Massive devotee turnout at Ayodhya's Ram Temple as queues stretch from dawn to late night

Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh) [India], February 22 (ANI): Ayodhya's Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple continues to witness an overwhelming rush of devotees from across the country.
Devotees from all over the country are arriving in Ayodhya to see Ram Lalla, the revered infant form of Lord Ram. Starting as early as 5:00 a.m. on Friday, thousands of devotees were seen standing in queues, which continued uninterrupted until 10:00 p.m.
After bathing at the Triveni Sangam during the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj, many devotees proceed to seek the darshan of Ram Lalla, resulting in a gathering of lakhs of devotees within the temple premises.
Amid the increasing influx of worshippers, local authorities have implemented extensive crowd control measures to maintain order and ensure safety.
Earlier in the week, Ayodhya SSP Rajkaran Nayyar told ANI, "... A large number of devotees are continuously coming to Ayodhya... 24-hour duty has been imposed for crowd control, security and traffic management. Everyone has the same objective, which is for all the devotees to come back with a smooth experience..."
"Parking has been arranged according to the routes... Police have been deployed for traffic... Our lost and found centres are also present at six places in the entire fair area ...," the officer said.
With the surge in worshippers seeking the darshan of Ram Lalla, the police have divided the city into six zones and 11 sectors to ensure safety during the ongoing Maha Kumbh, authorities said.
Ayodhya SP Madhuvan Kumar Singh said, "The number of devotees is increasing day by day. Since the beginning of Maha Kumbh Mela, people who are going to take a bath in Kumbh Mela have come here to have darshan of Lord Shri Ram and Hanuman ji in Ayodhya Dham. Lakhs of devotees have been coming here since morning to take darshan and to take a dip in the Sarayu river."
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath highlighted the transformative progress in Uttar Pradesh, citing Prayagraj, Kashi, and Ayodhya as symbols of India's growing potential and credited Prime Minister Modi's leadership for restoring the country's faith and respect globally.
He said that the number of devotees visiting Ayodhya has skyrocketed from 2.35 lakh in 2016-17 to over 14-15 crore in 2024, reflecting the respect for faith and the region's economic growth. (ANI)