All roads lead to Ayodhya as the country is set to witness the historic opening of Ram Temple in Ayodhya, five years after the Supreme Court ruled that the contested land will go to the Ram Temple. As the clock strikes 12.30pm on Monday, the nation will witness the grand pran-pratishtha ceremony of Lord Ram Lalla — a 51-inch, black stone idol who will be officially throned as the deity of the sacred Ram Temple. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take part in the ceremony in the presence of hundreds of dignitaries from all walks of life. Years of preparation will reach the culmination as Ram Mandir will open its gates for visitors following the grand pran-pratishtha event.

Ram Mandir opening ceremony: Full coverage

Multi-layered security in Ayodhya

Multi-layered security has been put in place as 10,715 AI-based cameras keep an eye on the city. Two NSG sniper teams have been deployed. Anti-mine drones have been deployed to inspect the ground for mines or explosives.

Ayodhya event to begin at 12.20pm

Around 10 minutes before the sacred moment, the event will begin and go on till 1pm. PM Modi will then address the gathering comprising prominent personalities, politicians, actors, sportspersons etc.

On Monday, 50 musical instruments will be played for two hours to produce ‘Mangal Dhvani’. Pakhawaj, flute, Dholak of Uttar Pradesh, Veena of Karnataka, Sundari of Maharashtra, Algoza of Punjab, Mardal of Odisha, Santoor of Madhya Pradesh, Pung of Manipur, Nagada and Kali of Assam, Tambura of Chhattisgarh, Pakhawaj of Bihar, Shehnai of Delhi, Ravanahatha of Rajasthan, Srikhol, Sarod of Bengal, Ghatam of Andhra Pradesh, Sitar of Jharkhand, other instruments from Gujarat, Nagaswaram, Tavil, Mridang, and Hudka of Uttarakhand will take part.

Ayodhya decked up, gifts coming from across the country

Ayodhya has been decked up to host the grand event as hundreds of visitors, religious leaders have been coming to the city ahead of the pran-pratistha. The mega event has sent ripples across the country as gifts from every corner have reached for Ram Lalla.

Special perfumes from Kannauj, 500 kg “kumkum” from Amravati, grains collected at a Ram temple in Delhi, flowers from Bhopal and papers with Lord Ram written 4.31 crore times from Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara, 108-foot incense stick, a 2,100-kg bell, a giant lamp weighing 1,100 kg, gold footwear, a 10-foot-high lock and key and a clock that simultaneously denotes time of eight countries, 500-kg iron-copper “nagada”, “Onavillu” bow reached the temple as gifts.

The temple received more than 3,000 gifts from Sita’s birthplace in Nepal’s Janakpur. A Sri Lankan delegation brought a special gift from the Ashok Vatika, a garden mentioned in the Ramayan

Guests started arriving in Ayodhya

Several actors and sportspersons from the long list of 8,000 invitees list reached Ayodhya on Sunday. Kangana Ranaut, Shefali Shah, Randeep Hooda, Pawan Kalyan, Rajinikanth, Shankar Mahadevan reached Uttar Pradesh on Sunday — some in Ayodhya, some in Lucknow. Saina Nehwal, PT Usha, Anil Kumble, Venkatesh Prasad also reached the state.

Ayodhya mahaprasad

The guests will receive a packet of mahaprasad from the temple containing two laddus, saryu river water Akshatm betel nut plate, kalava. Gujarat’s Bhagwa Sena Bharti Garvi and Sant Seva Sansthan prepared the mahaprasad packet.

Pre-consecration rituals

A week ahead of the pran-pratishtha, pre-consecration rituals began on January 16 leading up to Monday’s consecration moment. The 51-inch-tall idol which will be the new deity of the Ram Mandir was placed at the sanctum sanctorum during the pre-consecration rituals. Its eyes will be opened on Monday.

PM Modi’s 11-day fast

Ahead of the pran-pratishtha, PM Modi observed an 11-day fast and satvic routine to take part in the consecration rituals. During this time, he only consumed coconut water, and slept on the floor — a part of a scripture-guided ritual to awaken the divine consciousness. PM Modi embarked on a spiritual journey as he visited temples with a Ramayana link. PM Modi visited temples in Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. On Sunday, PM Modi went to Arichalmunai where Ram Setu was believed to have been built.

Opposition’s parallel plans

The Congress declined the invitation to the grand event. So did the CPM, the Trinamool, and the Samajwadi Party. They all have alternative temple plans ready. Rahul Gandhi will visit Assam’s Batadrava Than, the birthplace of Vaishnavite saint Srimanta Sankaradeva. Mamata Banerjee will visit the Kalighat temple and then attend a communal harmony rally in Kolkata. Uddhav Thackeray will visit Nashik’s Kalaram Temple. Arvind Kejriwal is likely to visit religious programmes in New Delhi.

Full-half holidays in states

January 22 is a full holiday in many states while some states have announced half-holiday and closure of schools and colleges. Central government has announced a half-day while markets will remain closed on Monday. Public sector banks will remain closed half-day. Banks in some states will remain closed for the full day — states which have announced a public holiday.

Row over Ram Temple

The pran-pratistha saw a vociferous debate over the event. While political parties claimed that the inauguration of the Ram Temple was hijacked by the BJP, some religious leaders pointed out that the temple was not yet ready and it was not right to do the pran-pratistha of the idol in an incomplete temple. The temple trust clarified that the pran-pratishtha will take place at the garbha-griha which is complete.