Thane: The idol of Lord Ram Lalla will be installed at its original place in the upcoming temple in Ayodhya by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the third week of January 2024, a prominent member of the trust set up for the construction and management of the Ram Mandir said on Wednesday. Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra treasurer Swami Govind Dev Giri Maharaj also said the temple construction work was going on in full swing.

“In the third week of January 2024, the idol of Ram Lalla (infant Lord Ram) will be installed at its original place at the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he said while talking to reporters after a program at Dombivali in Thane district of Maharashtra.

He said the construction of the temple and the 2024 general elections are not linked. “We are just doing our work,” he added. Govind Dev Giri also said the idol of Ram Lalla had been kept in a cloth pandal for a long period before it was shifted to a small temple. “Time has come now to shift the deity to his original place,” he said.

The seer said the work on the temple will continue even after the idol is shifted to its original place. “Our target is to complete the work on the sancturn sanctorum, a first floor and arrangements for darshan before January 2024,” he added. Govind Dev Giri said the world’s outlook towards India has changed.

“Yoga, Ayurveda and Indian music have reached worldwide and a cultural revolution will happen in the entire world,” he said.