AYODHYA, India - The private jet parking lots at airports near the Indian city of Ayodhya are full and the shops have run out of gold-plated idols, as wealthy devotees prepare for the invitation-only opening ceremony of one of Hinduism’s holiest temples.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani will be among the roughly 8,000 attendees at the Jan 22 inauguration event for the Ram temple, which devotees believe is built on the birthplace of Lord Ram, a sacred Hindu deity.
The construction of the temple, which began after the Supreme Court awarded the site to Hindus in 2019, more than two decades after a Hindu mob razed a mosque there and triggered deadly riots, fulfils a key campaign promise of Mr Modi and his Hindu nationalist party.
The opening ceremony, organised by the trust that built the temple, comes months before a national election which Mr Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is widely expected to win, and the who’s who of India is expected to be there.
“It’s become like a status symbol to be invited to this event,” said Mr Rajan Mehra, chief executive officer of Indian luxury charter service Club One Air, adding that his fleet, which includes the Dassault Falcon 2000, is booked to make multiple trips.
Officials estimate that 100 private jets will descend on Ayodhya airport on Jan 22, filling it to capacity. Slots at Varanasi, a city around four hours away by car, are also full, as are jet spaces at Gorakhpur airport, which is a three-hour drive away.
Mr Mehra did not disclose the price of the charters, but private jet booking website JetSetGo lists the price of a Mumbai-Gorakhpur flight on a Falcon 2000 jet with nine passengers on board at about US$74,000 (S$99,000).
The ceremony is also giving jewellers and gold traders a boost.
Some retailers say gold and gold-plated statues of Lord Ram and temple replicas – priced at between 30,000 Indian rupees (S$484) and 220,000 rupees – are so popular that they have run out of stock. Some items were imported from Thailand, they added.
Mr Baldev Singh, a manager at HS Jewellers in Lucknow city, said: “Customers are asking for them for gifting and for keeping them at homes. There is a waiting period of two weeks.”
The temple has already ushered an economic boom in Ayodhya, which is set to emerge as a pilgrimage hot spot for India’s 1.1 billion Hindus, and property prices have skyrocketed.
Last week, Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan bought a 10,000 sq ft plot for US$1.7 million, government officials said, roughly nine times the average land prices in this dusty city just a few years ago.
The plot is part of the House of Abhinandan Lodha (HoABL) luxury development which includes a spa and a pool.
HoABL chairman Abhinandan Lodha told Reuters: “There’s huge demand for the project from domestic professionals, non-resident Indians. This is unlike any other demand.
“People are betting on economic prosperity but there’s also emotional attachment to be part of the Ayodhya story.” REUTERS
