Govt's 'Rush Hour' Plan for Ayodhya 'VIP Traffic': Union Ministers to Go in March, State Cabinets in Batches

During the union cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi requested his ministers to plan their visits to the Ram temple in Ayodhya only around March, sources told CNN-News18. This is being done keeping in mind the rush in the holy city since the pran pratishtha (consecration) ceremony on January 22, they added.

“VIPs going there will only mean greater inconvenience to the common people who have been thronging the temple ever since it opened for darshan,” a government source told CNN-News18.

Keeping the massive rush and VIP protocols in mind, the BJP is also planning scattered visits to Ayodhya by chief ministers and ministers from states ruled by it.

When asked, union minister Anurag Singh Thakur said, “Everybody must plan their visit in accordance with what the Uttar Pradesh government decides so that it is convenient for all.”

As per the schedule provided to CNN-News18 by BJP sources:

• Tripura chief minister and his cabinet colleagues will visit Ayodhya on January 31.
• Uttar Pradesh’s Yogi Adityanath-led cabinet will be in the holy city for a darshan on February 1.
• Eknath Shinde will lead his Maharashtra cabinet to Ayodhya on February 5.
• The Pema Khandu-led Arunachal Pradesh cabinet will visit on February 6.
• Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar and his ministers are set to go on February 9.
• On February 12, Bhajan Lal Sharma Goa will lead his Rajasthan cabinet to Ayodhya.
• Goa CM Pramod Swant and his ministers will visit the Ram Mandir on February 15.
• February 22 will see a visit by Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and his cabinet.
• Bhupendra Patel’s Gujarat cabinet will go to the holy city on February 24.
• Madhya Pradesh’s cabinet led by CM Mohan Yadav will visit Ayodhya on March 4.

During the union cabinet meeting held last week, PM Modi asked his ministers to visit the temple along with devotees from their constituencies, said sources.

He, in fact, advised them to travel with the public in trains and buses in a way to facilitate the darshan to the grand Ram temple, the sources added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the chief yajman at the pran pratishtha ceremony at the Ram Mandir on January 22, and since then lakhs of people have been flocking to the shrine.

According to officials, 5 lakh devotees did darshan on the first day the temple was opened to the public. Seeing this, the UP administration has come up with multiple guidelines for travel and waiting at the temple.