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With the date of the consecration ceremony of the idol of Lord Rama at Ram Janmabhumi just around the corner, city hotels in this district of Uttar Pradesh are witnessing a rush among travel agents and devotees to book rooms in advance.
While it is speculated that the ceremony may take place between January 15th and January 24th, the exact date of the function is not yet officially clear.
The city’s hotel and resort owners are expecting a huge influx of devotees to witness the historic event with many of them claiming that parties try to book rooms for 10 to 12 days to ensure the historic event is not missed at the last minute.
Taking note of the expected rush of the ceremony, Departmental Commissioner (DC) Gaurav Dayal on Wednesday convened a meeting of hoteliers in Ayodhya in preparation and instructed them to decorate their hotels to warmly welcome their guests during the consecration ceremony.
“We regularly receive calls from Delhi, Bombay and other metro cities from people wanting to book our rooms for two whole weeks,” said Sharad Kapoor, managing director of Ayodhya’s oldest hotel, Shan-e-Awadh.
“We are ready to welcome devotees, but I am keeping at least 40 per cent of the rooms in the hotel booked because senior police and management officials prefer to stay in my hotel because we have been cooperating with them since the beginning of the Ram Janabbhumi movement,” Kapoor said, adding that he is expecting a massive influx of VIPs. Along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Speaking to PTI, Sangram Singh, one of the owners of the resort said, “We received an inquiry from a travel agency in Bombay for 1,500 rooms for a week, but the problem is that the exact date of the party is not clear.” On Wednesday, registration certificates were distributed to 41 building owners under the paying guests system.
Addressing all the owners of the premises, he said, in the coming days, besides the consecration of the Great Shri Ram Temple, that the number of devotees coming to Ayodhya will increase by labour, and from them a large number of devotees will also remain overnight.
The commissioner said that a hotel, guest house and accommodation would be required for their stay, adding that such homestays would not only give the congregation a home-like experience but would also generate additional income and employment opportunities for the local people in the area.
There are about 150 hotels in Faizabad and Ayodhya, including 10 deluxe hotels, 25 budget hotels, 115 budget hotels, 35 unrecognized guest houses, 50 Dharamshala, 50 guest houses/paid guest houses, accounting for a total of 10,000 rooms in interrupts.
In addition, there are four state guest houses with about 35 rooms. About 50 small guesthouses currently under construction are expected to be ready by November.
Construction work of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya is in full swing and the temple is likely to open to devotees on January 24 next year after the dedication of the Ram Lala idol which will be a 10-day ritual, temple construction committee chairman Nripendra Mishra said last month.
The ground floor work of the three-storeyed Ram temple has been completed, Mishra said, adding that the temple’s secretariat has decided to start the process of consecration of Ram Lala on the occasion of Makar Sankranti on January 14.
“Between January 14th and January 24th, a 10-day ritual of ‘Pran Pratishtha’ (dedication) to Ram Lala will be celebrated,” Mishra told reporters here.
The sources said that the statue of Ram Lala may be consecrated on January 22, according to the astrologers consulted by the temple secretariat, as this is the best date.
The authorities of the Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust will invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the consecration ceremony during which the idol of Ram Lalla will be installed in the precincts of the temple.
Trust general secretary Chamb Rai said a request letter signed by the fund’s chairman, Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, would be sent to the prime minister.
“Since no date has been set for the idol’s dedication, the Prime Minister will be asked to give his permission on any suitable date between December 2023 and January 26, 2024,” Rai told reporters last month.
(This story was not edited by the News18 staff and was published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)
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