ayodhya-shows-way-as-india-celebrates-ram-navami-with-great-pomp

Ram Navami was celebrated on Wednesday across the country with joyous processions and special prayers, as Ayodhya’s Ram temple witnessed grand festivities to mark the first Ram Navami after its consecration, a day described as a “generational milestone” by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

 

Shobha yatras, pujas and special events were organised across the length and breadth of the country, but nowhere the celebrations were as grand as in Ayodhya.

 

The celebrations passed off peacefully everywhere, barring a blast, that injured a woman, and an incident of stone-pelting in West Bengal’s Murshidabad. It was not immediately clear if it was a bomb blast or the explosion happened due to other reasons.

 

With the first phase of polling for the Lok Sabha elections less than 48 hours away, security was tightened in parts on the country already, and the administration made elaborate arrangements for Ram Navami as some incidents of violence were reported on Ram Navami during previous years.

 

The small Hindu community of the Srinagar city celebrated the festival by taking out a Shobha Yatra in the summer capital amidst tight security.

 

In Jharkhand, the festival was celebrated across the state with long queues seen outside temples, amid tight security.

 

Meanwhile, a 17-year-old girl was killed and 24 people were injured after a pick-van carrying a generator set and soundbox overturned on a Ram Navami procession in the state’s Lohardaga district.

 

A large number of devotees participated procession in Bihar’s capital Patna.

 

In West Bengal, political leaders joined Ram Navami processions along with common participants. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee greeted the people of the state on the occasion and appealed to them to maintain peace. In the Rejinagar area of Murshidabad, the Bharatiya Janata Party alleged that stones were thrown at a Ram Navami procession.

 

In Telangana, the festival was celebrated with traditional fervour with the highlight being the ‘Sri Sita Rama Kalyanam’ (celestial wedding of Lord Ram and Sita) in the temple town of Bhadrachalam on the banks of Godavari river.

 

In the Ayodhya Ram temple, a meticulously designed system of four mirrors and two lenses directed a ray of sunlight on the forehead of Ram Lalla in the sanctum sanctorum, performing the ‘Surya Tilak’ of the idol.

 

PM Modi took time off from election rally in Assam’s Nalbari to watch the Surya Tilak.