By Ananya Sharma 
Ayodhya, November 25: Ayodhya felt crowded even before the chai stalls had a chance to heat their first batches. People trickled in from the bus stand, from side roads, from the freshly paved lanes near Ram Path. Some looked like they had been awake all night. Others walked slowly, adjusting bags or holding on to older relatives. By late morning the pavement felt warm, and everyone seemed to be moving toward the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple whether they planned to or not.
Then a small shift. Prime Minister Narendra Modi stepped toward the main shikhara and began hoisting the saffron flag. The murmurs around the courtyard softened into something like a pause. Officials had already said this would mark the completion of the temple’s construction The Economic Times had carried that point but nobody said it aloud here. The only thing people seemed to be watching was the fabric rising.
Rituals That Weren’t Worried About Precision
The priests started the chanting somewhere in the middle of the walkway. Not all at once. Not in perfect timing either. A stretch of sound, then a break, then another spell of chanting. The window 11:58 AM to 12:30 PM came from the temple priests, reported earlier by Jagran.
The flag looked thicker than usual temple banners. The Economic Times listed it as 22 by 11 feet, stitched from parachute fabric tested for 200 kmph winds. Navbharat Times mentioned the symbols on it: a sun, an ॐ, a Kovidara tree. In person, the cloth didn’t flutter much. It caught the light unevenly, turning one corner bright and leaving the other in a duller shade. A man wearing a dusty white kurta shielded his eyes and muttered something about the glare.
VIPs Arrived, But The Crowd Barely Reacted
There were leaders RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, trustees from the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra as Hindustan Times had noted earlier. Their presence caused a small ripple in the crowd. A few phones went up. Then down. People had already fixed their gaze on the shikhara and didn’t shift it much.
Security Was Everywhere, But Felt Almost Routine
More than 6,970 personnel were deployed across the city, according to The Times of India. Not that anyone needed the number to know the scale. Uniforms appeared at almost every turn. Drones moved slowly overhead. The 2.5 km stretch of Ram Path looked like a guarded corridor.
When the crowd leaned forward as the flag neared the top, the police reacted with quiet gestures a raised palm, a tap on the barricade. It worked. The line pulled back without fuss. Volunteers moved along handing water pouches, repeating instructions that nobody really responded to but everybody seemed to absorb.
Shops Did Not Get A Quiet Minute
Traders around the temple looked halfway between excited and exhausted. Several told The Times of India they had been seeing heavy footfall since the weekend, but Tuesday brought more. Scarves sold out. Frames sold out. Sweets disappeared in batches. A worker carrying a tray of laddoos barely made it five steps before selling them all.
An autorickshaw driver grinned while complaining about the heat. A photographer tried balancing his printer on a bench that kept rocking, muttering under his breath each time the wind knocked a print loose.
Everyone Took The Moment Home Differently
India Today wrote that the ceremony formally completes the construction. On the ground, reactions were scattered. A woman held her palms together long after the chant ended. A group of teenage boys took turns recording themselves with the flag in the background. A man lifted his mother’s wheelchair slightly so she could see the shikhara more clearly.
People left in pockets. Not in a rush. Just a slow drift. The flag stayed visible above everything, shifting whenever the wind remembered to move. The crowds thinned, the police relaxed, shopkeepers returned to calling out to customers, and the city resumed the rhythm it knows best steady, layered, and often louder than it realises.
Stay ahead with Hindustan Herald — bringing you trusted news, sharp analysis, and stories that matter across Politics, Business, Technology, Sports, Entertainment, Lifestyle, and more.
Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, YouTube, and join our Telegram community @hindustanherald for real-time updates.
Covers Indian politics, governance, and policy developments with over a decade of experience in political reporting.
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/author/ananya/
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/author/ananya/
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/author/ananya/
- Ananya Sharmahttps://hindustanherald.in/author/ananya/
