A delegation representing the Ram Temple Trust on Friday called on President Droupadi Murmu and formally invited her to attend the consecration ceremony in Ayodhya on January 22.
In a major upset in the Faizabad parliamentary constituency, where the temple town of Ayodhya is situated, Samajwadi Party candidate Awadhesh Prasad defeated sitting Bharatiya Janata Party MP Lallu Singh by a margin of 54,567 votes.
Buildings were decorated with colourful lights and earthen lamps dotted houses as people across the country thronged temples and celebrated Diwali with pomp on Monday.
While the country awaits for the grand pran pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla at Ayodhya's temple, on the sixth day of the ceremony, the Ram Lalla idol was bathed with water from 114 Kalash (vases), each containing specially medicated liquids.
More than 3,000 gifts for Lord Ram from Sita's birthplace in Janakpur in Nepal have arrived in Ayodhya.
The construction of the temple is expected to be completed by December 2023 and Lord Ram is expected to be seated in the sanctum sanctorum by the Makar Sankranti festival in January 2024.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni was handed the invite by the RSS's Dhananjay Singh and Karmveer Singh.
Once a quiet riverside ritual, Dev Deepawali has evolved into UP's largest soft-power spectacle -- merging faith, art, enterprise into a global cultural brand that reflects state's growing confidence.
The former beauty queen turned actor knows how to balance style with authenticity.
The much-awaited Ram temple consecration will be held in Ayodhya on Monday in a grand ceremony with Prime Minister Narendra Modi attending the rituals, following which the shrine will be opened for the public a day later.
The construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya is going on in full swing with the temple likely to open for devotees in January 2024.
This was President Murmu's first visit to Ayodhya since the Ram temple's consecration ceremony on January 22, 2024.
While main events throughout the country were organised on Sunday by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America, several community members gathered at the iconic Times Square in New York to celebrate the historic event.
'The 2024 general elections proved that UP is not Gujarat.'
After attending the pran pratishtha ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22, film folk were spotted at the Mumbai airport, as they made their way home.
As many as 3,800 bamboo and 36 projector lights worth over Rs 50 lakh installed on Bhakti Path and Ram Path, located in a high-security area in Ayodhya, were allegedly stolen, according to police.
According to the proposal of the state Tourism department, which was approved by the Cabinet, around Rs 137 crore will be spent on the renovation of the old Punaura Dham Janki Mandir and Rs. 728 crore for the development of tourist infrastructure around the temple. The remaining amount will be spent on the maintenance of the infrastructure for ten years.
Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com captures scenes from Ayodhya hours before the pran prathishta ceremony.
Besides paying his respects to Ram Lalla, the megastar, who was accompanied by his son Abhishek, was seen rubbing shoulders with quite a few dignitaries.
North India is convulsed with spiritual excitement over the pran pratishta at the Ram temple. But what do folks in Tamil Nadu think about the events in Ayodhya?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the record turnout in the first phase of the Bihar assembly polls indicates people's trust in the NDA government. He predicted victory for the NDA, led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and lauded the Election Commission for conducting successful elections.
'Sri Ayodhyaji will emerge as the greatest centre of cultural togetherness, universal harmony, vasudeva kutumbakam, compassion, and love for every single living being on this Earth.'
While the Congress top brass has declined the invitation to the January 22 consecration ceremony at Ayodhya's Ram temple, the party's Uttar Pradesh unit plans to go ahead with its own event a week earlier in the holy town.
Walking, cycling and even skating! Covering long distances amid bone-chilling cold, people from all over the country and cutting across religions are flocking to the temple town of Ayodhya ahead of the consecration ceremony on January 22.
'I speak after asking Ram Lalla. I spoke with Ram Lalla's inspiration'
BJP sources suggest that the upcoming elections will likely revolve around the renewed enthusiasm for the temple unless another theme with religious and nationalist undertones emerges.
The idol of Ram Lalla was unveiled on Monday at Shri Ram Janmaboomi Temple in Ayodhya in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The push to develop Ayodhya as a tourism centre, accompanied by large-scale infrastructure projects, comes on the back of years of limited income growth and tourist inflows.
Narendra Modi has proved through execution of this event in Ayodhya that amongst all his contemporaries in politics he knows ordinary Indians like none other, notes Sheela Bhatt.
Invitees to the 'pran pratishtha' consecration ceremony at the Ram temple started arriving Sunday in Ayodhya -- once a sleepy town now resplendent with new infrastructure and gripped by heightened religious fervour on the eve of a seminal event in India's political and religious history.
Not only will Arun Govil, Sunil Lahiri and Deepika Chikhalia attend the Pran Pratistha ceremony, Moti Sagar, Ramanand Sagar's son, also received an invitation.
The extended timing to offer prayers at the new Ram temple in Ayodhya came into effect on Thursday with 'darshan' being allowed from 6 am as key roads leading to the temple town remained closed to regulate vehicular movement.
Efficient land use, minimum congestion, a focus on dharamshalas (inns) and homestays, upgrading the infrastructure while retaining the historical and cultural character of the city are some of the highlights of the plan prepared by Kukreja, the managing principal of CP Kukreja Architects.
Evening prayers on the banks of the Sarayu river in Ayodhya.
Even as the rest of India are heading towards Ayodhya, Tamannaah Bhatia has another temple in her sights.
Alia headed for Ayodhya immediately after gracing an awards ceremony in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where she was honoured.
The event brings to fruition the Bharatiya Janata Party's 'mandir' movement that defined its politics for three decades and took it to the heights of power.
Narayan said that Sri Ram temple should be built using 19 acres of space which belong to the Department of Muzrai at Ramadevarabetta.
To truly understand Ayodhya's soul, Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com spoke to Ayodhya nivasis to find out how they respond to the new Ram temple in their midst, and the changes in their lives.
Adityanath spent hours reviewing the arrangements for the ceremony at the Ram Janmabhoomi, where the temple will be constructed following the go-ahead last year by the Supreme Court.
