"Blessed and happy to be here": Devotees, seers celebrate in Ayodhya, reach in large numbers for 'Pran Pratishtha'

Ayodhya: Devotees from across the country are in a more pious and celebratory mood, awaiting the grand occasion of Ram Lalla's Pran Pratishtha in Ayodhya.
The holy city is witnessing an increased footfall of people from all over the world to attend the grand ceremony.
Despite the huge crowd and tight security measures, a large number of devotees have reached Ayodhya to mark their presence on the premises of the temple.
"We are not worried about the darshan; we will stay here...It's important that we could come and witness this," said Ravish Pandey, a devotee who reached the temple early for the event.
Another devotee mentioned, "Bhagwan Ram is coming back home. We are here to welcome him; we are blessed or we shouldn't have been able to witness this."
A seer from Ujjain said that it is the power of prayers by millions like him that made this day possible.
"We prayed for this to happen and it is happening. What more do we need in this lifetime? We are witnessing Bhagwan's homecoming. We are in the holy land," he said while speaking to ANI.
Singing Ram Bhajan and praising Lord Ram for his rule years ago, another saint from Ujjain called it part of history on a momentous day.
"When Lord Ram is coming to bless us, where else should we be? It is history. We never imagined that we would be here to seek his blessings. We are so fortunate for this," said Saint Sweshanand Maharaj of Ujjain.
"I was waiting for this day. I'm so happy. We are going to get Lord Ram's darshan. We were waiting for a long time for this," Bhavana Paliwal, a samajik karyakarta, said.
The premises of Ram Temple echoed with Ram chants and bhajans as excited crowds filled every part of the holy city on this momentous day.
Folk artists were seen performing outside the temple.
The historic ritual of 'Pran Pratistha' of Ram Lalla will take place today in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, saints, and a host of distinguished guests.
A large number of devotees were also seen gathered outside the temple on Monday morning.
Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust announced on Sunday that the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony will be marked by a dazzling musical event titled 'Mangal Dhwani'.
The soiree, featuring some of the biggest names in the world of music, will be staged at 10 am.
The 'Pran Pratishtha' of Shri Ram Lalla at Ayodhya Temple will be held at 12:30 pm.
Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh has been decked up with posters and flags of Lord Ram while cities across the country have been decorated with lights, huge cutouts of Lord Ram and posters bearing religious slogans related to Lord Ram.
The Uttar Pradesh government has tightened security in the city by setting up a dial 112 monitoring centre at Lata Mangeshkar Chowk.
Uttar Pradesh Police Department authorities said on Sunday that over 13 thousand security personnel have been deployed in and around Ayodhya to ensure the safe and smooth conduct of the mega temple event.
Besides, elaborate seating arrangements have been made for invitees. There will be a sector-wise deployment of officials and personnel overseeing the security and arrangements.
Vedic rituals for the Pran-Pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya began on January 16, a week before the main ceremony.
Special guests from cricket world, film world, saint society, politics, art, literature and culture and other fields have also been invited for the ceremony.