Ramlalla idol may be moved to new makeshift temple on March 25

According to a local VHP spokesperson, the new structure “will be inside the existing campus, and will be equally secure with high-class water proof material”.

THE RAMLALLA idol in Ayodhya is likely to be shifted to a new makeshift temple on March 25 — the start of the Chaitra Navratri festival. Sources said that during a recent visit to the temple town, Nripendra Misra, who is heading the temple construction committee of the Ram Teerth Kshetra Trust, and VHP leader Champat Rai, the Trust’s general secretary, discussed setting up of a makeshift temple in the next 20-21 days so that pilgrims can celebrate Ram Navami there on April 2. Misra is a former principal secretary to Prime Minister.

“If things go as planned then this Ram Navami, Ramlalla will be free from ‘taat’ tent,” VHP national spokesperson Vinod Bansal told The Indian Express. “Things are taking time as the area has been under terrorist attack threat and thus officials have to make arrangements keeping security measures in the mind but at the same time giving more facilities for pilgrims.”

According to a local VHP spokesperson, the new structure “will be inside the existing campus, and will be equally secure with high-class water proof material”. It will provide a closer look at the idol. Devotees will also have the opportunity to take off their shoes before viewing the deity, and have facilities where they can take a break, sources said.