For Yogi Adityanath the successful management of the fair is a crucial part of building 'Brand UP' and making the state a $1 trillion economy.
The event will be marked by prayers to Lord Shiva at the Kuber Tila shrine on the Ram Janmabhoomi site, allocated for the temple in a historic Supreme Court verdict last November.
Work on building a pilgrimage facilitation centre and other utilities in Ayodhya's Ram temple complex has started, with 'darshan' of Ram Lalla expected to open in December 2023, according to a senior official of the construction committee.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday accused RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat of treason for his remark that India got "true independence" after the Ram temple consecration. Gandhi also criticized the Election Commission, alleging a "serious problem" with the country's election system.
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.
The construction of the Ram temple structure in Ayodhya will be done using Pink stone sourced from Rajasthan, and the temple campus will include a museum, research centre, 'gaushala' and a 'yagya shala', sources in the temple trust said on Thursday.
In the late 1990s, the construction cost of the Ram temple, according to unofficial estimates, was pegged at Rs 120 crore. Adjusting for inflation to the current financial year, the edifice would entail an investment of nearly Rs 450 crore, excluding the land cost.
The third phase of the construction of the Ram temple began at Ramjanmabhoomi in Ayodhya on January 24 with the laying of the granite stones for the plinth.
A huge contingent of police personnel, including a Rapid Action Force (RAF) team, was deployed in the area to avoid any untoward incident.
Mahant Nritya Gopal Das was elected president and Champat Rai general secretary of the Ram Temple trust at its first meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday.
Making a statement in the lower house soon after a meeting of the Union Cabinet, Modi said, "An autonomous trust has been formed, it is called 'Shri Ram Janambhoomi Teertha Kshetra'." The Supreme Court had directed the government to form the trust within three months and the deadline was ending on February 9.
An editorial in Sena mouthpiece Saamana said it was never decided that the grand temple will be constructed through public donations, and political campaigning in the name of Lord Ram has to be stopped at some point of time.
The Rajya Sabha MP said for electoral success 'it is essential that the ideology of Hindutva is never lost sight of'.
'I have prayed for the team that the way we are playing, we keep that up.'
The members include senior lawyer K Parasaran, Jagatguru Shankracharya, Jyothishpeethadheeshwar Swami Vasudevanand Saraswati Ji Maharaj from Allahabad, Jagatguru Madhavacharya Swami Vishwa Prasannatheerth Ji Maharaj, Pejawar Math in Udupi, Yugpurush Paramanand Ji Maharaj from Haridwar, Swami Govinddev Giri Ji Maharaj from Pune and Vimlendra Mohan Pratap Mishra from Ayodhya.
Clashes were reported from Kharagpur in West Midnapore district, Narayanpur in North 24 Parganas, and Alipurduar town in north Bengal, among others.
He also described the foisting of murder cases against Kanchi Shankaracharyas and their arrest as the 'greatest insult' heaped on the Hindus in this century.
'When the Babri Masjid was demolished, we didn't take permission from anyone.'
He also appealed to the Muslim side for a peaceful solution for all these three temples.
Much drama is likely to continue in the coming year, within the Sangh Parivar as well as involving the Opposition parties and, of course the BJP's allies, predicts Modi biographer Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
The Bharatiya Janata Party, for whom the temple town sharpened its Hindutva plank, is facing a challenge particularly from the Samajwadi Party in the ongoing state polls.
On August 5, Das shared the dais with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Adityanath, Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat at the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya.
"Bring an ordinance on Ram temple and fulfil at least one promise made to Hindus," said the party.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday asserted that Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir, will not be restored even if Congress stalwart and late PM Indira Gandhi comes down from heaven.
Beginning his speech with 'Jai Siya Ram', the prime minister told the gathering that a grand temple will now be built for 'Ram Lalla', the infant Ram, who had been living in a temporary tent for years.
Amid protests outside the Delhi University, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy went ahead with a seminar on the construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhya where he asserted that nothing will be done forcibly or against the law.
The move is seen as a prelude to Chavda's joining the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Uttarakhand has become the first state in India to implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), fulfilling a key promise made by the ruling BJP ahead of the 2022 Assembly elections. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami unveiled the UCC notification and launched a portal for mandatory online registration of marriages, divorces, and live-in relationships. The UCC aims to create equal laws for all citizens regardless of their religion, marking a historic moment in the state's legal landscape.
He alleged that the Congress was putting hurdles in the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya.
A standing committee of the Rajasthan Wildlife Board's has cleared a proposal to allow the mining of a special sandstone, much sought after by builders including those constructing the Ram temple in Ayodhya, from Bharatpur's Bandh Baretha sanctuary.
Virtually endorsing Bharatiya Janata Party general secretary Amit Shah's statement on construction of RamTemple at Ayodha, party president Rajnath Singh on Saturday said all Hindus want it to come up there.
Participating in the eighth edition of Deepotsav in Ayodhya - the first since the consecration of Ram temple on January 22, Adityanath said, "This is a historic first as after 500 years, Lord Ram is now in his abode in Ayodhya for Diwali."
Swamy has contended that the pendency of the appeals in the SC has restricted his fundamental right to worship and enjoy dignity of life.
The Cabinet meeting and the holy dip comes on a day that marks the first anniversary of the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Devotees attending the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj are facing transportation challenges, with many forced to walk long distances in search of transport. Thousands of pilgrims returning from the event are stranded at Varanasi Cantt and Banaras railway stations, with some missing their trains due to the rush and others stuck because of cancellations. Officials say the traffic situation in the district has returned to normal, but some pilgrims report difficulties in finding transport and reaching their destinations.
Lal was the director general of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and had found temple-like pillars during excavation at the Ayodhya site where the Ram temple is now being built. Officials said that he was one of the youngest directors general of ASI and served from 1968 to 1972.
Thackeray recalled former prime minister Vajpayee as saying, Ab Hindu maat nahi khayega (Hindus will not be defeated now), and added, "Hindus will not sit silent."
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury accused the ruling dispensation of resorting to diversionary tactics.
'Pass the law on Ram temple without any delay and stop fooling the majority'
After the incident took place on Sunday evening, the body of a man was found about 200 metres from the clash site in Kidana village, and the police are trying to ascertain if he was killed as part of that violence, Kutch (East) Superintendent of Police Mayur Patil said.
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