Varanasi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will dedicate to the people on Monday the ambitious Kashi Vishwanath Corridor in the heart of Varanasi, a mega project that is expected to boost tourism in the ancient city in a big way.
The inauguration of the state-of-the-art infrastructure surrounding the historic Kashi Vishwanath Temple near the iconic Dashashwamedh Ghat comes ahead of the assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh early next year.
There is a palpable excitement among majority of the residents of the temple town and domestic tourists flocking the holy shrine of the Hindus in the run-up to the high-profile event, in view of which the police security in Varanasi has been stepped up.
From saints and seers to shopkeeper and hotel owners, there is a smile on people’s faces as they await the inauguration day with visible excitement.
In a statement, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said Modi will visit the temple at around 1 pm and inaugurate phase one of Shri Kashi Vishwanath Dham, constructed at a cost of around Rs 339 crore, after offering prayers.
It was PM Modi’s vision for a long time to facilitate pilgrims and devotees of Lord Shiva as they had to encounter congested streets and surroundings with poor upkeep while they went about the age-old custom of taking dip in the holy river, collecting its water and offering it at the temple.
“To realise this vision, Shri Kashi Vishwanath Dham was conceptualised as a project to create an easily accessible pathway to connect Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple to the banks of the river Ganga,” it said.
The prime minister took a keen and active interest at all stages of the project.
Regular briefings, reviews and monitoring was done by him as he constantly gave inputs and insights to improve the project and make it more accessible for pilgrims, including the disabled, it added.
A total of 23 buildings will be inaugurated in the phase one of the project. The project involved purchase and acquisition of more than 300 properties around the temple. The scale of the project was such it is now spread over a massive area of about five lakh square feet, whereas earlier premises were limited to just around 3000 square feet.
