Thirty-six lakh diyas lit up the banks of the Saryu at the 10th edition of Deepotsav in Ayodhya on Saturday as Vice President of India CP Radhakrishnan inaugurated the grand celebrations in the presence of governor Anandiben Patel, chief minister Yogi Adityanath and seers, marking a decade of a festival that has now become synonymous with Ayodhya and its identity as the city of Lord Ram. The 10th edition of Deepotsav also happened to be the last one before the soon-to-be-held 2027 UP assembly polls.
The programme began at Ram Katha Park, where the symbolic arrival of Lord Ram, Mata Sita and Lakshman was recreated. As the helicopter carrying the artistes playing Ram, Sita and Lakshman landed at the makeshift helipad, the crowd erupted in chants of ‘Jai Shri Ram’. The vice-president, governor and the chief minister then joined the seers on stage, where cultural performances by artistes from across India and abroad set the tone for the evening. From Ram Katha Park, the dignitaries moved to Ram Ki Paidi, the heart of Deepotsav.
Adityanath performed the symbolic aarti, and offered them the traditional welcome that, according to the Ramayana, the people of Ayodhya had given Lord Ram on his return after 14 years of exile. Ramleela troupes from South Africa, Sri Lanka and Laos, along with nearly 2,000 artistes from 13 states, performed episodes from the Ramayana, turning Ram Katha Park into a confluence of cultures united by the story of Ram. It was here that the Vice President lit the first diya, formally setting off the lighting of 30 lakh diyas across 56 ghats of the Saryu.
Deputy chief ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak, UP ministers Surya Pratap Shahi and Jaiveer Singh, minister of state Satish Chandra Sharma, Mayor Girish Pati Tripathi and several MLAs and MLCs were also present. Started in 2017 by the Yogi Adityanath government to recreate the welcome of Lord Ram, Deepotsav has grown into the world’s largest oil lamp display, breaking its own Guinness World Record every year.
