New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi may visit the construction site of the big Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Construction work on the three-storied superstructure of the Shri Ram Temple in Ayodhya comprising the Garbh Griha and five Mandapas on the ground floor continues in full swing, according to a report by the Temple Construction Committee.
It said that construction work on the temple is progressing as per the schedule and by December 2023 devotees will have the opportunity to offer prayers before Lord Shri Ram.
The superstructure is built on a 6.5 m (21 ft) high plinth with granite stone, which was completed in September this year.
Approximately 17,000 blocks of granite stones weighing two tons per block were used in the construction of the plinth using an interlocking arrangement between the stones.
No steel was used in the foundations, raft, and plinth. The total built-up area is 58,920 m2 and the ground floor was reached after the completion of 72 feet of three-layer structures.
The temple superstructure is built using carved Rajasthani sandstone from Bansi Paharpur of Bharatpur district.
The Prime Minister will arrive in Ayodhya on October 23. Pooja and Darshan of Bhagwan Shri Ramlala Virajman will be performed. The Prime Minister will also witness a grand aarti at the New Ghat of Saryuji, followed by his participation in grand Deepotsav celebrations.
The release states that approximately 4.75 lakh cubic feet of Bansi Paharpur stone will be used in the superstructure of the Shri Ram Temple.
The walls and floor of the Garbh Griha temple will be of Makrana marble. The temple will have 392 pillars, 166 pillars on the ground floor, 144 pillars on the first floor, and 82 pillars on the second floor.
Heavy rain in the first week of October stopped construction work on the temple. But now it has picked up the pace.
The work of installing the Makrana white marble pillars in the sanctum sanctorum of the Ram temple has also started. The construction work is going on simultaneously in all parts of the temple to maintain accuracy at the same level from the entrance to the Garbh Griha.
Experienced technicians have been engaged in mines and workshops in Rajasthan and at the Shri Ram Ram temple site for stone carving and assembly at Bansi Paharpur, the report said.
Quality of stones and Carving workmanship are supervised by experts from NIRMBangalore, architect and implementing agencies M/s L&T & Project Management Consultants. To date, 42 percent of the Bansi Paharpur stones have been carved and are available for erection.
Teak wood from the forests of Maharashtra will be used to make the doors of the temple. About one thousand seven hundred cubic feet of wood will be required to install 42 doors to the temple with special carvings for figures like Peacock, Kalash, Surya, Chakra, Conch, Mace, and various flowers.
The Parkota will be built using carved Red Rajasthan Bansi Paharpur sandstone from Bharatpur. The construction work of the RCC retaining wall and foundation of Parkota is progressing as per schedule.
A Pilgrimage Facilitation Center and other services are being built for the convenience of devotees visiting the Shri Ram Lalla Temple.
Soil testing, surveying, and staking and marking have been completed and construction work has commenced implementing the Pilgrimage Centre’s construction works, other utilities, and infrastructure services.
The master plan of the remaining area of the Shri Ram Janm Bhumi complex has been completed, in which the temples of Rishi Valmiki, Acharya Vashisth, Rishi Viswamitra, Agastya Rishi, Nishad, Jatayu, Mata Sabri, Sant Niwas, and an administrative building are planned in addition to other facilities like Yagya or Anusthan Mandap, the report said.