Dhruvesh Mishra, said. Devotees can generate their passes online, collect them from the counter at Ayodhya and proceed for the ‘aarti’, he said. “The online facility started a few days back. One can apply for the aarti pass on the official portal of the Ram Janmaboomi temple. A time limit has been allotted for the same. Devotees can generate their passes online, receive it there and then head straight for the ‘aarti’,” Mishra said.

Locker Facility For Devotees

The soon-to-be-inaugurated Ayodhya Ram Temple will have state-of-the-art facilities for devotees in its complex as it aims to provide modern amenities and services, ensuring a comfortable and enriching experience for an estimated 25,000 pilgrims. As par locker facility manager Prince Pathak, Devotees visiting Amava Ram Temple in Ayodhya will now be able to deposit their belongings in locker free of cost. Speaking to news agency ANI, he said, “This facility with over 700 lockers is available from 6am to 8pm. Cameras are installed for the safety of devotees’ belongings kept here.”