Final version of 'Surya Tilak' mechanism installed at Ram temple: CBRI scientist

Ayodhya: The 'Surya Tilak' ceremony of Lord Ram held at the Ram Mandir here on Sunday was performed using the final version of the tilak mechanism installed on the third floor of the temple complex, a senior scientist from the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI), Roorkee said.

Chief Scientist at CSIR-CBRI Dr S K Panigrahi told PTI that unlike last year’s temporary arrangement from the second floor, this year's Surya Tilak was conducted from the completed third floor using an upgraded optical design.

Last year, the demonstration was successful, but it was a temporary setup, Panigrahi said, adding that this year, it was performed from the third floor with a completely new optical design, including the addition of two more lenses in the optical path.

The objective of the Surya Tilak Project is to focus a beam of sunlight precisely on the forehead of the Ram Lalla idol every year at 12 noon on Ram Navami, which falls in the Chaitra month of the Hindu calendar.

Panigrahi explained that the solar position varies each year as per the lunar calendar, and the English calendar date for Ram Navami repeats every 19 years.

The design for the Surya Tilak mechanism has been developed to account for this cycle, he added.

CBRI, in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru, developed the system to channel sunlight from the third floor of the temple to the sanctum sanctorum (Garbha Griha).

The optical validation, fabrication, and installation were carried out by Bengaluru-based Optics & Allied Engineering Pvt. Ltd. (Optica).

The CSIR-CBRI team includes Director Dr R Pradeep Kumar, Dr R S Bisht, Dr Debdutta Ghosh, Dr S K Panigrahi, Kanti Solanki, V Chakradhar, Dinesh, and Sameer. From IIA, Director Dr Anna Purni, Engineer Sriram, and Professor Tushar Prabhu served as consultants.

Optica Managing Director Rajinder Kotaria, along with Nagraj, Vivek and Thava Kumar, was involved in design validation and fabrication, Panigrahi added.