IT News
Mumbai, Aug 3:
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be attending the bhoomi pujan (ground-breaking ceremony) for the Ram temple in Ayodhya on 5 August, the function will be religious and no political announcements will be made.
According to sources, Modi will be reaching Ayodhya between 11 AM to 11.15 AM. On reaching Ayodya, he will offer prayers at “Hanuman Garhi” for about three minutes. He will be at “Hanuman Garhi” totally for 7 minutes and then will proceed to the venue of the main function. A team of SPGs has already reached Ayodhya ahead of Modi’s visit.
The Hanumangarhi temple, is the famous temple en route to the proposed Ram temple. It was visited earlier by Rahul Gandhi in 2016, Priyanka Gandhi in 2019 and their grandmother Indira Gandhi many years ago.
The bhoomi pujan will be done by the PM between 12:30 PM and 12:40 PM on the auspicious ‘abhijeet muhurat’. There will be limited number of VIPs on stage and at bhoomi pujan spot, given social distancing norms and Covid-19 protocols. Modi will be in Ayodhya, for nearly three hours and will leave for New Delhi by 2.30 PM.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad, has invited the select invitees including RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and Ram Temple Trust head Nritya Gopal Das. Some of these VIPs are expected to speak on the occasion, the general secretary of the trust, Champat Rai, said.
Besides, the religious heads of different faith including Shankaracharya representing Hindus, the heads of Sufi sect, Christianity, Jainism, Sikhisms, Islam and Buddhisms have been invited. The list also includes Sunni Central Waqf Board Chairman Jaffer Farukhi, local social worker Mohmed Shariff and Iqbal Ansari, the main litigant in the Ayodhya land dispute case. The invitations have been extended over telephone.
The coronavirus situation is being closely monitored in Ayodhya where, the number of positive cases has surged, as testing has been increased ahead of the bhoomi pujan function. Many security-men posted at the Janmabhoomi premises are being tested to eliminate the possibility of any infected person on the premises.
In Ayodhya, total cases have crossed 1194 (544 active cases). So far, 36,000 tests have been carried out and an over all positivity rate is 3% . Fourteen people have died in Ayodhya due to coronavirus while the recovery rate stands at53 percent.
