On Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in the ancient holy city of Ayodhya to participate in the historic Bhoomi Pujan ceremony for the construction of Ram Mandir.
The Prime Minister had left Delhi in the morning in an Indian Air Force (IAF) plane and landed in the Uttar Pradesh capital city Lucknow from where he boarded a helicopter to travel to Ayodhya. In a gold silk kurta and white dhoti, Prime Minister Modi landed in the historic city in a helicopter for the first time in 29 years.
The Prime Minister first offered prayers at the 10th century Hanumangarhi temple – a shrine to Lord Hanuman. PM Modi was presented with a headgear, silver ‘mukut’ and a stole by Sri Gaddinsheen Premdas Maharaj, head priest of the ancient Hanuman Garhi Temple.
#WATCH: Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented with a headgear, silver ‘mukut’ and stole by Sri Gaddinsheen Premdas Maharaj, head priest of 10th-century Hanuman Garhi Temple.#Ayodhya #RamTemple pic.twitter.com/EOgqrz9hi1
— ANI (@ANI) August 5, 2020
From Hanumangarhi temple, Prime Minister Modi visited the Ram Lalla or the infant Lord Ram to offer prayers and performed ‘sashtang pranam’ at Ram Janmabhoomi.
PM Modi also participated in a tree plantation programme inside the premises and planted a Parijat sapling, considered a divine plant, ahead of foundation stone-laying of Ram Mandir.
Later, Prime Minister Modi visited the Ram Mandir site to perform Bhoomi Pujan ceremony. He was accompanied by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, Uttar Pradesh governor Anandiben Patel and others.
#WATCH Prime Minister Narendra Modi performs ‘Bhoomi Pujan’ at Ram Janambhoomi site in #Ayodhya pic.twitter.com/7hl3KLggMi
— ANI (@ANI) August 5, 2020
During the Bhoomi Pujan ceremony, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid a 40-kg silver brick to symbolise the beginning of construction of Ram Mandir. As per the priest at Ram temple Bhoomi Pujan, nine bricks were placed at the site of the ceremony, which was sent by the devotees of Lord Ram from around the world in 1989.
“There are 2 lakh 75 thousand such bricks out of which 100 bricks with ‘Jai Shri Ram’ engraving have been taken,” the priest said during the ceremony.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also unveiled the plaque of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. President of Ram Mandir Trust Mahant Nitya Gopal Das, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath, Governor Anandiben Patel and RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat were also present alongside Prime Minister Modi him.
After performing the ceremony, the Prime Minister also released a commemorative postage stamp on the ‘Shree Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir’ and addressed the nation on the historic occasion.
Ayodhya: PM Narendra Modi releases a commemorative postage stamp on the ‘Shree Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir’ pic.twitter.com/fM7ACVNjKJ
— ANI (@ANI) August 5, 2020
PM Modi is expected to be in the city of Ayodhya till Wednesday evening, which has been decked with over 1,50,000 lamps to celebrate the historic event.
