Discussion Underway On Date Of Placing Ram Lalla Idol In Ayodhya, Announcement Likely In May Last Week

A deliberation to decide the date of placing the idol of Ram Lalla in the original sanctum sanctorum is underway in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh.

Workers prepare stones for the construction of Shri Ram Janmbhoomi temple, at a workshop in Ayodhya. ( Image Source :PTI )

Ram temple construction committee is currently deliberating in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh to decide the date of placing the idol of Ram Lalla in the original sanctum sanctorum. A two-day meeting of the committee is underway to decide on several important matters related to the temple, reported PTI. The meeting that began on Friday is scheduled to be attended by committee chairman Nripendra Mishra, Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra General Secretary Champat Rai, office bearers of the Trust, and engineers of Larsen & Toubro, the report added. 

The Trust may announce the actual date in the last week of May on the occasion of the birthday of the Trust president Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, sources told PTI. 

The stakeholders will likely take a decision on the date of placing of the idol of Ram Lalla in the temple. Apart from it, they will also discuss the carving of a new idol of Lord Rama. Reportedly, seers from Kashi have also suggested some dates for the installation of the idol. 

As per the report, the event in Ayodhya is likely to see the presence of senior seers and many national leaders. 

Ram Lalla Idol Construction 

The trust entrusted with the project has decided that the archer-shaped "krishna shila," or black stone from Karnataka, will be used to create the idol of Ram Lalla that will be installed at the temple that is currently under construction in Ayodhya, reported news agency PTI. The well-known sculptor Arun Yogiraj of Mysore will use black stones (Krishna shila) from Karnataka to carve out the standing idol of 5-year-old Ram Lalla in the form of an archer.  

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust finalised the idol's specifications during its two-day meeting on the evening of April 18. 

"The new idol of Lord Ram, in his five-year-old avatar, will be five-foot tall. The idol will be in a standing posture armed with a bow and arrow," trust member Swami Teerth Prasannyacharya said.  

"Arun Yogiraj will carve the idol out of stone brought to Ayodhya from Karnataka's Karkar and Hegge Deven Kote villages.... The sculptor will finalise the stone which the idol will be carved out of," he added. 

According to Champat Rai, general secretary of the trust, they decided on "krishna shila" after consulting with experts in Hindu scriptures, geologists, sculptors, and office-bearers.