Himachal Govt declares holiday on January 22 to mark 'Pran Pratishtha' of Ram Temple

Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], January 21 (ANI): The Himachal Pradesh government has declared a public holiday for tomorrow for all the government offices and schools to mark the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony of Shri Ram Lalla at Ayodhya temple.
The 'Pran Pratihstha' of Shri Ram Lalla at Ayodhya's historic temple will be held tomorrow at 12:30 p.m.
"It is hereby notified that the full day of January 22nd, 2024 (Monday) shall be observed as a public holiday in all departments/boards/corporations/schools/colleges/universities etc of the Himachal Pradesh government to enable its employees on the occasion of Ram Lalla Pran Pratishtha at Ayodhya," the circular issued by the state government read.
"The above holiday will be applicable to the daily wage employees and also be the holiday within the meaning of section-25 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881," it added.
It is pertinent to note that earlier state Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that he would attend the 'Pran Partishtha' ceremony on January 22, even if he was not invited to the event by the temple trust.
"If the invitation comes or not, we shall go there; there is no second thought about attending the ceremony," CM Sukhu told ANI.
"We follow the path of Lord Ram. It should not be given a political colour," he added.
However, the Congress bigwigs - Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhary, declined the invitation, calling it a "BJP/RSS" event.
Earlier, several states, including Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Goa, Tripura, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Odisha, Delhi, Maharashtra, and union territories including Puducherry and Chandigarh declared a holiday to mark the mega ceremony.
Meanwhile, the Centre has also announced that all central government offices will be closed for a half-day on January 22 for the 'Pran Patishtha' ceremony of Ram Lalla at Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with several other leaders, will attend the event. Several celebrities and noted personalities have also been invited to the ceremony.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will perform rituals to mark the Pran Pratishtha of the idol of Ram Lalla at the grand temple on January 22.
A team of priests led by Lakshmikant Dixit will perform the main rituals of the Pran Prathistha of Ram Lalla on January 22. (ANI)