Over 200,000 ‘Ram Bhakts’ flocked to Ayodhya on Sunday to seek blessings from the god and visit the majestic temple. Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust officials also said that around 1.9 million devotees have visited the Ram Mandir in the past six days since the pran pratistha (consecration) ceremony was held on January 22.

On Sunday, people braved the biting cold and started pouring in at 3 a.m., officials said. Apart from the locals of Ayodhya, pilgrims from neighboring districts such as Gonda, Gorakhpur, Barabanki, Lucknow and Hardoi also come to seek the blessings of Lord Ram.

“On Sunday, the sixth day of Ram Lalla ‘darshan’ (viewing), 2.25 lakh devotees visited the temple. This takes the total number of devotees who visited in the last six days to 19 lakh.” Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP ) said Champat Rai, Vice President and Secretary General of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.

The highest number of visitors occurs on January 23 – the day when the temple gates open to the public. On that day, more than 500,000 believers gathered in the temple to pray, causing chaos. Since then, however, visitor numbers have remained around 150,000 to 250,000 a day, officials said.

On the instructions of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, a committee has been formed to ensure smooth and hassle-free darshan for devotees of the Ram temple. The temple administration has also set up waiting areas to accommodate pilgrims to avoid chaos.

Officials of the temple trust and district administration said efforts are on to ensure that devotees who come to Ayodhya stay there and visit other parts of the town. There are currently 17 hotels here and 73 more are under construction. Of these, construction work is ongoing on about 40 of them. Some of India’s largest hotel chains have already made plans to enter Ayodhya and open hotels here, officials said.