Lucknow, Nov. 8 -- Thirty-six lakh diyas lit up the banks of the Saryu at the 10th edition of Deepotsav in Ayodhya on Saturday as Vice President of India CP Radhakrishnan inaugurated the grand celebrations in the presence of governor Anandiben Patel, chief minister Yogi Adityanath and seers, marking a decade of a festival that has now become synonymous with Ayodhya and its identity as the city of Lord Ram. The 10th edition of Deepotsav also happened to be the last one before the soon-to-be-held 2027 UP assembly polls. The day's festivities were centred around two main venues - Ram Katha Park and Ram Ki Paidi - where tradition, devotion and technology came together in a spectacle watched by lakhs of devotees in person and crores across the country. The programme began at Ram Katha Park, where the symbolic arrival of Lord Ram, Mata Sita and Lakshman was recreated. As the helicopter carrying the artistes playing Ram, Sita and Lakshman landed at the makeshift helipad, the crowd erupted in chants of 'Jai Shri Ram'. Adityanath performed the symbolic aarti, and offered them the `traditional welcome that, according to the Ramayana, the people of Ayodhya had given Lord Ram on his return after 14 years of exile. The vice-president, governor and the chief minister then joined the seers on stage, where cultural performances by artistes from across India and abroad set the tone for the evening. P2...