The Eknath Shinde government in Maharashtra is also learnt to have agreed to provide the wood at a highly discounted price for the temple. Unconfirmed reports said that a grand puja is likely to be organised by the Maharashtra government before sending the wood to Ayodhya.
Confirming the development, Trust member Anil Mishra said that the exact quantity of teak which needs to be procured from Maharashtra will soon be decided by the experts. “The material to be used in the temple is and will be of the highest standards,” he said. The wood, considered highly resistant to termites, would be used in construction of doors and doorframes in the temple.
Acclaimed as one of the finest in Asia, the teak from the forest of Chandrapur Gadchiroli is also considered “sacred”. Located in east Maharashtra, the district, situated on the confluence of the Erai and Zarpat rivers, is also rich in coal seams.
Earlier the Trust had procured the famous white Makrana marble from Rajasthan for the temple’s sanctum sanctorum, flooring, arches and railing. Likewise, around 4.75 lakh cubic feet of Rajasthan’s Bansi Paharpur stone would be used in the super structure (main structure) of the temple.
Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has engaged around 1,200 artisans for carving the stones in Rajasthan and at the workshop run by the Trust in Ayodhya to meet the December 2023 deadline for completing the construction of the sanctum sanctorum. The idol of Ram Lalla is likely to be placed in the sanctum sanctorum on January 15, 2024, on the auspicious occasion of Makar Sankranti.