Ayodhya: Ayodhya is all set to host a grand ‘Deepotsav’ (festival of light) today (Friday) with tableaus depicting 11 episodes of Ramayana set up from the Saket College to the Ram Katha Park.
The previous three-day function has been curtailed to one day due to Covid restrictions.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath along with governor Anandiben Patel will inaugurate the festival at around 1530 hrs by lighting a lamp in front of ‘Ram Lalla’.
After that, Adityanath will reach the Ram Katha Park at 1600 hrs to symbolically ‘welcome’ Lord Rama and goddess Sita according to Hindu tradition, followed by the ‘Rajyaabhishek’ of lord Rama at 1700 hrs.
Yogi Adityanath and Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel will then reach the Saryu coast and perform an ‘aarti’, followed by the lighting of a lamp at the feet of the Rama idol.
As a part of the festival, 5 lakh and 51 thousand earthen lamps will be lit to set a world record in Ayodhya. After the program, the Chief Minister will take a night’s rest at Ayodhya’s Circuit House. On the morning of November 14, he will leave for Gorakhpur after a ‘darshan’ at Hanumangarhi.
During the Deepotsav, seven unique cultures from Gujarat to Bundelkhand will be seen together on the Saryu coast. The UP government has invited local artists from Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Braj and Bundelkhand to Ayodhya to showcase their talents at the festival.
The government aims to provide a platform especially to the folk artists of Bundelkhand. The Culture Department of the State Government has included the Diwari Toli of Bundelkhand in the program.
