During the Union Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi requested his ministers to plan a visit to the Ram temple in Ayodhya around March itself, sources told CNN-News18. He said that this is being done keeping in mind the crowd in the holy city after the Pran Pratishtha (consecration) ceremony on January 22.

“VIPs going there will only mean more inconvenience for the common people, who have been flocking to the temple since it opened for darshan,” a government source told CNN-News18.

Keeping in mind the huge crowd and VIP protocols, the BJP is also planning separate visits to Ayodhya by chief ministers and ministers of the states it rules.

When asked, Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur said, “Everyone should plan their travel as per the decision of the Uttar Pradesh government so that it is convenient for everyone.”

According to the schedule provided to CNN-News18 by BJP sources:

• Tripura Chief Minister and his cabinet colleagues will visit Ayodhya on January 31.
• The Yogi Adityanath-led cabinet of Uttar Pradesh will be in the holy city for darshan on February 1.
• Eknath Shinde will visit Ayodhya on February 5, leading his Maharashtra cabinet.
• The Arunachal Pradesh cabinet led by Pema Khandu will visit on February 6.
• Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar and his ministers are scheduled to leave on February 9.
• On February 12, Bhajan Lal Sharma Goa will go to Ayodhya with his Rajasthan cabinet.
• Goa CM Pramod Sawant and his ministers will visit Ram temple on February 15.
• Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and his cabinet will visit on 22 February.
• Bhupendra Patel’s Gujarat cabinet will visit the holy city on 24 February.
• The cabinet under the leadership of Madhya Pradesh CM Mohan Yadav will visit Ayodhya on March 4.

Sources said that during the Union Cabinet meeting held last week, PM Modi had asked his ministers to visit the temple with devotees from their constituencies.

In fact, sources said, he advised them to travel in trains and buses along with the public to facilitate darshan of the grand Ram temple.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the chief host at the Pran Pratistha ceremony at the Ram temple on January 22 and since then lakhs of people have been visiting the temple.

According to officials, 5 lakh devotees visited the temple on the first day of its opening for the public. In view of this, the UP administration has issued several guidelines for travel and waiting in the temple.