President of India Ram Nath Kovind on Friday, 15 January, donated Rs 5 lakh towards the construction of Ram Mandir in Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya, kicking off a countrywide donation drive by the Trust in-charge of the effort, ANI reported.
“He is the first citizen of the country so we went to him to initiate this drive. He donated a sum of Rs 5,01,000,” VHP’s Alok Kumar said, according to ANI.
NDTV reported that VHP co-president Govind Dev Giriji Maharaj met the President on Friday and was accompanied by Kumar, as well as the temple construction committee's chief Nripendra Mishra, and RSS leader Kulbhushan Ahuja.
ANI also reported that Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan also handed over a cheque of Rs 1 lakh to a leader of VHP as a contribution for the construction of the temple.
In Patna, BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi launched the Samarpan Nidhi Sangraha Abhiyan and said, “I hope every Hindu family in Bihar contributes towards the building of the beautiful temple. I'm sure that whatever fund is required for the temple, we will get it out of people's cooperation.”
The approximate cost of constructing the Ram Mandir Temple will be Rs 300-400 crore, and the entire complex on the 67 acre land will "cost not less than Rs 1,100 crores", the temple trust treasurer Maharaj had said on 28 December, reported PTI.
The project will take around three and a half years to be completed, and the trust, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Nyas, which was set up by the Centre, has so far received more than Rs 100 crore in online donations, according to Maharaj.
Background
The Ayodhya verdict was delivered by a five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court on Saturday, 9 November, 2019. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 5 August laid the foundation for the Ram Temple to be built in Ayodhya, as per Supreme Court directives.
In a mega event in Ayodhya, the PM along with Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath and other leaders conducted the bhoomi pujan of the temple on 5 August.
From the bhoomi pujan to the final construction, the responsibility of the temple has been assigned to 15 people who are all part of the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. Construction company Larson and Toubro (L&T) has been roped in, and is assisting the Sompuras in the same.
The responsibility of the temple's construction has been entrusted to the Sompura family, which has built approximately 200 grand temples around the world. The head of the family, Chandrakant Sompura, had famously measured the temple land with his feet thirty years ago.
(With inputs from ANI and PTI.)
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