Post Grand Opening, Ram Temple Draws Enormous Crowd with Long Queues Continuing the Following Day

The Ram temple in Ayodhya witnessed an overwhelming influx of devotees, drawing a massive crowd a day after its grand opening ceremony, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several celebrities. Despite the harsh winter conditions, around 5 lakh devotees gathered at the temple, with 3 lakh managing to offer prayers during the day and an equal number patiently awaiting their turn outside, as reported by officials.

Visuals this morning depicted a substantial congregation of devotees outside the temple, reinforcing expectations of over a lakh visitors offering prayers daily. In response to the surge in devotees, the Uttar Pradesh government dispatched Principal Home Secretary Sanjay Prasad and top police officer Prashant Kumar to Ayodhya.

Prashant Kumar, DG (Law and Order), acknowledged the significant gathering and outlined improved crowd management measures. “We have improved the queue system for crowd management. We have made channels for the people,” he stated.

Approximately 8,000 security personnel from the Uttar Pradesh police, Rapid Action Force (RAF), and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) have been deployed at the temple, with eight magistrates overseeing different locations. Praveen Kumar, Inspector-General of Police Ayodhya, urged visitors to schedule their visits after two weeks, emphasizing that preparations are complete and the temple will be open to everyone.

“The crowd is nonstop, but preparations are complete. We appeal to the old and Divyang people to schedule their visit after two weeks. I want to appeal to the people that there’s no need to hurry for Darshan. The temple will be opened for everyone with better preparations,” he mentioned.

UP police chief Vijay Kumar reassured the public that an ample number of police personnel are stationed within the temple premises, particularly at points where devotees go for darshan. The grand opening, marked by the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ of Ram Lalla on Monday, witnessed a star-studded ceremony attended by luminaries such as Sachin Tendulkar, Amitabh Bachchan, Mukesh Ambani and family, Ranbir Kapoor-Alia Bhatt, and other celebrities.