80,000-diya ‘Swastik’ to illuminate world with auspiciousness

Ayodhya : As the Yogi government’s preparations for Deepotsav 2024 near completion, Prof. Pratibha Goyal, Vice Chancellor of Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University, has mobilized a large team to make the event truly historic, in line with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s vision. Over 30,000 volunteers are decorating 55 ghats along the Saryu river with 2.8 million diyas under the guidance of more than 2,000 supervisors, coordinators, ghat in-charges, and other members.

A spectacular 80,000-diya Swastik symbol is being created at ghat number 10 of Ram Ki Paidi, involving more than 150 dedicated volunteers. This grand display will be a major highlight of the celebration, sharing a message of auspiciousness with the world.

To achieve a world record, volunteers from the university and other institutions have joined the efforts at Ram Ki Paidi on the second day, chanting “Jai Shri Ram” as they work. Clad in ID cards, T-shirts, and caps with QR codes, they arrange diyas in 16×16 grids, each containing 256 diyas, as part of the elaborate decoration.

On October 30th, Chhoti Diwali, a new world record will be set by lighting 2.8 million diyas, each filled with oil and a wick, in the evening. Ghat in-charges and coordinators regularly guide the volunteers, who carefully arrange the diyas on the ghats after taking them out of cardboard boxes.

To support the volunteers, arrangements for clean drinking water have been made at the ghats under the supervision of Material Coordinators Prof. Siddharth Shukla and Prof. Gangaram Mishra. In addition, food is being provided at the Bhajan Sandhya venue, organized by the food committee coordinator Prof. Chayan Kumar Mishra and his team.

The Deputy Registrar of the university, Dinesh Kumar Maurya, in collaboration with the Municipal Corporation, has deployed a large team to ensure the ghats remain clean.

Prof. Sant Sharan Mishra, the Deepotsav nodal officer, stated that 30,000 volunteers from 14 colleges, 37 inter-colleges, 40 NGOs, and the university campus are involved in the preparations. The volunteers are creating 16×16 diya grids, containing 256 diyas each, across 55 ghats along the Saryu River.

Each diya will be filled with 30 ml of mustard oil, with meticulous supervision during the oil-filling process. The arrangement of diyas will be completed by October 28th, followed by counting on the 29th.

On October 30th, the diyas will be lit to achieve the world record. The massive effort involves teams from universities, affiliated colleges, inter-colleges, and voluntary organizations, all working with dedication to make Deepotsav a historic event.