4 years since SC verdict, Karsevakpuram remains curiosity corner of Ayodhya
Ayodhya native Aarti religiously polishes a block of ornately carved stone weathered over the years as curious visitors walk around at a workshop running in the holy city for more than 30 years. «These stones will be sent to the site of construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. We feel good that we are contributing to it,» Aarti told PTI while working.
She is among a group of women who perform this job every day from 8 am to 5 pm with an hour-long lunch break in between at the Ram Janmabhomi Nyas-run 'karyashala' in Ayodhya's Karsevakpuram.
However, Aarti and a few other women workers put in an «extra 10 minutes» even after the official closing time of work.
«It (extra time) is for bhagwan ji (the almighty),» says Aarti, who has been working on burnishing these faded stones for more than a year now.
With an iron blade, she patiently removes inch by inch the black marks that have settled on the surface of the beautifully carved stone, a laborious job that tests both her physical strength and patience.
«Our wrist pains, but we rest our hands briefly in between,» said Rita Devi, another worker employed on the job for which they get Rs 12,000 a month.
The Supreme Court in a historic verdict in 2019 paved way for the construction of the Ram temple by a trust, and ruled that an alternative five-acre plot be given for a mosque in the city.
Much has changed in Ayodhya since the verdict, but Karsevakpuram remains a curiosity corner of Ayodhya.
An excited Ayodhya is eagerly waiting for the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple on January 22, and devotees and other visitors are pouring in from various parts of the country for a 'darshan' of Ram Lalla, and catch a glimpse of the under-construction temple.
Many of them
