Ayodhya: Ram Ki Paidi went from a riverfront to a single sheet of light on Saturday evening, as Ayodhya held the tenth edition of Deepotsav.
Vice-President C.P. Radhakrishnan inaugurated the celebrations at Ram Ki Paidi on the bank of the Saryu. According to the Vice-President's Secretariat, more than 30 lakh diyas were planned at Ram Ki Paidi alone, with over 70 lakh across the city.
The scale is the point. When Deepotsav began in 2017, it involved about 1.7 lakh lamps. By 2025 the count had reached 26 lakh. This year's edition added more than 2,100 indigenous drones for a show depicting scenes from the Ramayana, and around 1,000 artists performed through the evening.
Radhakrishnan took part in the Saryu Aarti at Naya Ghat and watched the cultural presentations and the fireworks.
Addressing the gathering, he said Deepotsav had become a celebration of jan bhagidari, of public participation, and that the lamps standing in for the transformation in the lives of crores of Indians.
He also used the occasion to describe Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath as "two yogis". "One is Yogi Adityanath ji, and another is Karmayogi Modi ji. Both are following the path shown by Lord Ram," he said.
Earlier, the Vice-President offered prayers at the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Temple and took part in special prayers and aarti at Ram Katha Park.
Governor Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Deputy Chief Ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak, ministers and religious leaders were present.
Radhakrishnan noted that the festival now supports a livelihood chain — potters who make the lamps, rural women, artisans, performers, hotel and homestay operators, guides and transport providers — that runs well beyond one evening on the ghats.