Over a year after the “pran pratishtha” ceremony of Ram Lalla, the Ram Temple in Ayodhya is set to witness another consecration event next month, The Indian Express reported.
This ceremony will mark Lord Ram’s coronation as King, following the planned installation of the Ram Durbar or royal court on the temple’s first floor later this month.
Preparations are currently underway, and the ceremony will be a more subdued affair compared to the grand celebrations held on January 22 last year, which saw over 8,000 attendees and was led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sources were quoted as saying in the report.
With this, the temple construction, which began in 2020 after the Supreme Court ruling led to the formation of a committee for its supervision, is nearing its conclusion.
The temple construction committee is presently chaired by Nripendra Misra, who earlier served as principal secretary to the Prime Minister.
The temple complex is expected to be ready by the end of this month, Misra recently said, adding that work on the “parkota” or compound wall will be completed before the year ends.
Mishra informed reporters that “About 20,000 cubic feet of stone is yet to be laid in the temple. The construction of the temple will be completed by around April 15,” and added, “All the statues in the temples that are outside or inside the rampart will be here by April 30, and almost all of them will be installed between March 25 and April 15.”
Meanwhile, the 51-inch-tall idol of Ram Lalla—depicting Lord Ram as a toddler at his birthplace—was sculpted by Karnataka artist Arun Yogiraj, while the Ram Durbar is being carved in Jaipur by a team of 20 craftsmen under the direction of sculptor Prashant Pandey using white Makrana marble.
Work on the Ram temple complex is now nearly 90 per cent complete, with the entire structure — including the parkota — expected to be finished this year. When the pran pratishtha ceremony was held last year, only the ground floor, which houses the sanctum sanctorum, was complete, while work on the upper floors, the main spire, and other key elements was still underway.
Statue of Saint Tulsidas to come up near Ram temple complex
A huge statue of Saint Tulsidas, who authored Ramcharitmanas, the most popular version of the Ramayana, is also being installed in the complex.
The temple, built in the traditional Nagara style, measures 380 feet in length (east-west), 250 feet in width, and rises to a height of 161 feet. It is supported by 392 intricately carved pillars and 44 doors, the report added.
Approximately 20 acres of the surrounding area will be beautified to keep the complex in harmony with nature.
The International Ramkatha Museum is also being developed in a building about 4 km from the main temple site. It will feature a hologram that brings Lord Ram to life, an immersive experience of the events from the Ramayana, and a section documenting the 200-year-long Ram Temple movement.
Artefacts unearthed during archaeological excavations at the site will also be displayed for public viewing.