AYODHYA: It’s a sweltering April afternoon in the temple town. Devotees have finished with the morning shift of Ram Lalla’s darshan at the makeshift temple and it’s time for a three-hour routine break for the deity. But a few paces away, over 350 men are on the job at a delirious pace.
They have a deadline to meet: December 2023.
Over 75 per cent of civil work on the first floor comprises the octagonal ‘sanctum sanctorum’ (garbha-griha) of the three-floor temple, has been completed and it is pacing towards meeting the deadline as Ram Lalla (the child form of Lord Ram) is expected to take seat in the sanctum sanctorum around Makar Sankranti.
After that, the first floor of the temple will be opened for darshan in January 2024, while the work on the rest of the floors would continue.
Sources at the Shree Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, overseeing the temple construction, claim that the actual date of the consecration of idols is expected to be announced in May last week which coincides with the birthday of trust chief Mahant Nritya Gopal Das.
One of the biggest temples to be built in the country after Independence, the Ram Temple is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2025.
A combination of new-age technological conveniences and age-old Indian traditions, the upcoming temple with three floors, five ‘mandaps’ and seven ‘dwars’ (gates), would be housed in an area of 54,700 sq ft of the nearly 2.7 acres of land on Ram Janmabhoomi premises.
However, temple trust general secretary Champat Rai says that the size of the temple complex has been raised to 110 acres as compared to the 67-acre plot originally acquired by the trust. “This has been done to incorporate the various religious and vaastu elements. The entire temple complex comprising at least six more temples of other deities is being built at an estimated cost of Rs 1,000 crore,” says Rai.
Like the sanctum sanctorum, the Griha Mandap would be fully covered, while Keertan Mandap, Nritya Mandap, Rang Mandap and the two Prarthana Mandaps on each side would be open areas.
Apart from the main temple, the complex will also house a museum, digital archives and a research centre. The temple is being built in Nagara style while the entrance on the east is in Gopuram style, representing the temples of South India.
While the architectural aspect is being taken care of by the temple chief architect Chandrakant Bhai Sompura and his two sons Ashish and Nikhil, who have designed the famous Somnath temple and have many such monumental assignments to their credit, the technical aspect of the construction of the temple is being handled by the engineers of construction giants like Larsen & Toubro and Tata Consultancy Engineers Ltd.
While L&T is responsible for building the main structure, Tatas are developing allied facilities.
Rai adds that the intent is to match the temple with ancient Hindu temples in grandeur and longevity. “The walls of the upcoming structure will depict several religious themes decided by religious heads and art experts, including those from the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts in New Delhi,” he claims.
The grand structure is being built to survive at least 1,000 years, he says, adding “Each material, which is being used, each design and drawing that is being used, has been done in IIT Chennai and has been tested by L&T and TCE.”
According to the temple construction committee chairman, retired IAS officer Nripendra Mishra, Central Research Building Institute was also roped in to ensure the stability of the structure. The CRBI tested the entire load onto the structure through simulations. “In short, we have incorporated the best brains of the country for the construction with just one objective – how to make this temple durable for 1,000 years and unique,” Misra had said in a recent interview.
The temple trust has been meeting the construction cost through crowdfunding. According to sources, the trust receives nearly Rs 1 crore a month from the public. Till March 31, 2023, over Rs 5,000 crore was received by the temple trust. The surplus money would be used for the development of Ayodhya, say the trust members. The idol of Ram Lalla, to be consecrated in the sanctum sanctorum, will measure 51 inches.
“The stones and rocks brought from Karnataka, Odisha, Rajasthan and Nepal, are undergoing the scientific tests before being finalised for making the idol of the deity,” says Dharamveer, an RSS worker, performing a supervisory role in construction.
However, the pink sandstone, known for its beauty and strength, is being sourced from Bansi Paharpur of Rajasthan for the construction of a superstructure. “Around 1000 workers are busy carving the stones round the clock in Pindwara, Rajasthan to be used in the temple,” says Chandrashekhar Sompura, the project manager at the temple construction site. Over 160 logs of stones being carved at Ayodhya Karyshala since 1991 have already been used.
“This temple will be very special symbolising the very ethos of the Hindu religious faith. It is our sheer luck that we have got the opportunity to be a part of this endeavour,” says Ashok Sompura, the site supervisor, who is part of the 12-member team of Sompuras present at the site.
Dharam Ram and Bata Ram of Rajasthan take pride in being part of the construction of the temple which, they feel, will stand for generations to tell the story of their diligence. “We did not give a second thought when we were offered by our contractor to work at the temple site here,” says Dharam Ram with a glint of content in his eyes.
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Temple Timeline
A grand temple of Lord Ram is coming up at a fast pace. Here’s a journey into time along with countless controversies:
1529: Babri mosque built by Mir Baqi.
1885: Mahant Raghubir Das files the first suit seeking to build a temple on land adjoining the mosque. Faizabad DM denies permission. The Mahant files a title suit in Faizabad court which rejects his plea.
1949: The ram idol appears inside the mosque. Hindus start offering prayers. Govt declares the site a “contested area,” locks entrance.
1950: Hindu sides file suits – two filed in Faizabad court by Gopal Simla Visharad and Paramhansa Ramachandra Das, seeking permission to conduct puja of Ram Lalla. The court allows it, but orders inner courtyard gates to remain locked.
1959: Nirmohi Akhara files suit, seeks possession of the land.
1961: UP Sunni Wakf Board files suit, demands removal of Ram Lalla’s idols from the Masjid.
1984: VHP forms a group to start the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. LK Advani was made the leader of the campaign.
1986: District judge orders removal of locks to allow pooja and darshan after lawyer UC Pandey’s appeal. Muslims form a Babri Mosque Action Committee.
1989: The then PM Rajiv Gandhi allows the VHP to perform Shilanayas near the disputed area. All title suits shifted to Allahabad HC. Another suit in the name of Ram Lalla Virajman filed in HC.
1990: Advani launches Rath Yatra from Somnath (Gujarat) to Ayodhya. Riots break out.
1992: Babri demolished by a mob of Kar Sevaks who leave behind a makeshift temple. Liberhan Commission was formed to look into demolition and riots within 3 months.
1993: Narasimha Rao govt issues ordinance acquiring 67.7 acres (site and adjoining areas). Later, passes it as a law.
2002: Ayodhya title suit case begins at Lucknow bench of Allahabad HC.
2003: Archaeological Survey of India begins excavation underneath the disputed site following HC directives. Finds remnants of a 10th-century Hindu Temple. Muslims question the ASI report.
2009: Liberhan Commission report submitted after a 17-year delay. Contents not made public.
2010: The Allahabad HC divides disputed land among three parties: one-third each for Sunni Wakf Board, Nirmohi Akhara and Ram Lalla Virajman.
2011: SC stays Allahabad HC ruling.
2017: Ex-CJ Kehar suggests out-of-court settlement. The 3-judge bench of SC starts hearing.
2019: Justice Ranjan Gogoi, CJI, uses administrative powers to list the matter before a five-judge Constitution Bench, overturning the September 2018 judgment.
2019: After two days of hearings, the bench orders court-monitored mediation. The mediation was set to end in mid-May 2019.
Nov 9, 2019: SC accepts Ayodhya was the birthplace of Lord Ram, hands over the entire 2.77 acres of disputed land to the Central government and orders it to give 5-acre land to the Sunni Waqf Board as an alternate site for construction of the mosque.
Aug 5, 2020: PM Modi performs Bhumi Poojan and lays the foundation stone for the temple at the birthplace of Lord Ram.