Know the story of carving and installation of stone in Ayodhya's Ram Temple

AYODHYA: As Ayodhya is buzzing with anticipation for the Pran Prathistha ceremony of the Ram Temple on January 22, the beautifully carved stones installed in the temple of Lord Shri Ram have been carved in Ayodhya for years and this work is being looked after by an 84-year-old Annu bhai Somapura of Ahmedabad who is a master stone-carver and supervisor of the Shri Ram Mandi Nirman Workshop.

Annu Sompura who came to Ayodhya in 1990 is a master stone-carver and supervisor of the Shri Ram Mandi Nirman Workshop and has always hoped that the temple of Shri Ram would be built. With this hope, he has been monitoring the work of stone carving for years.

"I came to Ayodhya in 1990. Architect CB Sompura ji had sent me here. CB Sompura ji told me to take five artisans and talked to the artisans. When I asked the artisans to come along with me to Ayodhya, no one was ready to come to the city as artisans were scared to come but now 200 artists work here," he told ANI on Sunday.

Somapura said adding, "After that, my younger brother and one of my sons, all three of us came here." He further said that when people noticed that work of stone carving was being done gradually a stone cart also arrived and artisans also started coming. "The number reached to at least 150 people at the Ram Temple.

The stone also came from Bansipalpur village in Rajasthan. The age of these stones which are installed in the temple of Lord Shri Ram is 1000 years, it is visible even from a distance it is also being checked, and the carving on it also looks good, hence this stone was passed and it was decided that the temple would be built with these stones only and all the carvings on these stones are done by hand," he said.

He further asserted that at the age of 45 years, I came here from Ahmedabad, Gujarat and now I am 84 years old and I had never thought that we would witness this moment.

"I have been waiting for this moment and gave my whole life. we stood firm here. Governments came and went, but our work did not stop," he added.

He further said that the stone had been lying here for about 34 years and now cleaning of the stones is being done. With just over a week left for the grand ceremonial opening of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the city is being given a transformative makeover ahead of the much-anticipated 'Pran Pratishtha' on January 22. Some workers engaged in polishing stones spoke to ANI and expressed their joy for the grand ceremonial opening of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

Aarti who has been doing the work of polishing stones for 15 years, had tears of joy in her eyes and said, "We are very happy that we will see Parn Prathistha of Lord Ram and I am happy that we have contributed in the making of Ram Temple. For us, it is lifetime earning."

Another worker engaged in polishing stones, Reeta said that stones being laid in Ram Janmabhoomi provided employment not only to the men but also to the women of Ayodhya because by working every day they earn around Rs 400 to 500 per day.

"We never thought that Ayodhya would progress so much, but today Ayodhya is continuously moving towards development," she said. The 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony of the Ram Temple will be held on January 22.

Vedic rituals for the Pran-Pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya will begin on January 16, a week before the main ceremony. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is keeping a fast till the 'Pran Pratishtha' of Shri Ram Lalla at His birthplace in Ayodhya, will preside over the grand temple opening on January 22. Several tent cities are being erected in Ayodhya to accommodate devotees, who are expected to arrive in the temple town of Uttar Pradesh for the grand 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony.