LUCKNOW: The installation ceremony of the idols of Ram Darbar on the Ram temple’s first floor has been deferred by a month. The installation was scheduled to take place on the occasion of Akshay Tritiya on Wednesday, April 30. Now it is expected to take place on May 23.
As per the sources of the temple trust, the idol installation ceremony has been delayed due to a defect in the idols of the Ram Darbar.
Meanwhile, Shree Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra trust sources claim that elaborate arrangements will be made for the Pran Pratishtha (consecration) of Ram Darbar in June.
As per the details shared by informed sources, the Ram Darbar will feature four-and-a-half-foot tall marble idols of Lord Ram, Goddess Sita, Lord Hanuman, Bharat, Lakshman and Shatrughan.
According to one of the members of the temple trust, Dr Anil Mishra, the idols have been carved from white Makrana marble in Rajasthan.
To maintain the site’s sanctity, only a limited number of devotees will be allowed access to the temple’s first floor.
On the other hand, a 42-foot flagpole on the main spire of the upcoming Ram temple on Ram Janmabhoomi premises was installed, taking the total height of the temple to 203 feet.
The flagpole was installed by Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Tirath Kshetra Trust general secretary Champat Rai after traditional puja and other rituals on Tuesday.
“On the auspicious occasion of Akshaya Tritiya, the Ram Darbar was to be ceremoniously placed in the sanctum sanctorum on the first floor. But the ceremony has now been postponed for next month,” said the temple trust.
As per the temple construction committee sources, Ram Mandir construction will be completed by June 5 this year.
Nripendra Mishra, chairman of the construction committee of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, said that 99 per cent of the construction work had been completed.
“The Dhwajdand (temple flagpole) has been installed atop the shikhar (spire), which is essentially a symbolic declaration that the work on the shikhar is now complete. The overall construction of the temple is now nearly finished,” Mishra said.
While the installation of the Ram Darbar on the first floor of the temple would take place on May 23, Lord Ram would be ceremoniously enshrined as per our faith and rituals on June 5, Mishra said.
He added that the seven temples dedicated to sages and devotees associated with Lord Ram, on the premises, given special importance by the Prime Minister, were also complete.
These seven temples, dedicated to Maharishi Valmiki, Shri Vashisht ji, Vishwamitra ji, Ahilya ji, Nishadraj Maharaj, Shabari Mata, and Agastya Muni, located within the temple premises, will also be open to the public after June 5.
The second floor of the temple will feature a display of the Ramayan in multiple languages, including its oldest known version.
In August last year, the trust also received a Ram Darbar made of Titanium from Mishra Dhatu Nigam Limited (MIDHANI). It will be placed in the sanctum sanctorum on the first floor of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. MIDHANI is an enterprise of the Union Defence Ministry.