People of the country are excited for the Ram temple consecration ceremony to be held in the holy city of Ayodhya on January 22, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday. He could arrive a day earlier, sources say.

Sharing the enthusiasm of people in welcoming Lord Ram in Ayodhya, Modi said, ‘’The whole country is enthusiastic and devotees are immersed in the devotion of Ram Lalla. Listen to this bhajan of Hansraj Raghuvanshi ji dedicated to Lord Shri Ram,” the Prime Minister said in a post in Hindi and shared a link of the devotional song.

Yesterday also, the Prime Minister has shared devotional bhajan sung by Swati Mishra welcoming Shri Ram Lala and termed it ‘mesmerising’.

Modi is expected to arrive in Ayodhya a day ahead of the Ram Lalla consecration ceremony .

Sources said the PM could reach Ayodhya on January 21 evening. He will have a night’s stay in the temple town and the next day on January 22, he will take bath in River Saryu in the morning.

It is reported that Modi would fast on the day of pran pratistha as mandated by the tradition for the main host of the tradition.

It is believed that Lord Hanuman is seated as the king of Ayodhya. No auspicious work is done here without his permission. Due to this belief, the PM will first pay obeisance at the Hanumangarhi temple, take permission and then will leave for Ram Janmabhoomi to consecrate the Ram Lalla temple.

It is mentioned in Valmiki Ramayana too that Lord Shri Ram had coronated Hanuman ji before going to Saket Dham.

Though the rituals of Pran Pratishtha Mahotsav will start from January 16, the temple consecration on January 22 will start with PM Modi first taking a pledge and dedicating it to the country. Then, he will do ‘Shodashopachar’ puja of Ramlala.

According to Trust officials, for ‘Shodashopachar’ puja and Mahapuja — the total puja time in the sanctum sanctorum will be 40 minutes. On January 22, there will be a very subtle Muhurat of 84 seconds for the consecration of Ram Lalla, which will be from 12:29 minutes 8 seconds to 12:30 minutes 32 seconds. Only 11 people will be allowed in the sanctum sanctorum during the consecration ceremony.

A week earlier, the Prime Minister has inaugurated, dedicated to the nation and laid the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth more than Rs 15,700 crore at Ayodhya Dham. These include projects worth about Rs 11,100 crore for development of Ayodhya and its surrounding areas and projects worth about Rs 4,600 crore related to other projects across Uttar Pradesh.

He had inaugurated the redeveloped Ayodhya Railway Station and flagged off new Amrit Bharat trains and Vande Bharat trains. He also dedicated several other railway projects to the nation. After that, he also inaugurated the newly built Ayodhya Airport. The airport has been named Maharishi Valmiki International Airport.