E-carts to provide free rides to devotees visiting Ayodhya’s Ram Temple

Battery-operated carts will be made available to devotees visiting Ayodhya to offer prayers at the Ram Temple and Hanuman Garhi Temple, officials said on Thursday.

The e-carts or golf carts will offer free rides to the elderly, divyangjans and pregnant women, while the fare for others will be announced soon, they said.

The 650 e-carts, which will be deployed in the first phase till March, will be available at parking lots in the city, said Vishal Singh, vice-chairman of the Ayodhya Development Authority (ADA).

A ‘hyperloop model’ is being developed to connect the entire Ayodhya and the e-cart project is a part of it. In the near future, restrictions will be imposed on the entry of four-wheelers on the Ram Path, a major thoroughfare in the heart of Ayodhya, and only e-carts will be allowed, Singh said.

Singh said a large number of devotees, including senior citizens, divyangjans and pregnant women, are expected to visit Ayodhya for a ‘darshan’ of Ram Lalla after the consecration ceremony on January 22.

For enthusiasts who arrive with their car, e-carts are available in the parking lot. Through these e-carts, devotees can visit Ram Temple, Hanuman Garhi Temple and other religious places in the area, he said.

Wheelchairs will also be provided free of charge at the Ram temple for the elderly, divyangjans and pregnant women, he added.

The ADA has invited several corporate houses that had earlier expressed their desire to ‘serve’ in Ayodhya to contribute to the e-cart project through their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds, Singh said.

After receiving their approval, the plan will be implemented on a large scale, he said, adding that substantial donations for the initiative have been received from the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, the Indian Oil Corporation and Tata Projects.

First print: January 18, 2024 | 3:56 PM IST