The 45-day Maha Kumbh, the world’s largest gathering, concluded a few days ago. Devotees who attended the Kumbh also took the opportunity to visit the Kashi Vishwanath Temple and Ayodhya Ram Mandir. However, after the grand ending of Maha Kumbh, the municipal body in Ayodhya is facing an issue regarding the sandals, footwears and shoes left over by the devotees while visiting Ram mandir.
To estimate the footfall at the Ram Mandir during Maha Kumbh, the Ayodhya Municipal Corporation has so far cleared nearly 30 trolleys of shoes and sandals from outside the temple. But what’s the story behind the lakhs of footwear collected? Why are devotees leaving their sandals behind after their darshan?
Why The Devotees Are Abandoning Their Sandals
According to officials, at Gate 1 of the Ram temple- which is the primary entrance situated on Ram Path, devotees going for darshan are asked to deposit their footwear. After completing a circular route of roughly half a kilometer inside the temple premises, people usually had to head to the same Gate 1, to pick their footwears.
However, to manage the rush, the Ayodhya administration redirects people to exit via Gate 3 and other gates- which is a 5-6 km journey to retrieve their shoes.
People probably wont take a 5-6 long Km journey to collect their shoes. Abandoned footwear ‘in lakhs’ are being collected daily from the entry gate of the temple using JCB machines which are then loaded onto trolleys and taken away to be dumped at a spot 4-5 km away, officials of the municipal corporation said.
Maha Kumbh Rush
Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust member Anil Mishra said there has been a rise in visitors due to the Maha Kumbh. “Changes have been made in the arrangements for the past 30 days to ensure that the unexpected crowd of devotees can have easy access to the darshan without chaos,” Anil Mishra, a trustee of the Ram temple trust, said, quoted Times Of India. “For the first time ever, the doors of Ram Lalla’s temple remained open until 1 am to accommodate the continuous flow of devotees eager for darshan,” Mishra said, the report added.
During the 45-day Maha Kumbh, Ayodhya witnessed an overwhelming spiritual fervor, with over 1.25 crore devotees visiting the Ram Temple. The pilgrimage gained momentum from Makar Sankranti and continued unabated until Maha Shivratri on February 26.
From January 26 onwards, the city saw a daily influx of nearly 10 to 12 lakh devotees, transforming Ayodhya into a vibrant hub of faith and devotion. The construction of the grand temple and the ‘Pran Pratistha’ of Ram Lalla in January last year have significantly boosted Ayodhya’s spiritual and tourism landscape, drawing an ever-growing number of visitors.
Over 66 crore devotees took holy dips in Prayagraj during the Maha Kumbh Mela.
