A Sea of Devotees at Ayodhya Ram Temple on First Day, Security Personnel Struggle to Control Crowd

Heavy rush was witnessed outside the Ram Mandir as a sea of devotees thronged the temple to offer prayers and have darshan of Shri Ram Lalla on the first morning after the Pran Pratishtha ceremony.

Lucknow: A massive crowd that swelled by the hour and became unmanageable in the afternoon thronged the main gateway to the Ram Temple here as it opened its doors to the public on Tuesday, a day after the consecration ceremony. In the wake of the heavy rush, the District Magistrate of Ayodhya asked the Transport Corporation not to send buses carrying passengers towards Ayodhya for at least two hours.

The Transport Corporation then stopped operating buses from Lucknow and other districts to Ayodhya. At least 100 empty buses were sent to Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation’s Manager and Spokesperson Ajit Kumar said. The buses were sent to evacuate the devotees from Ayodhya and sent to their destination.

Ram Path -- the main thoroughfare -- was choked as devotees flooded the streets of the temple town, which has been gripped by religious fervour with the inauguration of the grand mandir. An official said two lakh devotees had come to the temple till the afternoon and estimated that about five lakh devotees would have visited by the end of the day.

Waiting in serpentine queues outside the temple were people who had been camping in Ayodhya before the consecration ceremony, having made long and difficult journeys to reach the temple town. Meanwhile, devotees broke through security lines at the temple amid a huge rush for 'darshan'. Crowds of impatient people broke through police lines as Ram Bhakts started thonging in large numbers to the temple.

Appealing to devotees to maintain restraint, Additional Director General of Police (ADG) of Lucknow Zone Piyush Mordia said that darshan is going on as usual, but since a large number of devotees gathered the process is taking time. Darshan is going on as usual. However, since devotees have gathered in large numbers it is taking time. We want people not to lose patience and wait for darshan. Those who are standing ahead will get the chance to have darshan first, he said.

An idol of the new Ram Lalla was consecrated at the Ayodhya temple on Monday, a landmark event led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Lakhs of devotees are still present for the darshan of Ram Lalla in the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. The top officials of the local administration were present on the temple premises. More than 8,000 security personnel have been deployed to ensure smooth darshan to devotees. Meanwhile, officials, including UP Principal Secretary Home Sanjay Prasad and Special DG Law and Order Prashant Kumar, were present inside the Ram temple to monitor the crowd.

At the same time, Ayodhya police shared a post on X clarifying that false photos have been circulated on social media stating that due to crowd, the darshan of Ram Lalla has been temporarily stopped. The devotees chanted "Jai Shri Ram" as they walked in and out of the temple complex. Inside the main temple, 'Jai Shri Ram' chants reverberated. The temple complex, built in the traditional Nagara style, is 380 feet long from the east to the west, 250 feet wide, and will eventually rise to 161 feet at the 'Shikhar'.

Lakhs of people watched the 'Pran Pratishtha (consecration)' ceremony on television in their homes and neighbourhood temples on Monday. "January 22, 2024, is not merely a date in the calendar, but heralds the advent of a new era," Modi said after he performed a series of rituals in the 'garbha griha (sanctum sanctorum)'.

The Prime Minister also prostrated himself before the 51-inch idol that depicts the child Ram. "Today, our Ram has arrived. After a long wait for ages, our Ram has arrived. Our Ram Lalla will no longer live in a tent. Our Ram Lalla will stay in a magnificent temple," Modi said in his address to the invitees. (With Agency Inputs)

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