Ayodhya decked up for Ram Temple ceremony today

Ayodhya: The much-awaited consecration event at Ram temple will be held here on Monday in a grand ceremony with Prime Minister Narendra Modi attending the rituals.

The shrine will be opened to the public a day later. The "Pran Pratishtha" ceremony will begin at 12.20 pm and is expected to end by 1 pm.

The prime minister will then address a gathering of more than 7,000 people, including seers and prominent personalities, at the venue.

According to the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, Ram Lalla idol was bathed on Sunday with 114 pitchers filled with "aushadhiyukt" (medicated) water and sacred water brought from various pilgrimage sites.

Lakhs of people are expected to watch the event live on TV and online platforms as the Centre has announced a half-day off on January 22 and many others followed suit.

The new 51-inch idol of Ram Lalla, sculpted by Mysuru-based Arun Yogiraj, was placed in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple last Thursday.

The temple complex, built in the traditional Nagara style, will be 380 feet long (east-west direction), 250-feet wide and 161-feet high.

Each floor of the temple will be 20-feethigh and have 392 pillars and 44 gates.

On January 22, public sector banks, insurance companies, financial institutions and rural banks across the country will also remain closed for half the day.

NSE and BSE have also announced a trading holiday. While more than 7,000 people are on the list of invitees, the select list features 506 A-listers.

Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, business tycoons Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, and spor ting icon Sachin Tendulkar are among the prominent people invited to the event.

More than 3,000 gifts from Goddess Sita's birthplace in Nepal's Janakpur have also arrived. (PTI)