Why Indian women want to give birth on January 22
Families wanting to share in the glory of the god Rama hope the day his idol is unveiled at the Ram Mandir temple will be auspicious
The Ram Mandir temple will be inaugurated on January 22 and many expectant mothers have booked caesarean deliveries accordingly
DEEPAK GUPTA/HINDUSTAN TIMES VIA GETTY IMAGES
Expectant mothers in northern India are aiming to give birth on the “auspicious” date when a long-awaited and controversial temple is dedicated to the Hindu god Rama.
On January 22 the prime minister, Narendra Modi, will inaugurate the Ram Mandir temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, in a gala ceremony for a landmark project of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The temple took three years to build and will be the largest of its kind in India. One expectant mother, Malti Devi, 26, told the Press Trust of India that she had asked for a caesarean delivery on the day that the temple’s idol is being installed in the belief that the date will be auspicious. “I hope my child will grow up to
