Ayodhya Ram Mandir: 3 days after inauguration, crowds thin slightly, likely to pick up later in the day

By 6 am on Thursday, there were two queues — each about a kilometre long — outside the temple premises. But officials said the numbers would increase over the course of the day as devotees were likely to partake in a ritual called 'paush purnima', in which devotees take a dip in the Saryu river.

Devotees arrive at Ram Mandir in Ayodhya on Thursday morning. (PTI)

Days after the Pran Pratishtha ceremony of the Ram Lalla idol in Ayodhya, the large crowds of devotees that had thronged the newly inaugurated Ram Mandir in Ayodhya appeared to have thinned out slightly on Thursday morning.

By 6 am on Thursday, there were two queues — each about a kilometre long — outside the temple premises. However, officials said the numbers would increase over the course of the day as devotees were likely to partake in a ritual called ‘paush purnima’, in which devotees take a dip in the Saryu river.

This comes after chaos broke out the day after the consecration ceremony, when larger than anticipated crowds tried to push their way inside the temple. By the next day, when over 50,000 people camped overnight to visit the temple, barricades were placed to ensure that they stood in queues and entered in an orderly manner.

A day after the consecration ceremony on Tuesday, around 5 lakh people paid obeisance to the Ram idol. At least 8,000 security personnel have been deployed to manage the rush. On Tuesday evening, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath arrived in Ayodhya to take stock of the situaiton. Those present at the temple gates said the CM had made a personal appeal to the crowd: “Darshan ke liye na harbarayen. Bheed normal hone ke baad Ayodhya aayein (do not be in a rush to pay obeisance. Let the crowd become normal and then come to Ayodhya).”

The CM also called senior police and administrative officers and held a review of crowd management efforts on the premises.

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