Stepping up preparations for the completion of construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, which oversees the Temple’s construction and management, has now started focusing on the flag hoisting ceremony that would mark the culmination of the grand project.
The flag hoisting event scheduled for November 25 this year is likely to be attended by President Draupadi Murmu.
Trust officials engaged in these preparation works said an exercise has been underway, with help from the RSS and the VHP, to finalise the guest list for the ceremony.
Sources said the theme of the Temple’s concluding event will be “samras samaj” (inclusive society), in which the invitees would mainly comprise grassroots faces from 24 districts around Ayodhya from regions such as Awadh, Goraksh and Kanpur.
“This ceremony would be different from the previous two Temple Pran Pratishtha (consecration) events as the thrust this time would be on ensuring the inclusion of local and marginalised groups. There would be gram pradhans from 24 neighbouring districts as well as representatives from such communities on the guest list,” sources said, adding that these invitees would be mainly from the Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs), among others.
The invitees would not be well-known but those “making vital contribution to society in their own way”, sources said.
The Temple’s first consecration event – the Pran Pratishtha of the Ram Lalla idol – led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was held on January 22, 2024, which was attended by a legion of politicians and luminaries from different walks of life.
The second Pran Pratishtha of the Temple, in which a statue of Lord Ram in the form of a King at Ram Darbar was consecrated, took place in June this year, which mainly involved saints and seers from all Sanatan sects.
According to Trust officials, the rituals for the “dhwaja rohan” or flag hoisting will start on November 23, with the main ceremony to be held on November 25 which will also mark “Vivah Panchami” celebrating the wedding of Lord Ram and Goddess Sita.
Sources said a 42-feet-long dhwaja stambha or flag staff has already been installed on top of the 161-feet high spire of the main Temple, where the flag would be hoisted. On the same day, flags would also be hoisted on smaller temples of different deities, which have also been established within the Temple complex.
New Trust member
Krishna Mohan, an RSS office-bearer and a former Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer, has been appointed as a new member of the Temple Trust. The decision was taken by the Trust at its meeting Tuesday.
Mohan, 73, will replace Kameshwar Chaupal in the Trust, who passed away earlier this year. Like Chaupal, he is also from the SC community.
Mohan, who hails from Hardoi district, is the RSS’ chhetra sangh chalak (region in-charge) for eastern Uttar Pradesh. He retired from the IFS, Maharashtra cadre. He was, along with his wife, one of the “yajman” (host) couples at the first consecration ceremony of the Temple.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Mohan said, “I got information from Champat Rai ji of Shri Ram Janma Bhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust that I have been nominated as one of its trustees. It was unexpected. It is all because of the will of Lord Ram. I will fulfill my new role with sincerity.”