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Varanasi

Varanasi (Vārāṇasī; Hindustani: [ʋaːˈraːɳəsi]; also Banaras or Benares, (Banāras; [bəˈnaːrəs] (listen)),[12][13] and Kashi (Kāshi; [kˈæʃi] (listen))[14][15][a]) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.[17][b] The city has a syncretic tradition of Muslim artisanship that underpins its religious tourism.[20] Located in the middle-Ganges valley in the southeastern part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, Varanasi lies on the left bank of the river. It is 692 kilometres (430 mi) to the southeast of India's capital New Delhi and 320 kilometres (200 mi) to the east of the state capital, Lucknow. It lies 121 kilometres (75 mi) downstream of Prayagraj, where the confluence with the Yamuna river is another major Hindu pilgrimage site.

Varanasi
Benares, Banaras, Kashi
Interactive map of Varanasi
Coordinates: 25°19′08″N 83°00′46″E / 25.31889°N 83.01278°E / 25.31889; 83.01278
Country India
StateUttar Pradesh
DivisionVaranasi
DistrictVaranasi
Government
 • TypeMunicipal Corporation
 • BodyVaranasi Municipal Corporation
 • MayorAshok Tiwari[2] (BJP)
 • Divisional CommissionerDeepak Agarwal, IAS
Area
 • Metropolis82 km2 (32 sq mi)
 • Metro163.8 km2 (63.2 sq mi)
Elevation
80.71 m (264.80 ft)
Population
 (2011)
 • Metropolis1,212,610[1]
 • Rank30th
 • Metro1,432,280 (32nd)
DemonymBanarasi
Language
 • OfficialHindi[6]
 • Additional officialUrdu[6]
 • RegionalBhojpuri[7]
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
221 001 to** (** area code)
Telephone code0542
Vehicle registrationUP-65
GDP$3.8 billion (2019–20)[8]
Per capita incomeINR 1,93 616[9]
International AirportLal Bahadur Shastri International Airport
Rapid TransitVaranasi Metro
Sex ratio0.926 (2011) /
Literacy (2011)80.31%[10]
HDI0.645[11]
Websitevaranasi.nic.in

Varanasi is one of the world's oldest continually inhabited cities.[21] Kashi, its ancient name, was associated with a kingdom of the same name of 2,500 years ago. The Lion capital of Ashoka at nearby Sarnath has been interpreted to be a commemoration of the Buddha's first sermon there in the fifth century BCE.[22][23] In the 8th century, Adi Shankara established the worship of Shiva as an official sect of Varanasi. Tulsidas wrote his Awadhi language epic, the Ramcharitmanas, a Bhakti movement reworking of the Sanskrit Ramayana, in Varanasi. Several other major figures of the Bhakti movement were born in Varanasi, including Kabir and Ravidas.[24] In the 16th century, Rajput nobles in the service of the courts and armies of the Mughal emperor Akbar, sponsored the building or further enhancement of the major Shiva temple in the city; they also built other temples, all displaying an empire-wide architectural style.[25][26] Under the Treaty of Faizabad, the East India Company acquired Benares in 1775,[27][28] the city later successively becoming a part of the Benares Division in the Ceded and Conquered Provinces, the North-Western Provinces, and the United Provinces, and after India's independence of Uttar Pradesh.[29]

Silk weaving, carpets and crafts and tourism employ a significant number of the local population, as do the Banaras Locomotive Works and Bharat Heavy Electricals. The city is known worldwide for its many ghats, steps leading down the steep river bank to the water, where pilgrims perform rituals. Of particular note are the Dashashwamedh Ghat, the Panchganga Ghat, the Manikarnika Ghat, and the Harishchandra Ghat, the last two being where Hindus cremate their dead. The Hindu genealogy registers at Varanasi are kept here. Among the notable temples in Varanasi are Kashi Vishwanath Temple of Shiva, the Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple, and the Durga Temple.

The city has long been an educational and musical centre: many prominent Indian philosophers, poets, writers, and musicians live or have lived in the city, and it was the place where the Benares gharana form of Hindustani classical music was developed. In the 20th-century the Hindi-Urdu writer Premchand and the shehnai player Bismillah Khan were associated with the city. India's oldest Sanskrit college, the Benares Sanskrit College, was founded during East India Company rule in 1791. Later education in Benares was greatly influenced by the rise of Indian nationalism in the late 19th-century. Annie Besant founded the Central Hindu College in 1898. In 1916, she and Madan Mohan Malviya founded the Banaras Hindu University, India's first modern residential university. Kashi Vidyapith was established in 1921, a response to Mahatma Gandhi's Non-cooperation movement.

Etymology

Traditional etymology links "Varanasi" to the names of two Ganges tributaries forming the city's borders: Varuna, still flowing in northern Varanasi, and Assi, today a small stream in the southern part of the city, near Assi Ghat. The old city is located on the north shores of the Ganges, bounded by Varuna and Assi.[30]

In the Mahabharata the city is referred to as Kāśī (काशी: Kashi) from the Sanskrit verbal root kaś- "to shine", making Varanasi known as "City of Light",[31][14] the "luminous city as an eminent seat of learning".[32] The name was also used by pilgrims dating from Buddha's days.

Hindu religious texts use many epithets in Sanskrit to refer to Varanasi, such as Kāśikā (transl. "the shining one"), Avimukta (transl. "never forsaken by Shiva"), Ānandakānana (transl. "the forest of bliss"), Rudravāsa (transl. "the place where Rudra resides"), and Mahāshmashāna (transl. "the great cremation ground").[33]

History

Mythology

According to Hindu mythology, Varanasi was founded by Shiva,[34] one of three principal deities along with Brahma and Vishnu. During a conflict between Brahma and Shiva, one of Brahma's five heads was torn off by Shiva. As was the custom, the victor carried the slain adversary's head in his hand and let it hang down from his hand as an act of ignominy, and a sign of his own bravery. A bridle was also put into the mouth. Shiva thus dishonoured Brahma's head, and kept it with him at all times. When he came to the city of Varanasi in this state, the hanging head of Brahma dropped from Shiva's hand and disappeared in the ground. Varanasi is therefore considered an extremely holy site.[35]

The Pandavas, the protagonists of the Hindu epic Mahabharata, are said to have visited the city in search of Shiva to atone for their sins of fratricide and brahmahatya that they had committed during the Kurukshetra War.[36] It is regarded as one of seven holy cities (Sapta Puri) which can provide Moksha; Ayodhya, Mathura, Haridwar, Kashi, Kanchi, Avanti, and Dvārakā are the seven cities known as the givers of liberation.[37] The princesses Ambika and Ambalika of Kashi were wed to the Hastinapura ruler Vichitravirya, and they later gave birth to Pandu and Dhritarashtra. Bhima, a son of Pandu, married a Kashi princess Valandhara and their union resulted in the birth of Sarvaga, who later ruled Kashi. Dhritarasthra's eldest son Duryodhana also married a Kashi princess Bhanumati, who later bore him a son Lakshmana Kumara and a daughter Lakshmanā.

The Cakkavatti Sīhanāda Sutta text of Buddhism puts forth an idea stating that Varanasi will one day become the fabled kingdom of Ketumati in the time of Maitreya.[38]

Ancient period

Excavations in 2014 led to the discovery of artefacts dating back to 800 BCE. Further excavations at Aktha and Ramnagar, two sites in the vicinity of the city, unearthed artefacts dating back to 1800 BCE, supporting the view that the area was inhabited by this time.[39]

During the time of Gautama Buddha, Varanasi was part of the Kingdom of Kashi.[40] The celebrated Chinese traveller Xuanzang, also known as Hiuen Tsiang, who visited the city around 635 CE, attested that the city was a centre of religious and artistic activities, and that it extended for about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) along the western bank of the Ganges.[40][41] When Xuanzang, visited Varanasi in the 7th century, he named it "Polonise" (婆羅痆斯) and wrote that the city had some 30 temples with about 30 monks.[42] The city's religious importance continued to grow in the 8th century, when Adi Shankara established the worship of Shiva as an official sect of Varanasi.[43]

Medieval period

 
Kabir, a 15th-century Indian mystic poet and saint

Chandradeva, founder of the Gahadavala dynasty made Banaras a second capital in 1090.[44] In 1194 CE, the Ghurid conqueror Muizzuddin Muhammad Ghuri defeated the forces of Jayachandra in a battle near Jamuna and afterwards ravaged the city of Varnasi incourse of which many temples were destroyed.[45]

Varanasi remained a centre of activity for intellectuals and theologians during the Middle Ages, which further contributed to its reputation as a cultural centre of religion and education. Several major figures of the Bhakti movement were born in Varanasi, including Kabir who was born here in 1389,[46] and Ravidas, a 15th-century socio-religious reformer, mystic, poet, traveller, and spiritual figure, who was born and lived in the city and employed in the tannery industry.[47]

Early Modern to Modern periods (1500–1949)

Numerous eminent scholars and preachers visited the city from across India and South Asia. Guru Nanak visited Varanasi for Maha Shivaratri in 1507, a trip that played a large role in the founding of Sikhism.[48]

In 1567 or thereabouts, the Mughal emperor Jallaludin Muhammad Akbar sacked the city of Varanasi on his march from Allahabad (modern Prayagraj).[49] However, later the Kachwaha Rajput rulers of Amber (Mughal vassals themselves) most notably under Raja Man Singh rebuilt various temples and Ghats in the city.[50]

The Raja of Jaipur established the Annapurna Mandir, and the 200-metre (660 ft) Akbari Bridge was also completed during this period.[51] The earliest tourists began arriving in the city during the 16th century.[52] In 1665, the French traveller Jean-Baptiste Tavernier described the architectural beauty of the Vindu Madhava temple on the side of the Ganges. The road infrastructure was also improved during this period. It was extended from Kolkata to Peshawar by Emperor Sher Shah Suri; later during the British Raj it came to be known as the famous Grand Trunk Road. In 1656, Emperor Aurangzeb ordered the destruction of many temples and the building of mosques, causing the city to experience a temporary setback.[41] However, after Aurangzeb's death, most of India was ruled by a confederacy of pro-Hindu kings. Much of modern Varanasi was built during this time, especially during the 18th century by the Maratha and Bhumihar Brahmin rulers.[53] The kings governing Varanasi continued to wield power and importance through much of the British Raj period, including the Maharaja of Benares, or simply called by the people of Benaras as Kashi Naresh.

The Kingdom of Benares was given official status by the Mughals in 1737, the kingdom started in this way and continued as a dynasty-governed area until Indian independence in 1947, during the reign of Vibhuti Narayan Singh. In the 18th century, Muhammad Shah ordered the construction of an observatory on the Ganges, attached to Man Mandir Ghat, designed to discover imperfections in the calendar in order to revise existing astronomical tables. Tourism in the city began to flourish in the 18th century.[52] As the Mughal suzerainty weakened, the Benares zamindari estate became Banaras State, thus Balwant Singh of the Narayan dynasty regained control of the territories and declared himself Maharaja of Benares in 1740.[54] The strong clan organisation on which they rested, brought success to the lesser known Hindu princes.[55] There were as many as 100,000 men backing the power of the Benares rajas in what later became the districts of Benares, Gorakhpur and Azamgarh.[55] This proved a decisive advantage when the dynasty faced a rival and the nominal suzerain, the Nawab of Oudh, in the 1750s and the 1760s.[55]

 
Raja Chait Singh of Benares State (r.1771–1781)

An exhausting guerrilla war, waged by the Benares ruler against the Oudh camp, using his troops, forced the Nawab to withdraw his main force.[55] The region eventually ceded by the Nawab of Oudh to the Benares State a subordinate of the East India Company in 1775, who recognised Benares as a family dominion.[56][57] In 1791, under the rule of the British resident Jonathan Duncan founded a Sanskrit College in Varanasi.[58] In 1867, the establishment of the Varanasi Municipal Board led to significant improvements in the city's infrastructure and basic amenities of health services, drinking water supply and sanitation.[59]

Rev. M. A. Sherring in his book The Sacred City of Hindus: An account of Benaras in ancient and modern times published in 1868 refers to a census conducted by James Prinsep and put the total number of temples in the city to be around 1000 during 1830s.[60] He writes

The history of a country is sometimes epitomised in the history of its one of its principle cities. The city of Benaras represents India religiously and intellectually, just as Paris represents the political Sentiments of France. There are few cities in the world of greater antiquity, and none that have so uninterruptedly maintained their ancient celebrity and distinction.

[61] Author Mark Twain wrote in 1897 of Varanasi,

Benares is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together.

[62] Benares became a princely state in 1911.,[56] with Ramnagar as its capital, but with no jurisdiction over the city proper. The religious head, Kashi Naresh, has had his headquarters at the Ramnagar Fort since the 18th century, also a repository of the history of the kings of Varanasi, which is situated to the east of Varanasi, across the Ganges.[63] The Kashi Naresh is deeply revered by the local people and the chief cultural patron; some devout inhabitants consider him to be the incarnation of Shiva.[64]

Annie Besant founded the Central Hindu College, which later became a foundation for the creation of Banaras Hindu University in 1916. Besant founded the college because she wanted "to bring men of all religions together under the ideal of brotherhood in order to promote Indian cultural values and to remove ill-will among different sections of the Indian population."[65]

Varanasi was ceded to the Union of India in 1947, becoming part of Uttar Pradesh after Indian independence.[66] Vibhuti Narayan Singh incorporated his territories into the United Provinces in 1949.[67]

21st-century

Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India since 2014, has represented Varanasi in the Parliament of India since 2014. Modi inaugurated the Shri Kashi Vishwanath Corridor project, which aimed to enhance the city's spiritual vibrancy by connecting many ghats to the temple of Kasi Vishwanath, in December 2021.[68]

Geography and climate

Geography

Varanasi is located at an elevation of 80.71 metres (264.8 ft)[69] in the centre of the Ganges valley of North India, in the Eastern part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, along the left crescent-shaped bank of the Ganges, averaging between 15 metres (50 ft) and 21 metres (70 ft) above the river.[70] The city is the headquarters of Varanasi district. By road, Varanasi is located 797 kilometres (495 mi) south-east of New Delhi, 320 kilometres (200 mi) south-east of Lucknow, 121 kilometres (75 mi) east of Prayagraj, and 63 kilometres (39 mi) south of Jaunpur.[71] The "Varanasi Urban Agglomeration" – an agglomeration of seven urban sub-units – covers an area of 112 km2 (43 sq mi).[72] Neighbourhoods of the city include Adampura, Anandbagh, Bachchhaon, Bangali Tola, Bhelpura, Bulanala, Chaitganj, Chaukaghat, Chowk, Dhupchandi, Dumraon, Gandhinagar, Gautam Nagar, Giri Nagar, Gopal Vihar, Guru Nanak Nagar, Jaitpura, Kail Garh, Khanna, Kotwali, Lanka Manduadih, Luxa, Maheshpur, Mahmoorganj, Maulvibagh, Nagwar, Naipokhari, Shivala, Siddhagiribagh, and Sigra.[71]

Located in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of North India, the land is very fertile because low-level floods in the Ganges continually replenish the soil.[73] Varanasi is situated between the Ganges confluences with two rivers: the Varuna and the Assi stream. The distance between the two confluences is around 2 miles (4 km), and serves as a sacred journeying route for Hindus, which culminates with a visit to a Sakshi Vinayak Temple.[74]

Climate

Varanasi experiences a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cwa) with large variations between summer and winter temperatures.[75][76] The dry summer starts in April and lasts until June, followed by the monsoon season from July to October. The temperature ranges between 22 and 46 °C (72 and 115 °F) in the summers. Winters in Varanasi see very large diurnal variations, with warm days and downright cold nights. Cold waves from the Himalayan region cause temperatures to dip across the city in the winter from December to February and temperatures below 5 °C (41 °F) are not uncommon. The average annual rainfall is 1,110 mm (44 in). Fog is common in the winters, while hot dry winds, called loo, blow in the summers.[77] In recent years, the water level of the Ganges has decreased significantly; upstream dams, unregulated water extraction, and dwindling glacial sources due to global warming may be to blame.[78][79]

Climate data for Varanasi (1981–2010, extremes 1901–2012)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 31.4
(88.5)
36.1
(97.0)
41.5
(106.7)
45.2
(113.4)
47.2
(117.0)
47.2
(117.0)
45.0
(113.0)
40.1
(104.2)
39.7
(103.5)
39.4
(102.9)
36.0
(96.8)
32.8
(91.0)
47.2
(117.0)
Average high °C (°F) 22.5
(72.5)
26.5
(79.7)
32.7
(90.9)
38.8
(101.8)
40.1
(104.2)
38.3
(100.9)
33.8
(92.8)
33.0
(91.4)
32.9
(91.2)
32.4
(90.3)
29.3
(84.7)
24.7
(76.5)
32.1
(89.8)
Average low °C (°F) 8.9
(48.0)
11.7
(53.1)
16.3
(61.3)
21.6
(70.9)
25.3
(77.5)
27.1
(80.8)
25.9
(78.6)
25.6
(78.1)
24.6
(76.3)
20.3
(68.5)
14.0
(57.2)
9.8
(49.6)
19.3
(66.7)
Record low °C (°F) 1.0
(33.8)
1.7
(35.1)
6.7
(44.1)
11.1
(52.0)
17.3
(63.1)
20.5
(68.9)
20.0
(68.0)
20.4
(68.7)
17.8
(64.0)
11.7
(53.1)
5.0
(41.0)
2.2
(36.0)
1.0
(33.8)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 16.7
(0.66)
22.8
(0.90)
9.2
(0.36)
5.7
(0.22)
16.8
(0.66)
106.8
(4.20)
260.9
(10.27)
280.8
(11.06)
228.9
(9.01)
29.0
(1.14)
7.2
(0.28)
4.2
(0.17)
989.0
(38.94)
Average rainy days 1.5 1.8 0.7 0.7 1.7 5.2 12.9 12.5 9.1 1.9 0.4 0.4 48.7
Average relative humidity (%) (at 17:30 IST) 63 50 35 25 31 50 74 78 77 68 66 66 57
Mean monthly sunshine hours 232.5 240.1 291.4 294.0 300.7 234.0 142.6 189.1 195.0 257.3 261.0 210.8 2,848.5
Mean daily sunshine hours 7.5 8.5 9.4 9.8 9.7 7.8 4.6 6.1 6.5 8.3 8.7 6.8 7.8
Average ultraviolet index 6 7 10 11 12 12 12 12 11 8 6 5 9
Source 1: India Meteorological Department (sun 1971–2000)[80][81][82]
Source 2: Weather Atlas[83]
Climate data for Varanasi Airport (1981–2010, extremes 1952–2012)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 32.3
(90.1)
35.8
(96.4)
42.4
(108.3)
45.3
(113.5)
46.8
(116.2)
48.0
(118.4)
43.9
(111.0)
39.8
(103.6)
42.3
(108.1)
39.0
(102.2)
35.3
(95.5)
32.7
(90.9)
48.0
(118.4)
Average high °C (°F) 22.8
(73.0)
26.8
(80.2)
33.2
(91.8)
39.2
(102.6)
40.3
(104.5)
38.7
(101.7)
34.2
(93.6)
33.3
(91.9)
33.2
(91.8)
33.0
(91.4)
29.7
(85.5)
24.9
(76.8)
32.4
(90.3)
Average low °C (°F) 9.1
(48.4)
11.8
(53.2)
16.3
(61.3)
21.8
(71.2)
25.3
(77.5)
27.3
(81.1)
26.4
(79.5)
26.1
(79.0)
25.1
(77.2)
20.7
(69.3)
14.6
(58.3)
10.2
(50.4)
19.6
(67.3)
Record low °C (°F) 0.3
(32.5)
2.4
(36.3)
7.9
(46.2)
11.4
(52.5)
17.8
(64.0)
14.3
(57.7)
21.4
(70.5)
21.7
(71.1)
19.1
(66.4)
8.9
(48.0)
4.3
(39.7)
2.3
(36.1)
0.3
(32.5)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 15.4
(0.61)
19.9
(0.78)
6.8
(0.27)
6.2
(0.24)
19.4
(0.76)
111.4
(4.39)
299.2
(11.78)
264.2
(10.40)
232.7
(9.16)
30.3
(1.19)
6.5
(0.26)
4.1
(0.16)
1,016.1
(40.00)
Average rainy days 1.3 1.6 0.7 0.6 1.8 5.4 12.8 12.2 9.0 1.8 0.5 0.6 48.4
Average relative humidity (%) (at 17:30 IST) 61 50 33 22 30 48 73 77 76 63 58 62 55
Source: India Meteorological Department[80][81]

Demographics

According to provisional data from the 2011 census, the Varanasi urban agglomeration had a population of 1,435,113, with 761,060 men and 674,053 women.[84] The Varanasi municipal corporation and CB had a combined population of 1,212,610 of which 642,882 were males and 569,728 in 2011. The population in the age group of 0 to 6 years was 137,111.[1]

The population of the Varanasi urban agglomeration in 2001 was 1,371,749 with a ratio of 879 females every 1,000 males.[85] However, the area under Varanasi Nagar Nigam has a population of 1,100,748[86] with a ratio of 883 females for every 1,000 males.[86] The literacy rate in the urban agglomeration is 77% while that in the municipal corporation area is 78%.[86] Approximately 138,000 people in the municipal area live in slums.[87]

Religion

Religion in Varanasi City (2011).[88]

  Hinduism (70.11%)
  Islam (28.82%)
  Christianity (0.34%)
  Sikhism (0.22%)
  Jainism (0.12%)
  Buddhism (0.04%)
  Other or Not stated (0.35%)

Hinduism is predominantly followed in Varanasi with Islam being the largest minority. Nearly 70% of the population follows Hinduism. The city also agglomerate different religions such as Christianity, Sikhism, Jainism and Buddhism. The city is also a centre for Buddhist pilgrimage. At Sarnath, Buddha gave his first teaching after attaining enlightenment. Hence, agglomerating Buddhist population in the region.

In the sacred geography of India Varanasi is known as the "microcosm of India".[89] In addition to its 3,300 Hindu religious places, Varanasi has 12 churches, three Jain mandirs, nine Buddhist shrines, three Gurdwaras (Sikh shrines), and 1,388 Muslim holy places.[90]

Languages

Languages in Varanasi Municipal Corporation and Cantonment Board area, 2011 Census.[91]

  Hindi (83.87%)
  Urdu (9.03%)
  Bhojpuri (4.81%)
  Bengali (0.92%)
  Others (1.37%)

At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 83.87% of the population of Varansi Municipal Corporation and Cantonment Board spoke Hindi, 9.03% Urdu, 4.81% Bhojpuri, and 0.92% Bengali as their first language.[91]

Administration and politics

Administration

General administration

Varanasi division which consists of four districts, and is headed by the Divisional Commissioner of Varanasi, who is an IAS officer of high seniority, the Commissioner is the head of local government institutions (including Municipal Corporations) in the division, is in charge of infrastructure development in his division, and is also responsible for maintaining law and order in the division.[92][93][94][95][96] The District Magistrate of Varanasi reports to the Divisional Commissioner. The current Commissioner is Deepak Agarwal.[97][98][99]

Varanasi district administration is headed by the District Magistrate of Varanasi, who is an IAS officer. The DM is in charge of property records and revenue collection for the central government and oversees the elections held in the city. The DM is also responsible for maintaining law and order in the city, hence the SSP of Varanasi also reports to the DM of Varanasi.[92][100][101][102][103] The DM is assisted by a Chief Development Officer (CDO), four Additional District Magistrates (ADM) (Finance/Revenue, City, Protocol, Executive), one Chief Revenue Officer (CRO), one City Magistrate (CM), and four Additional City Magistrates (ACM). The district has three tehsils, each headed by a Sub-Divisional Magistrate. The current DM is Kaushal Raj Sharma.[104][105][99]

Police administration

Varanasi district comes under the Varanasi Police Zone and Varanasi Police Range, Varanasi Zone is headed by an Additional Director General ranked IPS officer, and the Varanasi Range is headed Inspector General ranked IPS officer. The current ADG, Varanasi Zone is Biswajit Mahapatra,[106] and IG, Varanasi Range is Vijay Singh Meena.[107]

The district police up to the date of 24 March 2021 was headed by a Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), who is an IPS officer, and is assisted by six Superintendents of Police (SP)/Additional Superintendents of Police (Addl. SP) (City, Rural Area, Crime, Traffic, Protocol and Protocol), who are either IPS officers or PPS officers.[108] Each of the several police circles is headed by a Circle Officer (CO) in the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police.[108] The last SSP was Amit Pathak.[108]

On 25 March 2021 the Government of Uttar Pradesh passed an order to divide the Varanasi police into Varanasi City Police and Rural Police.[109] Since then City Police is headed by the Commissioner of Police (CP), who is an IPS officer of ADGP rank, and is assisted by two Additional Commissioners of Police (Addl. CP) who is of DIG rank, and two Deputy Commissioners of Police (DCP) who are of SP rank. And Rural Police is headed by SP rank.[110]

Infrastructure and civic administration

The development of infrastructure in the city is overseen by the Varanasi Development Authority (VDA), which comes under the Housing Department of Uttar Pradesh government. The divisional commissioner of Varanasi acts as the ex-officio chairman of the VDA, whereas the vice-chairman, a government-appointed Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, looks after the daily matters of the authority.[111] The current vice-chairman of the Varanasi Development Authority is Pulkit Khare.[112]

The Varanasi Municipal Corporation oversees civic activities in the city; the head of the corporation is the mayor, and the executive and administration of the corporation is the responsibility of the municipal commissioner, who is appointed by the government of Uttar Pradesh and is either an IAS officer or Provincial Civil Service (PCS) officer of high seniority. The current mayor of Varanasi is Mridula Jaiswal, and the municipal commissioner is Nitin Bansal.[113]

Water supply and sewage system is operated by the Uttar Pradesh Jal Nigam.[114]

Politics

Varanasi is represented in the Lok Sabha by the current Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi who won the Lok Sabha elections in 2014 and subsequently in 2019 by a huge margin.[115][116]

Healthcare

Hospitals in the city include the Sir Sunderlal Hospital, a teaching hospital in the Banaras Hindu University, Heritage Hospital, Marwari Hospital, Pitambari Hospital, Mata Anand Mai Hospital, Rajkiya Hospital, Ram Krishna Mission Hospital, Shiv Prasad Gupta Hospital, Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital (managed by the state government), and Varanasi Hospital and Medical Research Centre. The urban parts of the Varanasi district had an infant mortality rate of 70 per 1,000 live births in 2010–2011.[117]

The Railway Cancer Hospital is now being run by the Tata Memorial Centre after intervention by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who represents Varanasi.[118]

Sushruta, an ancient Indian physician known as the primary author of the treatise Sushruta Samhita, the Sanskrit text of surgery, lived in Varanasi and practised medicine and surgery sometime during the 5th century BCE. Since 1922, Ayurveda has been a subject of training in the Banaras Hindu University, and in 1927 a separate Ayurvedic College was established.[119][120] There are many ayurvedic centres in Varanasi providing treatments such as Panchakarma as well as other treatments.[121]

Public maintenance

Because of the high population density of Varanasi and the increasing number of tourists, the Uttar Pradesh government and international non-governmental organisations and institutions have expressed grave concern for the pollution and pressures on infrastructure in the city, mainly the sewage, sanitation, and drainage components.[122] Pollution of the Ganges is a particular source of worry because of the religious significance of the river, the dependence of people on it as a source of drinking water, and its prominence as a symbol of Varanasi and the city itself.[123] The sewage problem is exacerbated by the role of the Ganges in bathing and in river traffic, which is very difficult to control.[122] Because of the sewage, people using local untreated water have higher risk of contracting a range of water-borne stomach diseases.[124]

Parts of Varanasi are contaminated with industrial chemicals including toxic heavy metal. Studies of wastewater from Varanasi's sewage treatment plants identify that water's contamination with metals and the reuse of this water for irrigation as a way that the toxic metals come to be in the plants that people grow for food.[125][126] One studied example is palak, a popular leafy vegetable which takes up heavy metal when it is in the soil, and which people then eat.[127] Some of the polluting sludge contains minerals which are fertiliser, which could make polluted water attractive to use.[128] Pesticides used in local farming are persistent enough to be spread through the water, to sewer treatment, then back to the farms as wastewater.[128]

Varanasi's water supply and sewage system is maintained by Jal Nigam, a subsidiary of Varanasi Nagar Nigam. Power supply is by the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited. The city produces about 350,000,000 litres (77,000,000 imp gal; 92,000,000 US gal) per day[129] of sewage and 425 tonnes (418 long tons; 468 short tons) per day of solid waste.[130] The solid wastes are disposed in one landfill site.[131]

Economy

 
Banarasi sari
 
Tourists shopping for jewellery in Varanasi

According to the 2006 City Development Plan for Varanasi, approximately 29% of Varanasi's population is employed.[132] Approximately 40% are employed in manufacturing, 26% work in trade and commerce, 19% work in other services, 8% work in transport and communication, 4% work in agriculture, 2% work in construction, and 2% are marginal workers (working for less than half of the year).[133]

Among manufacturing workers, 51% work in spinning and weaving, 15% work in metal, 6% work in printing and publishing, 5% work in electrical machinery, and the rest work in a wide variety of industry sectors.[134] Varanasi's manufacturing industry is not well developed and is dominated by small-scale industries and household production.[132]

Silk weaving is the dominant industry in Varanasi.[135] Muslims are the influential community in this industry with nearly half a million of them working as weavers, dyers, sari finishers, and salespersons.[136] Weaving is typically done within the household, and most weavers are Momin Ansari Muslims.[137] Varanasi is known throughout India for its production of very fine silk and Banarasi saris, brocades with gold and silver thread work, which are often used for weddings and special occasions. The production of silk often uses bonded child labour, though perhaps not at a higher rate than elsewhere in India.[138] The silk weaving industry has recently been threatened by the rise of power looms and computer-generated designs and by competition from Chinese silk imports.[132] Trade Facilitation Centre is a modern and integrated facility to support the handloom and handicraft sector in Varanasi; providing trade enhancement and facilitation to both domestic & international buyers. Hence, carrying forward the rich traditions of handlooms and handicrafts.

In the metal manufacturing sector, Banaras Locomotive Works is a major employer.[134] Bharat Heavy Electricals, a large power equipment manufacturer, also operates a heavy equipment maintenance plant.[139] Other major commodities manufactured and traded in Varanasi include hand-knotted Mirzapur carpets, rugs, dhurries, brassware, copperware, wooden and clay toys, handicrafts, gold jewellery, and musical instruments.[135] Important agricultural products include betel leaves (for paan), langra mangoes and khoa (solidified milk).[134][140]

Tourism

Tourism is Varanasi's second most important industry.[141] Domestic tourist most commonly visit for religious purposes while foreign tourist visit for ghats along River Ganges and Sarnath. Most domestic tourists are from Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and other parts of Uttar Pradesh, while the majority of foreign tourists are from Sri Lanka and Japan.[142] The peak tourist season falls between October and March.[142] In total, there are around 12,000 beds available in the city, of which about one half are in inexpensive budget hotels and one third in dharamsalas.[143] Overall, Varanasi's tourist infrastructure is not well developed.[143]

In 2017, InterContinental Hotels Group made an agreement with the JHV group to set up Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza hotel chains in Varanasi.[144]

Tourist arrival in Varanasi[145][146]
Year International Domestic Total
2013 285,252 4,966,161 5,251,413
2014 287,761 5,202,236 5,489,997
2015 302,370 5,413,927 5,716,297
2016 312,519 5,600,146 5,912,665
2017 334,708 5,947,355 6,282,063
2018 348,970 6,095,890 6,444,860
2019 350,000 6,447,775 6,797,775

The prominent malls and multiplexes in Varanasi are JHV Mall in the Cantonment area, IP Mall in Sigra, IP Vijaya Mall in Bhelupur, Vinayak Plaza in Maldhaiya and PDR Mall in Luxa. The city has several banks, including the Indian Bank, Andhra Bank, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, Central Bank of India, Corporation Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, and State Bank of India.[147]

Notable landmarks

 
A view of the Ghats in Varanasi from the Ganges.

Apart from the 19 archaeological sites identified by the Archaeological Survey of India,[148] some of the prominent places of interest are the Aghor Peeth, the Alamgir Mosque, the Ashoka Pillar, the Bharat Kala Bhavan (Art Museum), the Bharat Mata Mandir, the Central University for Tibetan Studies, the Dhanvantari Temple, the Durga Temple, the Jantar Mantar, the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, the Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple, the Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith, the Shri Vishwanath Temple on the BHU campus, the Ramnagar Fort, the Riverfront Ghats, the Tulsi Manas Temple.[149]

 
Ganges view from Bhadaini water works, Varanasi

Jantar Mantar

The Jantar Mantar observatory, constructed in 1737, is located above the ghats along the Ganges, and is adjacent to the Manmandir and Dasaswamedh Ghats and near the palace of Jai Singh II of Jaipur. While less equipped than the observatories at Jaipur and Delhi, the Jantar Mantar has a unique equatorial sundial which is functional and allows measurements to be monitored and recorded by one person.[150]

Ramnagar Fort

 
Ramnagar Fort was built in 1750 by Kashi Naresh Raja Balwant Singh.

The Ramnagar Fort, located near the Ganges on its eastern bank and opposite the Tulsi Ghat, was built in the 18th century by Kashi Naresh Raja Balwant Singh with cream-coloured chunar sandstone. The fort is a typical example of the Mughal architecture with carved balconies, open courtyards, and scenic pavilions. At present, the fort is in disrepair. The fort and its museum are the repository of the history of the kings of Benares. Cited as an "eccentric" museum, it contains a rare collection of American vintage cars, bejewelled sedan chairs, an impressive weaponry hall, and a rare astrological clock.[151] In addition, manuscripts, especially religious writings, are housed in the Saraswati Bhawan which is a part of a museum within the fort. Many books illustrated in the Mughal miniature style are also part of the collections. Because of its scenic location on the banks of the Ganges, it is frequently used as an outdoor shooting location for films.[151][152]

Ghats

The Ghats in Varanasi are world-renowned embankments made in steps of stone slabs along the river bank where pilgrims perform ritual ablutions. The ghats are an integral complement to the Hindu concept of divinity represented in physical, metaphysical, and supernatural elements.[153] Varanasi has at least 84 ghats, most of which are used for bathing by pilgrims and spiritually significant Hindu puja ceremony, while a few are used exclusively as Hindu cremation sites.[154][155][156] Steps in the ghats lead to the banks of Ganges, including the Dashashwamedh Ghat, the Manikarnika Ghat, the Panchganga Ghat, and the Harishchandra Ghat, where Hindus cremate their dead. Many ghats are associated with Hindu legends and several are now privately owned.[157]

Many of the ghats were constructed under the patronage of the Marathas, Shindes (Scindias), Holkars, Bhonsles, and Peshwas. Most are bathing ghats, while others are used as cremation sites. A morning boat ride on the Ganges across the ghats is a popular tourist attraction. The extensive stretches of ghats in Varanasi enhance the riverfront with a multitude of shrines, temples, and palaces built "tier on the tier above the water's edge".[40]

The Dashashwamedh Ghat is the main and probably the oldest ghat of Varanasi located on the Ganges, close to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple.

 
Drone shot of a Dashashwamedh Ghat in 2022

It is believed that Brahma created this ghat to welcome Shiva and sacrificed ten horses during the Dasa-Ashwamedha yajna performed there. Above and adjacent to this ghat, there are also temples dedicated to Sulatankesvara, Brahmesvara, Varahesvara, Abhaya Vinayaka, Ganga (the Ganges), and Bandi Devi, which are all important pilgrimage sites. A group of priests performs "Agni Pooja" (Sanskrit: "Worship of Fire") daily in the evening at this ghat as a dedication to Shiva, Ganga, Surya (Sun), Agni (Fire), and the entire universe. Special aartis are held on Tuesdays and on religious festivals.[155]

The Manikarnika Ghat is the Mahasmasana, the primary site for Hindu cremation in the city. Adjoining the ghat, there are raised platforms that are used for death anniversary rituals. According to a myth, it is said that an earring of Shiva or his wife Sati fell here. Fourth-century Gupta period inscriptions mention this ghat. However, the current ghat as a permanent riverside embankment was built in 1302 and has been renovated at least three times throughout its existence.[155]

The Jain Ghat is believed to birthplace of Suparshvanatha (7th Tirthankara) and Parshvanatha (23rd tirthankara). The Jain Ghat or Bachraj Ghat is a Jain Ghat and has three Jain Temples located on the banks of the River. It is believed that the Jain Maharajas used to own these ghats. Bachraj Ghat has three Jain temples near the river's banks, and one them is a very ancient temple of Tirthankara Suparswanath.

Temples

Among the estimated 23,000 temples in Varanasi,[36] the temples most popular for worship are: the Kashi Vishwanath Temple of Shiva; the Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple; and the Durga Temple, known for monkeys that reside in the large trees nearby.[66][159][30]

  • The Kashi Vishwanath Temple, on the Ganges, is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga Shiva temples in Varanasi.[159] The temple has been destroyed and rebuilt several times throughout its existence. The Gyanvapi Mosque, which is adjacent to the temple, is the original site of the temple.[160] The temple, which is also known as the Golden Temple,[161] was built in 1780 by Queen Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore. The two pinnacles of the temple are covered in gold and were donated in 1839 by Ranjit Singh, the ruler of Punjab. The dome is scheduled to receive gold plating through a proposed initiative of the Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs of Uttar Pradesh. Numerous rituals, prayers, and aartis are held daily at the temple between 02:30 and 23:00.[162]
  • The Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple, which is situated by the Asi River, is one of the sacred temples of the Hindu god Hanuman.[163] The present temple was built in the early 1900s by the educationist and Indian independence figure, Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, the founder of Banaras Hindu University.[164] According to Hindu legend the temple was built on the spot where the medieval Hindu saint Tulsidas had a vision of Hanuman.[165] During a 7 March 2006 terrorist attack, one of three explosions hit the temple while a wedding was in progress, and resulted in injuries to 30 people apart from 23 deaths.[164] Following the attack, a permanent police post was installed inside the temple.[166]
  • There are two temples dedicated to the goddess Durga in Varanasi: Durga Mandir built in the 16th century (exact date not known), and Durga Kund (Sanskrit 'kund' meaning "pond or pool") built in the 18th century. A large number of Hindu devotees visit Durga Kund during Navratri to worship the goddess Durga. The temple, built in the Nagara architectural style, has multi-tiered spires[161] and is stained red with ochre, representing the red colour of Durga. The building has a rectangular tank of water called the Durga Kund ("Kund" meaning a pond or pool). During annual celebrations of Nag Panchami, the act of depicting the god Vishnu reclining on the serpent Shesha is recreated in the Kund.[167] While the Annapurna Temple, located nearby to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, is dedicated to Annapoorna devi, the goddess of food,[159] the Sankatha Temple adjacent to the Sindhia Ghat is dedicated to Sankatha, the goddess of remedy. The Sankatha Temple has a large sculpture of a lion and a cluster of nine smaller temples dedicated to the nine planets.[159]
  • Parshvanath Jain temple is the temple of Jain religion dedicated to Parshvanath, the 23rd Thirthankara who was born at Bhelpur in Varanasi. The idol deified in the temple is of black colour and 75 centimetres (30 inches) in height. It is located in Bhelapur about 5 kilometres (3.1 miles) from the centre of Varanasi city and 3 kilometres (1.9 miles) from the Benares Hindu University. It belongs to the Digambar sect of Jainism and is a holy tirtha or pilgrimage centre for Jains.
  • Other temples of note are: the Bharat Mata Mandir, dedicated to the national personification of India, which was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi in 1936, the Kalabhairav Temple, the Mrithyunjay Mahadev Temple, and the New Vishwanath Temple located in the campus of BHU, the Tulsi Manas Mandir.[159]

Mosques

 
Alamgiri Mosque

There are 15 mosques of significant historical value in Varanasi. Of particular note are the Abdul Razzaq, Alamgir, Bibi Razia, Chaukhambha, Dhai Nim Kangore, Fatman, Ganje Shahada, Gyanavapi, and Hazrat Sayyed Salar Masud Dargah. Many of these mosques were constructed from the components of the Hindu shrines which were destroyed under the auspices of subsequent Muslim invaders or rulers. The two such well known mosques are the Gyanvapi Mosque and the Alamgir Mosque.[168]

The Gyanvapi Mosque was built by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in 1664 CE, after destroying a Hindu temple.[169] Gyan Vapi (Sanskrit: "the well of knowledge"), the name of the mosque, is derived from a well of the same name located within the precincts of the mosque.[170] The remains of an erstwhile temple can be seen in the foundation, the columns and at the rear part of the mosque.[171] The façade of the mosque is modelled partially on the Taj Mahal's entrance.[172] The mosque is administered by the Anjuman Inthazamiya Masajid (AIM).[173]

The Alamgiri Mosque was built in the 17th century by Aurangzeb over the ruins of a Hindu temple.[174] The Hindu temple that was destroyed was dedicated to Vishnu, and had been built by Beni Madhur Rao Scindia, a Maratha chieftain. When emperor Aurangzeb had captured Banaras, he had ordered total destruction of all Hindu temples there. Aurangzeb then built a mosque over the ruins of this temple in 1669[175] and named it as Alamagir Mosque in the name of his own honorific title "Alamgir" which he had adopted after becoming the emperor of Mughal empire.[176][171] The mosque is located at a prominent site above the Panchganga Ghat, which is a funerary ghat facing the Ganges.[177] The mosque is architecturally a blend of Islamic and Hindu architecture, particularly because of the lower part of the walls of the mosque having been built fully with the remains of the Hindu temple.[176] The mosque has high domes and minarets.[178][171] Two of its minarets had been damaged; one minaret crashed killing a few people and the other minaret was officially brought down because of stability concerns.[171] Non-Muslims are not allowed to enter the mosque.[179] The mosque has a security cordon of a police force.[180]

Shri Guru Ravidass Janam Asthan

 
Memorial of Sant Ravidas at Sant Ravidas Ghat

Shri Guru Ravidass Janam Asthan, at Sir Gobardhan is the ultimate place of pilgrimage or religious headquarters for followers of the Ravidassia religion.[181] The foundation stone was laid on 14 June 1965 on Ashad Sankranti day at the birthplace of Ravidas. The temple was completed in 1994.[182]

Sarnath

 
Sarnath, the suburb of Varanasi

Sarnath is located 10 kilometres north-east of Varanasi near the confluence of the Ganges and the Varuna rivers in Uttar Pradesh, India. The deer park in Sarnath is where Gautama Buddha first taught the Dharma, and where the Buddhist Sangha came into existence through the enlightenment of Kondanna.[183]

The city is mentioned by the Buddha as one of the four places of pilgrimage to which his devout followers should visit. It was also the site of the Buddha's Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, which was his first teaching after attaining enlightenment, in which he taught the Four Noble Truths and the teachings associated with it.[183]

Culture

Literature

Renowned Indian writers who have resided in the city were Kabir, Ravidas, and Tulsidas, who wrote much of his Ram Charit Manas here. Kulluka Bhatt wrote the best known account of Manusmriti in Varanasi in the 15th century.[citation needed] Later writers of the city have included Acharya Shukla, Baldev Upadhyaya, Bharatendu Harishchandra, Devaki Nandan Khatri, Premchand, Hazari Prasad Dwivedi, Jaishankar Prasad, Kshetresa Chandra Chattopadhyaya, Sudama Pandey (Dhoomil), Vagish Shastri, and Vidya Niwas Mishra.[citation needed]

Several newspapers and journals are or were published in Varanasi such as Varanasi Chandroday and its successor Kashivartaprakashika, which became a weekly journal, first published on 1 June 1851.[184] The main newspaper is Aj, a Hindi-language nationalist newspaper first published in 1920.[185] The newspaper was the bulwark of the Indian National Congress and is a major newspaper of Hindi northern India.[185]

Art

 
Wall paintings, Varanasi, 1973

Varanasi is a major centre of arts and designs. It is a producer of silks and brocades with gold and silver thread work, carpet weaving, wooden toys, bangles made of glass, ivory work, perfumes, artistic brass and copper ware and a variety of handicrafts.[186][187] The cantonment graveyard of the British Raj is now the location of Varanasi's Arts and Crafts.[188]

Notable artists (musicians and dancers) and historians who are connected with the city include Thakur Jaidev Singh, Mahadev Prasad Mishra, Bismillah Khan, Ravi Shankar, Girija Devi, Gopal Shankar Misra, Gopi Krishna, Kishan Maharaj, Lalmani Misra, Premlata Sharma, N. Rajam, Siddheshwari Devi, Samta Prasad, Sitara Devi,[189] Chhannulal Mishra, Rajan Sajan Mishra, Ritwik Sanyal, Soma Ghosh, Devashish Dey, Ramkrishna Das and Harish Tiwari.

Music

 
Sant Goswami Tulsidas Awadhi, a Hindi poet and propagator of Bhakthi music in Varanasi

Varanasi's music tradition is traced to the Pauranic days. According to ancient legend, Shiva is credited with evolving music and dance forms. During the medieval era, Vaishnavism, a Bhakti movement, grew in popularity, and Varanasi became a thriving centre for musicians such as Surdas, Kabir, Ravidas, Meera and Tulsidas. During the monarchic rule of Govind Chandra in the 16th century, the Dhrupad style of singing received royal patronage and led to other related forms of music such as Dhamar, Hori, and Chaturang. Presently the Dhrupad maestro Pandit Ritwik Sanyal from Varanasi is working for the revival of this art-music.[190]

In recent times, Girija Devi, the native famous classical singer of thumris, was widely appreciated and respected for her musical renderings.[191] Varanasi is also associated with many great instrumentalists such as Bismillah Khan[190] and Ravi Shankar, the famous sitar player and musicologist who was given the highest civilian award of the country, the Bharat Ratna.[192] Varanasi has joined the global bandwagon of UNESCO "Cities of Music" under the Creative Cities Network.[193]

Festivals

On Maha Shivaratri (February), a procession of Shiva proceeds from the Mahamrityunjaya Temple to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple.[66] Dhrupad Mela is a five-day musical festival devoted to dhrupad style held at Tulsi Ghat in February–March.[194] The Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple celebrates Hanuman Jayanti (March–April), the birthday of Hanuman. A special puja, aarti, and a public procession is organised.[195][196] Since 1923, the temple has organised a five-day classical music and dance concert festival named Sankat Mochan Sangeet Samaroh, wherein iconic artists from all parts of India are invited to perform.[66]

The Ramlila of Ramnagar is a dramatic enactment of Rama's legend, as told in Ramacharitamanasa.[64] The plays, sponsored by Kashi Naresh, are performed in Ramnagar every evening for 31 days.[64] On the last day, the festivities reach a crescendo as Rama vanquishes the demon king Ravana.[64] Kashi Naresh Udit Narayan Singh started this tradition around 1830.[64]

Chhath Puja is celebrated on the sixth day of the lunar month of Kartika (October–November).[197][198][199] The rituals are observed over four days.[200] They include holy bathing, fasting and abstaining from drinking water (vrata), standing in water, and offering prasad (prayer offerings) and arghya to the setting and rising sun.[201] Some devotees also perform a prostration march as they head for the river banks. Chhath puja is dedicated to the sun god "Surya" and his sister "Chhathi Maiya".[202] Chhath is considered as Mahaparva by the Bhojpuri people.[203] It is said that the Chhath Mahaparva was started in Varanasi.[204]

 
An actor reeenacting Krishna standing on the serpent Kaliya, during the Nag Nathaiya festival in Varanasi

Nag Nathaiya is celebrated on the fourth lunar day of the dark fortnight of the Hindu month of Kartik (October–November). It commemorates the victory of Krishna over the serpent Kaliya. On this occasion, a large Kadamba tree (Neolamarckia cadamba) branch is planted on the banks of the Ganges so that a boy, playing the role of Krishna, can jump into the river on to the effigy representing Kaliya. He stands over the effigy in a dancing pose playing the flute, while an audience watches from the banks of the river or from boats.[205] Bharat Milap celebrates the meeting of Rama and his younger brother Bharata after the return of the former after 14 years of exile.[66] It is celebrated during October–November, a day after the festival of Vijayadashami. Kashi Naresh attends this festival in his regal attire. The festival attracts a large number of devotees.[206]

Ganga Mahotsav is a five-day music festival organised by the Uttar Pradesh Tourism Department, held in November–December. It culminates a day before Kartik Purnima, also called the Ganges festival. On this occasion the Ganges is attended by thousands of pilgrims, release lighted lamps to float in the river from the ghats.[66][194]

The primary Muslim festivals celebrated annually in the city are the ld-ul-fitr' (Ramzan), Bakrid, Mid-Sha'ban, Bara Wafat and Muharram. Additional festivals include Alvida and Chehlum. A non-religious festival observed by Muslims is Ghazi-miyan-ka-byaha ("the marriage of Ghazi Miyan").[207][208]

Education

 
The Banaras Hindu University in Varanasi

Historically, Varanasi has been a centre for education in India, attracting students and scholars from across the country.[209][210] Varanasi has an overall literacy rate of 80% (male literacy: 85%, female literacy: 75%).[84] It is home to a number of colleges and universities. Most notably, it is the site of Banaras Hindu University (BHU), which is one of the largest residential universities in Asia with over 20,000 students.[211] The Indian Institute of Technology (BHU) Varanasi is designated an Institute of National Importance and is one of 16 Indian Institutes of Technology. Other colleges and universities in Varanasi include Jamia-e-Imania, the Institute of Integrated Management and Technology, Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith, Nav Sadhana Kala Kendra, Sampurnanand Sanskrit University and Sri Agrasen Kanya P.G. College. Various engineering colleges have been established in the outskirts of the city. Other notable universities and colleges include Institute of Medical Sciences, Sampurnanand Sanskrit Vishwavidyalaya, Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, and Harish Chandra Postgraduate College. Some research oriented institutes were also established by the government such as International Rice Research Institute (IRRI),[212] Indian Institute of Vegetable Research[213] and National Seed Research and Training Centre.[214]

 
Indian Institute of Technology in Varanasi

Varanasi also has three Kendriya Vidyalaya. Among them Kendriya Vidyalaya BHU holds the regional office of Varanasi Region of KVS and is seat of Deputy Commissioner. Kendriya Vidyalaya BHU is also accredited by the British Council. Other KVs are Kendriya Vidyalaya 39 GTC and Kendriya Vidyalaya DLW.

St. Joseph's Convent School, in Shivpur, Varanasi, was established by the Sisters of Our Lady of Providence of France as a Catholic (Christian) minority institution with the approval of the Government of Uttar Pradesh. It is an autonomous organisation under the diocese of the Bishop of Varanasi. It provides education not only to the Catholic Christian children, but also to others who abide by its rules.[215]

Another important institution is the Central Hindu School in Kamachha. This was established by Annie Besant in July 1898 with the objective of imparting secular education. It is affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education and is open to students of all cultures.[216][217]

Schools in Varanasi are affiliated with the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), the CBSE, or the Uttar Pradesh Board of Technical Education (U.P Board). The overall "state of education in Varanasi is ... not good."[218] Schools in Varanasi vary widely in quality, with private schools outperforming government schools.[218] In government schools, many teachers fail to come to class or to teach children.[218] Some government schools lack basic equipment, such as blackboards and sufficient desks and chairs for all students.[218] Private schools vary in quality, with the most expensive conducting lessons in English (seen as a key to children's success) and having computers in classrooms.[218] Pupils attending the more expensive private schools, tended to come from upper-class families.[218] Lower-cost private schools attracted children from lower-income families or those lower-income families with higher education aspirations.[218] Government schools tend to serve lower-class children with lower education aspirations.[218]

Media

Varanasi caters a lot of shooting from different film industries in India.[219] The temple town has emerged as a hub to Hindi film industry and South film industry.[220] Also, a chunk of Bhojpuri movies are shot in the city.[221] A few Bollywood movies that were shot, include Gangs of Wasseypur, Raanjhanaa, Piku, Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan and Super 30.[222][223][224][225][226] Some parts of the Hollywood movie The Curious Case of Benjamin Button were also shot.[227] Web series such as Mirzapur and Asur were also shot in temple town.[228][229]

Newspapers are widely available in Hindi and English. Aj, Hindi newspaper was established in 1920 in Varanasi.[230] Some publishers in the city are:

The city also hosts a Doordarshan Kendra, which was established in 1984 by the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India late Smt. Indira Gandhi. In 1998, Doordarshan studio was setup.[238]

FM/AM Stations available in the city are:[239][240][241]

Mobile apps such as "InVaranasi", "Varanasi" and "LiveVNS" provide a wide range of information related to travel and local news.[242][243][244]

Sport

Basketball, cricket, and field hockey are popular sports in Varanasi.[245] The main stadium in the city is the Dr Sampurnanda Stadium (Sigra Stadium), where first-class cricket matches are held.[246] The city also caters an AstroTurf hockey stadium named, Dr. Bheemrao Ambedker National Hockey Stadium.[247]

The Department of Physical Education, Faculty of Arts of BHU offers diploma courses in Sports Management, Sports Physiotherapy, Sports Psychology and Sports Journalism.[248] Also, BHU caters sports complexes including badminton court, tennis court, swimming pool and amphitheater.[249]

Gymnastics is also popular in Varanasi, and many Indian girls practise outdoors at the ghats in the mornings which hosts akhadas, where "morning exercise, a dip in the Ganges and a visit to Lord Hanuman" forms a daily ritual.[250] Despite concerns regarding water quality, two swimming clubs offer swimming lessons in the Ganges.[251]

The Varanasi District Chess Sports Association (VDCSA) is based in Varanasi, affiliated to the regional Uttar Pradesh Chess Sports Association (UPCSA).[252]

Transport

Varanasi is well-connected by air, rail, and road. One of the major factors in Varanasi, is its access to all parts of the country. Within the city mobility is provided by taxis, rickshaws, cycle rickshaws, and three-wheelers, but with certain restrictions in the old town area of the city.[253]

Air transport

 
The Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport is the main airport that serves Varanasi.

Varanasi is served by Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport (IATA: VNS, ICAO: VEBN), which is approximately 26 km (16 mi) from the city centre in Babatpur.[254] The airport's new terminal was inaugurated in 2010, and it was granted international airport status on 4 October 2012.[255] Air India, Air India Express, Buddha Air, IndiGo, Malindo Air, SpiceJet, SriLankan Airlines, Thai AirAsia, Thai Smile and Vistara operate flights from Varanasi to Ahmedabad, Bangkok, Colombo, Delhi, Gaya, Kathmandu, Khajuraho, Sharjah, Kuala Lumpur, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Goa, Guwahati, Jaipur, Kolkata and several other cities.[256]

Over 3,010,702 passengers passed through the airport in 2019–20, making it the 20th busiest airport in India. The total aircraft movement for the session 2019–20 was 24,056 while cargo tonnage equalled 3,580. Total footfall of the international passengers for the session 2019–20 was 231,730.[257][258][259]

Railways

 
Varanasi Junction, is the main railway station which serves Varanasi.
 
Banaras railway station at night

Varanasi Junction, commonly known as Varanasi Cantt Railway Station, is the city's largest railway station. More than 360,000 passengers and 240 trains pass through each day.[260] Banaras railway station is also a Terminal station of Varanasi. Because of huge rush at Varanasi Junction the railway developed the station as a high facilitated terminal. Varanasi City railway station is also one of the railway stations in Varanasi district. It is 4 km North-East of Varanasi Junction railway station. It serves as Terminal station because of heavy rush at Varanasi Junction. Mughalsarai Junction railway station is also the important station in Varanasi suburban.

Some important express trains operating from the Varanasi Junction railway station and Manduadih railway station are: Shiv Ganga Express runs between New Delhi Junction and Manduadih station while Mahamana Express runs between Varanasi junction and New Delhi Junction; the Udhna Varanasi Express that runs between Udhna (Surat) junction and Varanasi, a distance of 1,398 kilometres (869 mi);[261] the Kashi Vishwanath Express that runs between Varanasi and New Delhi railway station;[262] the Kanpur Varanasi InterCity express, also called Varuna express, which runs over a distance of 355 kilometres (221 mi) and connects with Lucknow (the capital city of Uttar Pradesh) and Varanasi;[263] and the Sabarmati Express which runs between Varanasi and Ahmedabad. Vande Bharat Express, a semi-high speed train was launched in the month of February in 2019 in the Delhi-Varanasi route.[264] The train reduced the time travel between the two cities by 15 percent as compared to the Shatabdi Express.[265]

Varanasi has following railway stations within the city suburbs:[266][267]

Ropeway

Kashi ropeway is under construction since 2023. It will be 3.75 kilometres (2.33 mi) long and will have a maximum capacity of 3000 passengers per hour per direction.[268][104][105][269] It will cover the cantonment area to Godowlia, which will reduce travel time from the current 45 minutes to around 15 minutes.[270]

Roads

 
Ring Road Phase I

Auto rickshaws and E-rickshaws are the most widely available forms of public transport in the old city.[271] In the outer regions of the city, taxis are available.[271] Daily commuters prefer city buses, which operate on specific routes of urban and suburban areas. The city buses are operated by Varanasi City Transport Service Limited.[272] Nearly, 120 buses are operated by Varanasi City Transport Service Limited.[273]

The following National Highways pass through Varanasi:[274][275][276][277][278]

National Highway Route Total Length
NH 19 Delhi » Mathura » Agra » Kanpur » Prayagraj » Varanasi » Mohania » Barhi » Palsit » Kolkata 1,323 km (822 mi)
NH 233 Varanasi » Azamgarh » Tanda » Basti » Siddharthnagar » Lumbini (Nepal) 288 km (179 mi)
NH 35 Mahoba » Banda » Chitrakoot » Prayagraj » Mirzapur » Varanasi 346 km (215 mi)
NH 31 Unnao » Raebareli » Pratapgarh » Varanasi » Patna » Samsi 968 km (601 mi)
NH 7 Varanasi » Jabalpur » Nagpur » Hyderabad » Bangalore » Kanyakumari 2,369 km (1,472 mi)

The heavy traffic of the city is monitored through Integrated Traffic Management System. The smart traffic management system equips the city with automatic signal control system, separate signal system for pedestrians, traffic management centre at state level, area traffic control system, corridor management and dynamic traffic indicators for smooth movement of traffic.[279] Varanasi Traffic Police keeps an eye through Smart Command and Control Centre.[280][281]

Inland waterways

National Waterway 1 passes through Varanasi. In 2018, a new inland port was established on the banks of Ganges River.[282] The Multi-Modal Terminal is designed to handle 1.26 million metric tons of cargo every year and covers an area of 34 hectares.[283] Nearly, ₹170 crore was invested by the Government to setup an inland port.[284] Maersk started its container service in 2019 by moving 16 containers on NW-1 from Varanasi to Kolkata. The port also catered PepsiCo, IFFCO Fertilizers, Emami Agrotech and Dabur for cargo movement.[285]

Projects

Due to growing population and industrial demands, the city is being implanted with several infrastructural projects.[286] In fiscal year 2014–18, the city was awarded with projects worth ₹30,000 crore.[287] The city is being invested by both private and public players in different sectors.[288] Currently, there are many undergoing projects and many have been planned.

Road

 
Road in Varanasi Cantonment

The Government is executing seven road projects connecting Varanasi, the total project cost being ₹7100 crores and the total length of the project being 524 km. Some important projects are:

  • Six lane Varanasi-Aurangabad section of NH-19[289]
  • Six lane Varanasi-Allahabad NH-19[290]
  • Four lane Varanasi-Gorakhpur NH-29[291]
  • Ghagra Bridge-Varanasi section of NH-233[289]
  • Four lane Varanasi-Azamgarh Section NH-233[292]
  • Four lane Varanasi-Sultanpur NH-56[293]
  • New four lane Varanasi-Ayodhya Highway[294]
  • Varanasi Ring Road Phase – 2[295]
  • Ganga Expressway Phase – 2[296]
  • Varanasi-Ranchi-Kolkata Greenfield Expressway[297]
  • Purvanchal Link Expressway[298]

Accommodation

All ranges of accommodations are available. Hotels, lodges are available. Lots of dharamshalas or nattukottai chatrams are also available. For yatris who want to breath their last in this holy city, specific accommodations are also available.

Railways

 
A BLW-manufactured train

In 2018, the budget reflected undergoing rail projects of worth ₹4500 crore. Some important projects are:[299]

Airport

  • Extension of runway by 1325 meters (First of its kind: National Highway under the airport runway)[305]
  • New terminal with passenger capacity of 4.5 million per year[306]

Metro

The Varanasi Metro is a rapid transit proposed for Varanasi. The proposed system consists of two lines, spanning from BHEL to Banaras Hindu University (19.35 km) and Benia Bagh to Sarnath (9.885 km). The feasibility study of the project was done by RITES and was completed in June 2015. There will be 26 stations, including 20 underground and six elevated on the two lines, which includes total length of 29.235 km consisting of 23.467 km underground, while 5.768 km will be elevated.[307][308][309][310] The total estimated completion cost for construction of Varanasi Metro is estimated to be ₹13,133 crore.[311]

Commercial

  • Rudraksha Convention Centre[312]
  • Kashi Vishwanath Corridor[313]
  • 100 acres freight village for multimodal terminal[314]
  • Film city to be developed in area of 106 acres[315]
  • Bus terminal cum shopping mall[316][317]
  • IT Park[318]
  • Textile Park[319][320]
  • Integrated Commissioner Complex (ICC) twin towers[321]

Sister cities

See also

Gallery

References

Notes

  1. ^ The name Varanasi was officially revived after 1947,[16]
  2. ^ This is the case at the same time as traditions have been transformed in the face of modernization, generational changes and emigration.[18][19]

Citations

  1. ^ a b Varanasi City:
    "Census of India: Varanasi M. Corp". censusindia.gov.in. from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
    "Census of India: Varanasi CB". censusindia.gov.in. from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  2. ^ Dikshit, Rajeev (13 May 2023). "In Varanasi BJP's Ashok Tiwari defeats SP by 1.33L votes". The Times of India. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  3. ^ . 7 January 2022. Archived from the original on 19 August 2021. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  4. ^ "District Census Handbook Varanasi" (PDF). censusindia.gov.in. (PDF) from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  5. ^ "Urban Agglomerations/Cities having population 1 lakh and above" (PDF). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. (PDF) from the original on 17 October 2013. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  6. ^ a b (PDF). nclm.nic.in. Ministry of Minority Affairs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2017. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
  7. ^ Western Standard Bhojpuri Archived 1 March 2014 at archive.today Digital Library of Language Relationships (2012)
  8. ^ "Yogi Adityanath is right. Route to UP's $1 trillion GDP goal passes through hinterland". Retrieved 25 September 2019.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ "Executive Summary" (PDF). (PDF) from the original on 19 August 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  10. ^ "Slum Free City Plan of Action Varanasi" (PDF). (PDF) from the original on 28 June 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  11. ^ Singh, Padam; Keshar, Satyendra (8 March 2016). "Development of Human Development Index at District Level for EAG States" (PDF). Statistics and Applications. 14 (1 & 2, 2016). (PDF) from the original on 4 March 2022. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  12. ^ San Chirico, Kerry P. C. (2012), "Banaras", in Juergensmeyer, Mark; Roof, Wade Clark (eds.), Encyclopedia of Global Religion, Volume 1, pp. 114–116, ISBN 9780761927297, The city was identified in the Pali language as Baranasi, from which emerged the corrupt form of the name, "Banaras," by which the city is still widely known.
  13. ^ The name that appears on the 1909 version official map of India
  14. ^ a b San Chirico, Kerry P. C. (2012), "Banaras", in Juergensmeyer, Mark; Roof, Wade Clark (eds.), Encyclopedia of Global Religion, Volume 1, pp. 114–116, ISBN 9780761927297, ... in the fifth century BCE, ..., the Kingdom of Kashi was one of the 16 kingdoms to emerge from the ascendant Aryan tribes.
  15. ^ "Varanasi", Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1 September 2021, retrieved 14 December 2021, Varanasi, also called Benares, Banaras, or Kashi, city, southeastern Uttar Pradesh state, northern India.
  16. ^ San Chirico, Kerry P. C. (2012), "Banaras", in Juergensmeyer, Mark; Roof, Wade Clark (eds.), Encyclopedia of Global Religion, Volume 1, pp. 114–116, ISBN 9780761927297, Varanasi is the city's revived, post-independence designation, which combines the names of two rivers on either side of it.
  17. ^
    • Fouberg, Erin H.; Moseley, William G. (2018), Understanding World Geography, New York: John Wiley & Sons, p. 173, ISBN 9781119473169, OCLC 1066742384, The city of Varanasi, India, is central to the death tradition in Hinduism. Hindus see Varanasi as the world of death and life, and some make pilgrimages to Varanasi to die. In Hindu tradition, if a person dies in the holy city of Varanasi on the Ganges River, he or she is attains moksha, or freedom from the cycle of death and rebirth. Pilgrims travel to Varanasi to cremate their deceased relatives on the ghats along the river.
    • Eck, Diana (2013) [1981], Banaras, the City of Light, Alfred Knopf Inc, [Columbia University Press], p. 324, –No other city on earth is as famous for death as is Banāras. More than for her temples and magnificent ghāts, more than for her silks and brocades, Banāras, the Great Cremation Ground, is known for death. At the center of the city along the riverfront is Manikarnikā, the sanctuary of death, with its ceaselessly smoking cremation pyres. The burning ghāt extends its influence and the sense of its presence throughout the city.
    • Parry, Jonathan P. (2000) [1994], Death in Banaras, Lewis Henry Morgan Lectures, Cambridge University Press, p. 1, ISBN 9780521466257, As a place to die, to dispose of the physical remains of the deceased and to perform the rites which ensure that the departest attains a 'good state' after death, the north Indian city of Banaras attracts pilgrims and mourners from all over the Hindu world.
    • Singh, Ravi Nandan (2022). Dead in Banaras: An Ethnography of Funeral Travelling. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. The present-day Banaras, at first sign, is a new place. Rightly so, the baton must then pass on to an all new chronicling of the place. Yet, a connecting link, as always, may come into play, between the book's time and other times of Banaras. Let me give an example of what such a connection might look like. Jonathan Parry (1994) in his classic Death in Banaras laments in the preface to the book that he could not incorporate the coming in of the electric crematorium in his descriptions of the funerary organization in Banaras. Two decades later into my fieldwork, I found that it is in part, the efficiency of the open-air, manual cremation that Parry so effectively captures in his book that explains how a promising symbol of industrial modernity, the electric crematorium, falls short of the typecast. In the years between his book and my fieldwork, the electric crematorium sat lonely and was sparingly used against the cheer of the always-on, busy, manual pyres whose flames continue to dot the scene of the ghats in a contrasting relief. In this above sense, I believe, Parry already provides us a portrait of the electric crematorium's social imaginary in Banaras. The question of the shift from wooden pyres to the electric crematorium is then not about competing technologies but that of ethics with which the dead are tended to amidst the assemblies of funeral travellers.
  18. ^ Garces-Foley, Kathleen (2022), "At the Intersection of Death and Religion", in Garces-Foley, Kathleen (ed.), Death and Religion in a Changing World (2 ed.), London and New York: Routledge, p. 186, doi:10.4324/9781003126997, ISBN 978-0-367-64930-2, It is not uncommon for immigrants to discover that their long-established death practices are deemed unacceptable by civil authorities in their new home. We see this for example in the experiences of Sikhs and Hindus living in Sweden and the United States where open cremation pyres are not permitted. Market forces and social context also shape religious practices by limiting access to some goods and services while promoting others and offering new possibilities for action. ... The logistical difficulty of transporting a body from the United States or the UK to the auspicious city of Varanasi, India, for cremation is surmounted by entrepreneurial service providers who manage the process for Hindu customers.
  19. ^ Arnold, David (2021), Burning the Dead: Hindu Nationhood and the Global Construction of Indian Tradition, Oakland: University of California Press, p. 11, ISBN 9780520379343, LCCN 2020026923, While Benares is undeniably central to the performance and perception of modern Indian cremation, that history cannot be told from Benares alone. Rather, ... the narrative needs to encompass colonial India's two main metropolises, Bombay (Mumbai) and Calcutta (Kolkata), as well as the movement of Indians overseas and their memorialization abroad. ... The history of cremation in India is far more than the history of traditional rites and practices that it is conventionally taken to be—if tradition is assumed to mean "timeless" custom and immutable belief. On the contrary, cremation in modern India and across the South Asian diaspora is a history of contestation and change, of longing and denial, adaptation and innovation. India, too, has gifted to the world a modern cremation movement, though its meaning, form, and global resonance necessarily differed substantially from the Western cremation movement with which it was nearly contemporaneous.
  20. ^
    • Williams, Philippa (17 January 2019). "Working Narratives of Intercommunity Harmony in Varanasi's Silk Sari Industry". In Jeffrey, Roger; Jeffrey, Craig; Lerche, Jens (eds.). Development Failure and Identity Politics in Uttar Pradesh. SAGE. pp. 211–238. ISBN 978-81-321-1663-9. 'Varanasi … is the city where Hindus and Muslims … are interwoven like threads as in the lovely silk saris for which Kashi (Varanasi) is so famous for (Puniyani, 2006).'(quoted) Varanasi is most often represented as a sacred Hindu pilgrimage centre (see Eck, 1983), as its social and cultural urban spaces have been often examined through the imagined and lived realities of Hinduism (Hertel and Humes, 1993; Parry, 1994; Singh and Rana, 2002). But it is also home to a sizeable Muslim population, which in 2001 comprised 30 per cent of the city's residents, significantly more than the percentage of Muslims in UP (Census of India, 2001). Unlike the city's majority Hindu inhabitants (63 per cent), who occupy a range of occupations in different economic sectors, Muslims in the city are predominantly involved in the production of silk fabrics, as well as other smaller artisanal industries (see Kumar, 1988). Muslims first settled in Varanasi in the eleventh century, when, following the defeat of an invading Muslim army, women, children and civilians were permitted to remain on the northern side of the city and serve the Hindu kings. Many learned the craft of weaving, incorporating their skills and designs into the fabrics. Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, the French explorer and cultural anthropologist, visited Varanasi between 1660 and 1665 and reported that in the courtyard of a rest house in the Chowk area the trading of reshmi (silk) and suti (cotton) fabrics was taking place between Muslim karigars (artisans or craftsmen) and Hindu Mahajans (traders)
    • Puniyani, Ram (21 April 2006), "Tackling Terrorism – Varanasi, Jama Masjid Show the Way", CounterCurrents.Org, Varanasi, like many other cities of the country is the city where Hindus and Muslim of the city are interwoven like threads as in the lovely silk saris for which Kashi is so famous for. This town has hundreds and hundreds of Muslims artisans weaving the beautiful silk apparels, which are sold by the Hindu traders. This is also a city where on one hand we see the likes of Munshi Premchand, who wrote in Urdu as Nawab Rai and also crafted the acme of Hindi literature, which is not only progressive but is also a celebration of composite traditions of the country. This is also the city of the likes of Ustad Bismillah Khans, whose Shahanai begins with devotion to Hindu deities and hums the pleasant enchanting music into the ears of the whole nation. It is also the city which like most of the cities of the country, highlights the intercommunity amity in its most pleasant flavor.
    • Mallet, Victor (2017). River of Life, River of Death: The Ganges and India's Future. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198786177. LCCN 2017939064. Modi, however, went out of his way to court Varanasi's Muslims—they account for nearly a quarter of the city's 1.6 million voters—and to emphasize its multicultural, syncretic traditions when he was on the campaign trail in 2014. He praised not only Hindu but also Muslim cultural figures, including the musician Bismillah Khan, and said Khan was arguably the greatest symbol of Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb (Ganga-Yamuna culture), a riverine phrase often used to describe the intertwined Hindu-Muslim culture of north India where those two rivers flow. Modi also targeted the important Muslim community of sari weavers in the district of Lallapura. Varanasi's silk wedding saris, lavishly designed and interwoven with gold thread, are much sought after by Indians from across the country and from overseas, and Modi promised to help the weavers acquire modern technology, quality raw materials and better marketing skills so they could compete with Chinese clothing manufacturers. 'The weavers of Varanasi are an integral part of the city's history', he wrote in a blog post on his nomination day. 'It is my resolve to ensure that they stand on their own feet with pride and their future generations have a bright future.' (pp. 51–52) An earlier great poet, son of Varanasi and symbol of north India's syncretic traditions, was the fifteenth-century Kabir, whose pithy lines in Hindi are still much quoted today by Indians over social media. Again, the legends surrounding his life are confused. He may have been born into a low-caste Muslim community of weavers or been a Hindu by birth. But he famously mocked the priesthoods and the rituals of both Muslims and Hindus, even to the extent of deliberately leaving holy Varanasi to die in an obscure town, when most north Indians would be heading in the other direction and yearning to expire within the boundaries of the city to find salvation. His contempt for organized religion is reflected in the legend of his death: Hindu and Muslim devotees argued over who should claim the poet's remains, but when the cloth covering his body was lifted, they found nothing underneath but a spray of flowers. (pp 60–61)
    • Kumar, Nita (2017) [1988], The Artisans of Banaras: Popular Culture and Identity, 1880–1986, Princeton Legacy Library, Princeton University Press, pp. 15, 18, 137, ISBN 9781400886999, The simplicty of weavers' weddings is a contrast even to those of other Muslims, such as the Pathans. (p. 15) ... Contrary to the experience of most artisan production in modern times, the silk weaving industry has actually flourished, and remained the commercial backbone of the Hindu pilgrimage and religious centre of Banaras. (p. 18) The debate on how Muslims in other parts of South Asia adjust an "Islamic" identity with a territorial-cultural one which is heavily oriented towards local Hinduism is very instructive with regard to our material. The weaver of Banaras is as shaukeen a man as the Hindu and central to his life-style is the love of the outside, of akharas, and of music.(pp. 137–138)
    • San Chirico, Kerry P. C. (2012), "Banaras", in Juergensmeyer, Mark; Roof, Wade Clark (eds.), Encyclopedia of Global Religion, Volume 1, pp. 114–116, ISBN 9780761927297, This was the period in which an enduring cultural imprint was made in ... the establishment of muhallas or neighborhoods that exist to this day, in the presence of Sufi shrines dotting the landscape, and in the creation of a singular syncretic culture ... Today Islam accounts for more than one-third of Varanasi city's population. There are as many Muslims here as there are Brahmans, the majority of whom are weavers. The relationship between the Muslims who weave Banaras's famous saris and the Hindus who sell them explains in part by historically there has been less communal tension here than in other cities throughout South Asia.
  21. ^ San Chirico, Kerry P. C. (2012), "Banaras", in Juergensmeyer, Mark; Roof, Wade Clark (eds.), Encyclopedia of Global Religion, Volume 1, pp. 114–116, ISBN 9780761927297
  22. ^ Fogelin, Lars (2015). An Archaeological History of Indian Buddhism. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 87–88. ISBN 978-0-1999-4821-5. In some specific cases the symbolism does seem specifically Buddhist. The capital at Sarnath, for example, has four wheels carved on its drum (see Figure 3.4). Critically, this is the only Mauryan capital that includes wheel motifs. It seems unlikely that it is merely coincidental that the capital was located at Sarnath—the location of the Buddha's first sermon, the place where the Buddha first turned the wheel of Dharma. Rather, it seems very likely that the wheel motif, at least at Sarnath, symbolized the wheel of Dharma in the specifically Buddhist sense of the term
  23. ^ "Varanasi", Encyclopaedia Britannica, 7 June 2022, retrieved 1 November 2022, It was the capital of the kingdom of Kashi during the time of the Buddha (6th century BCE), who gave his first sermon nearby at Sarnath.
  24. ^ "When the spirit of Kabir took over the ancient ghats of Benares". The Sunday Guardian Live. 30 November 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  25. ^ Bose, Melia Belli (2017). "Royal Matronage and a Visual Vocabulary of Indian Queenship: Ahilyabai Holkar's Memorial Commissions". In Bose, Melia Belli (ed.). Women, Gender and Art in Asia, c. 1500–1900. London and New York: Routledge. ISBN 9781351536554. Each time prior to Aurangzeb's razing, the temple was rebuilt by prominent Rajputs, such as Raja Todar Mal (d. 1586), finance minister and high-ranking courtier to Mughal Emperor Akbar, in 1585. Although he did not sponsor the temple's rebuilding, among the Kashi Vishvanath's most illustrious donors is Raja Man Singh Kachhwaha of Amber, who commissioned several other temples and ghats in the vicinity. ... Raja Man Singh ... was also closely associated with the Mughal emperors Akbar and Jahangir, in whose armies and courts he served
  26. ^ Metcalf, Barbara (2009). "Introduction". In Metcalf, Barbara D. (ed.). Islam in South Asia in Practice. Princeton and London: Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-1400831388. As Catherine Asher has argued, the temples of a Hindu noble like the Rajput Man Singh, built with Mughal patronage, should be seen as 'imperial projects,' reflecting bonds between nobles and the king and making empire-wide architectural styles.
  27. ^ Bourke, Richard (8 September 2015), Empire and Revolution: The Political Life of Edmund Burke, Princeton University Press, p. 843, ISBN 9780691145112, Since 1724 Awadh, "in extent about the size of England," had enjoyed effective autonomy as a quasi-independent province within the Mughal Empire. It came to terms with the British after the Battle of Buxar in 1764, finally signing up to the Treaty of Benares in 1773. This imposed on the Wazir of Awadh, Shuja-ud-Daula, the obligation to accept troops stationed in his territory while paying a subsidy to the British for the privilege. The Wazir's successor, Asaf-ud-Daula, agreed to increase this subsidy under the Treaty of Faizabad in 1775, at the same time ceding Benares to the Company.
  28. ^ Markovitz, Claude (24 September 2004), "Birth of the British Empire in India (1765–1818)", in Markovits, Claude (ed.), A History of Modern India, 1480–1950, Anthem Press, ISBN 9781843311522, In the face of the hostility of all the dynamic forces of the country, the threat of the Marathas looming large on the frontiers, Asaf could count henceforth only on the help of the English, who exerted themselves to use this tumultuous situation to the full. In exchange for their military protection, the nawab granted them as early as 1775 the control of the region of Benares, in addition to a substantial increase in indemnity.
  29. ^ Bayly, Christopher (1983), Rulers, townsmen, and bazaars: north Indian society in the age of British expansion, 1770–1870, Cambridge University Press, pp. xii–xiii, ISBN 9780521229326, In 1801 a large area of Awadh situated in the Doab and Rohilkhand were ceded to the British. It was added to districts conquered from the Marathas in 1803–4 around Delhi and Agra to form the 'Conquered and Ceded Provinces' of the British Bengal Presidency. The term 'Western Provinces' and later 'North-Western Provinces' came into gradual use to describe this area and the adjoining Benares Division; ... In 1856 the remaining 'Reserved Dominions' of the ruler of Awadh were annexed to become the British Province of Oudh under a Chief Commissioner. In 1901 the two provinces were amalgamated to become the United Province of Agra and Oudh.
  30. ^ a b Cunningham & Sastri 2002, pp. 131–140.
  31. ^ Eck 1982, p. 10, 58, refers to "Banares – which Hindus call Kashi, the City of Light" (p. 10) and "Hindus call it Kashi, the luminous City of Light" (p. 58)..
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varanasi, confused, with, division, district, tehsil, banaras, benaras, redirect, here, other, uses, banaras, disambiguation, vārāṇasī, hindustani, ʋaːˈraːɳəsi, also, banaras, benares, banāras, bəˈnaːrəs, listen, kashi, kāshi, kˈæʃi, listen, city, ganges, rive. Not to be confused with Varanasi division Varanasi district or Varanasi Tehsil Banaras and Benaras redirect here For other uses see Banaras disambiguation Varanasi Varaṇasi Hindustani ʋaːˈraːɳesi also Banaras or Benares Banaras beˈnaːres listen 12 13 and Kashi Kashi kˈaeʃi listen 14 15 a is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage death and mourning in the Hindu world 17 b The city has a syncretic tradition of Muslim artisanship that underpins its religious tourism 20 Located in the middle Ganges valley in the southeastern part of the state of Uttar Pradesh Varanasi lies on the left bank of the river It is 692 kilometres 430 mi to the southeast of India s capital New Delhi and 320 kilometres 200 mi to the east of the state capital Lucknow It lies 121 kilometres 75 mi downstream of Prayagraj where the confluence with the Yamuna river is another major Hindu pilgrimage site Varanasi Benares Banaras KashiMetropolisMunshi GhatAhilya GhatVaranasi StationKashi Vishwanath TempleBanaras Hindu UniversityBenares Sanskrit CollegeManikarnika GhatInteractive map of VaranasiCoordinates 25 19 08 N 83 00 46 E 25 31889 N 83 01278 E 25 31889 83 01278Country IndiaStateUttar PradeshDivisionVaranasiDistrictVaranasiGovernment TypeMunicipal Corporation BodyVaranasi Municipal Corporation MayorAshok Tiwari 2 BJP Divisional CommissionerDeepak Agarwal IASArea 3 Metropolis82 km2 32 sq mi Metro 4 163 8 km2 63 2 sq mi Elevation80 71 m 264 80 ft Population 2011 Metropolis1 212 610 1 Rank30th Metro 5 1 432 280 32nd DemonymBanarasiLanguage OfficialHindi 6 Additional officialUrdu 6 RegionalBhojpuri 7 Time zoneUTC 5 30 IST PIN221 001 to area code Telephone code0542Vehicle registrationUP 65GDP 3 8 billion 2019 20 8 Per capita incomeINR 1 93 616 9 International AirportLal Bahadur Shastri International AirportRapid TransitVaranasi MetroSex ratio0 926 2011 Literacy 2011 80 31 10 HDI0 645 11 Websitevaranasi wbr nic wbr inVaranasi is one of the world s oldest continually inhabited cities 21 Kashi its ancient name was associated with a kingdom of the same name of 2 500 years ago The Lion capital of Ashoka at nearby Sarnath has been interpreted to be a commemoration of the Buddha s first sermon there in the fifth century BCE 22 23 In the 8th century Adi Shankara established the worship of Shiva as an official sect of Varanasi Tulsidas wrote his Awadhi language epic the Ramcharitmanas a Bhakti movement reworking of the Sanskrit Ramayana in Varanasi Several other major figures of the Bhakti movement were born in Varanasi including Kabir and Ravidas 24 In the 16th century Rajput nobles in the service of the courts and armies of the Mughal emperor Akbar sponsored the building or further enhancement of the major Shiva temple in the city they also built other temples all displaying an empire wide architectural style 25 26 Under the Treaty of Faizabad the East India Company acquired Benares in 1775 27 28 the city later successively becoming a part of the Benares Division in the Ceded and Conquered Provinces the North Western Provinces and the United Provinces and after India s independence of Uttar Pradesh 29 Silk weaving carpets and crafts and tourism employ a significant number of the local population as do the Banaras Locomotive Works and Bharat Heavy Electricals The city is known worldwide for its many ghats steps leading down the steep river bank to the water where pilgrims perform rituals Of particular note are the Dashashwamedh Ghat the Panchganga Ghat the Manikarnika Ghat and the Harishchandra Ghat the last two being where Hindus cremate their dead The Hindu genealogy registers at Varanasi are kept here Among the notable temples in Varanasi are Kashi Vishwanath Temple of Shiva the Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple and the Durga Temple The city has long been an educational and musical centre many prominent Indian philosophers poets writers and musicians live or have lived in the city and it was the place where the Benares gharana form of Hindustani classical music was developed In the 20th century the Hindi Urdu writer Premchand and the shehnai player Bismillah Khan were associated with the city India s oldest Sanskrit college the Benares Sanskrit College was founded during East India Company rule in 1791 Later education in Benares was greatly influenced by the rise of Indian nationalism in the late 19th century Annie Besant founded the Central Hindu College in 1898 In 1916 she and Madan Mohan Malviya founded the Banaras Hindu University India s first modern residential university Kashi Vidyapith was established in 1921 a response to Mahatma Gandhi s Non cooperation movement Contents 1 Etymology 2 History 2 1 Mythology 2 2 Ancient period 2 3 Medieval period 2 4 Early Modern to Modern periods 1500 1949 2 5 21st century 3 Geography and climate 3 1 Geography 3 2 Climate 4 Demographics 4 1 Religion 4 2 Languages 5 Administration and politics 5 1 Administration 5 1 1 General administration 5 1 2 Police administration 5 1 3 Infrastructure and civic administration 5 2 Politics 5 3 Healthcare 5 4 Public maintenance 6 Economy 6 1 Tourism 7 Notable landmarks 7 1 Jantar Mantar 7 2 Ramnagar Fort 7 3 Ghats 7 4 Temples 7 5 Mosques 7 6 Shri Guru Ravidass Janam Asthan 7 7 Sarnath 8 Culture 8 1 Literature 8 2 Art 8 3 Music 8 4 Festivals 9 Education 10 Media 11 Sport 12 Transport 12 1 Air transport 12 2 Railways 12 3 Ropeway 12 4 Roads 12 5 Inland waterways 13 Projects 13 1 Road 13 2 Accommodation 13 3 Railways 13 4 Airport 13 5 Metro 13 6 Commercial 14 Sister cities 15 See also 16 Gallery 17 References 17 1 Notes 17 2 Citations 17 3 General bibliography 18 Further reading 19 External linksEtymologyTraditional etymology links Varanasi to the names of two Ganges tributaries forming the city s borders Varuna still flowing in northern Varanasi and Assi today a small stream in the southern part of the city near Assi Ghat The old city is located on the north shores of the Ganges bounded by Varuna and Assi 30 In the Mahabharata the city is referred to as Kasi क श Kashi from the Sanskrit verbal root kas to shine making Varanasi known as City of Light 31 14 the luminous city as an eminent seat of learning 32 The name was also used by pilgrims dating from Buddha s days Hindu religious texts use many epithets in Sanskrit to refer to Varanasi such as Kasika transl the shining one Avimukta transl never forsaken by Shiva Anandakanana transl the forest of bliss Rudravasa transl the place where Rudra resides and Mahashmashana transl the great cremation ground 33 HistoryMythology According to Hindu mythology Varanasi was founded by Shiva 34 one of three principal deities along with Brahma and Vishnu During a conflict between Brahma and Shiva one of Brahma s five heads was torn off by Shiva As was the custom the victor carried the slain adversary s head in his hand and let it hang down from his hand as an act of ignominy and a sign of his own bravery A bridle was also put into the mouth Shiva thus dishonoured Brahma s head and kept it with him at all times When he came to the city of Varanasi in this state the hanging head of Brahma dropped from Shiva s hand and disappeared in the ground Varanasi is therefore considered an extremely holy site 35 The Pandavas the protagonists of the Hindu epic Mahabharata are said to have visited the city in search of Shiva to atone for their sins of fratricide and brahmahatya that they had committed during the Kurukshetra War 36 It is regarded as one of seven holy cities Sapta Puri which can provide Moksha Ayodhya Mathura Haridwar Kashi Kanchi Avanti and Dvaraka are the seven cities known as the givers of liberation 37 The princesses Ambika and Ambalika of Kashi were wed to the Hastinapura ruler Vichitravirya and they later gave birth to Pandu and Dhritarashtra Bhima a son of Pandu married a Kashi princess Valandhara and their union resulted in the birth of Sarvaga who later ruled Kashi Dhritarasthra s eldest son Duryodhana also married a Kashi princess Bhanumati who later bore him a son Lakshmana Kumara and a daughter Lakshmana The Cakkavatti Sihanada Sutta text of Buddhism puts forth an idea stating that Varanasi will one day become the fabled kingdom of Ketumati in the time of Maitreya 38 Ancient period Excavations in 2014 led to the discovery of artefacts dating back to 800 BCE Further excavations at Aktha and Ramnagar two sites in the vicinity of the city unearthed artefacts dating back to 1800 BCE supporting the view that the area was inhabited by this time 39 During the time of Gautama Buddha Varanasi was part of the Kingdom of Kashi 40 The celebrated Chinese traveller Xuanzang also known as Hiuen Tsiang who visited the city around 635 CE attested that the city was a centre of religious and artistic activities and that it extended for about 5 kilometres 3 1 mi along the western bank of the Ganges 40 41 When Xuanzang visited Varanasi in the 7th century he named it Polonise 婆羅痆斯 and wrote that the city had some 30 temples with about 30 monks 42 The city s religious importance continued to grow in the 8th century when Adi Shankara established the worship of Shiva as an official sect of Varanasi 43 Medieval period Kabir a 15th century Indian mystic poet and saintChandradeva founder of the Gahadavala dynasty made Banaras a second capital in 1090 44 In 1194 CE the Ghurid conqueror Muizzuddin Muhammad Ghuri defeated the forces of Jayachandra in a battle near Jamuna and afterwards ravaged the city of Varnasi incourse of which many temples were destroyed 45 Varanasi remained a centre of activity for intellectuals and theologians during the Middle Ages which further contributed to its reputation as a cultural centre of religion and education Several major figures of the Bhakti movement were born in Varanasi including Kabir who was born here in 1389 46 and Ravidas a 15th century socio religious reformer mystic poet traveller and spiritual figure who was born and lived in the city and employed in the tannery industry 47 Early Modern to Modern periods 1500 1949 A lithograph by James Prinsep 1832 of a Brahmin placing a garland on the holiest location in the city A painting by Edwin Lord Weeks 1883 of Varanasi viewed from the Ganges An illustration 1890 of Bathing Ghat in Varanasi Numerous eminent scholars and preachers visited the city from across India and South Asia Guru Nanak visited Varanasi for Maha Shivaratri in 1507 a trip that played a large role in the founding of Sikhism 48 In 1567 or thereabouts the Mughal emperor Jallaludin Muhammad Akbar sacked the city of Varanasi on his march from Allahabad modern Prayagraj 49 However later the Kachwaha Rajput rulers of Amber Mughal vassals themselves most notably under Raja Man Singh rebuilt various temples and Ghats in the city 50 The Raja of Jaipur established the Annapurna Mandir and the 200 metre 660 ft Akbari Bridge was also completed during this period 51 The earliest tourists began arriving in the city during the 16th century 52 In 1665 the French traveller Jean Baptiste Tavernier described the architectural beauty of the Vindu Madhava temple on the side of the Ganges The road infrastructure was also improved during this period It was extended from Kolkata to Peshawar by Emperor Sher Shah Suri later during the British Raj it came to be known as the famous Grand Trunk Road In 1656 Emperor Aurangzeb ordered the destruction of many temples and the building of mosques causing the city to experience a temporary setback 41 However after Aurangzeb s death most of India was ruled by a confederacy of pro Hindu kings Much of modern Varanasi was built during this time especially during the 18th century by the Maratha and Bhumihar Brahmin rulers 53 The kings governing Varanasi continued to wield power and importance through much of the British Raj period including the Maharaja of Benares or simply called by the people of Benaras as Kashi Naresh The Kingdom of Benares was given official status by the Mughals in 1737 the kingdom started in this way and continued as a dynasty governed area until Indian independence in 1947 during the reign of Vibhuti Narayan Singh In the 18th century Muhammad Shah ordered the construction of an observatory on the Ganges attached to Man Mandir Ghat designed to discover imperfections in the calendar in order to revise existing astronomical tables Tourism in the city began to flourish in the 18th century 52 As the Mughal suzerainty weakened the Benares zamindari estate became Banaras State thus Balwant Singh of the Narayan dynasty regained control of the territories and declared himself Maharaja of Benares in 1740 54 The strong clan organisation on which they rested brought success to the lesser known Hindu princes 55 There were as many as 100 000 men backing the power of the Benares rajas in what later became the districts of Benares Gorakhpur and Azamgarh 55 This proved a decisive advantage when the dynasty faced a rival and the nominal suzerain the Nawab of Oudh in the 1750s and the 1760s 55 Raja Chait Singh of Benares State r 1771 1781 An exhausting guerrilla war waged by the Benares ruler against the Oudh camp using his troops forced the Nawab to withdraw his main force 55 The region eventually ceded by the Nawab of Oudh to the Benares State a subordinate of the East India Company in 1775 who recognised Benares as a family dominion 56 57 In 1791 under the rule of the British resident Jonathan Duncan founded a Sanskrit College in Varanasi 58 In 1867 the establishment of the Varanasi Municipal Board led to significant improvements in the city s infrastructure and basic amenities of health services drinking water supply and sanitation 59 Rev M A Sherring in his book The Sacred City of Hindus An account of Benaras in ancient and modern times published in 1868 refers to a census conducted by James Prinsep and put the total number of temples in the city to be around 1000 during 1830s 60 He writesThe history of a country is sometimes epitomised in the history of its one of its principle cities The city of Benaras represents India religiously and intellectually just as Paris represents the political Sentiments of France There are few cities in the world of greater antiquity and none that have so uninterruptedly maintained their ancient celebrity and distinction 61 Author Mark Twain wrote in 1897 of Varanasi Benares is older than history older than tradition older even than legend and looks twice as old as all of them put together 62 Benares became a princely state in 1911 56 with Ramnagar as its capital but with no jurisdiction over the city proper The religious head Kashi Naresh has had his headquarters at the Ramnagar Fort since the 18th century also a repository of the history of the kings of Varanasi which is situated to the east of Varanasi across the Ganges 63 The Kashi Naresh is deeply revered by the local people and the chief cultural patron some devout inhabitants consider him to be the incarnation of Shiva 64 Annie Besant founded the Central Hindu College which later became a foundation for the creation of Banaras Hindu University in 1916 Besant founded the college because she wanted to bring men of all religions together under the ideal of brotherhood in order to promote Indian cultural values and to remove ill will among different sections of the Indian population 65 Varanasi was ceded to the Union of India in 1947 becoming part of Uttar Pradesh after Indian independence 66 Vibhuti Narayan Singh incorporated his territories into the United Provinces in 1949 67 Maharaja of Benares 1870s Map of the city c 1914 An 1895 photograph of the Varanasi riverfront The lanes of Varanasi are bathed in a plethora of colours21st century Narendra Modi Prime Minister of India since 2014 has represented Varanasi in the Parliament of India since 2014 Modi inaugurated the Shri Kashi Vishwanath Corridor project which aimed to enhance the city s spiritual vibrancy by connecting many ghats to the temple of Kasi Vishwanath in December 2021 68 Geography and climateGeography Varanasi is located at an elevation of 80 71 metres 264 8 ft 69 in the centre of the Ganges valley of North India in the Eastern part of the state of Uttar Pradesh along the left crescent shaped bank of the Ganges averaging between 15 metres 50 ft and 21 metres 70 ft above the river 70 The city is the headquarters of Varanasi district By road Varanasi is located 797 kilometres 495 mi south east of New Delhi 320 kilometres 200 mi south east of Lucknow 121 kilometres 75 mi east of Prayagraj and 63 kilometres 39 mi south of Jaunpur 71 The Varanasi Urban Agglomeration an agglomeration of seven urban sub units covers an area of 112 km2 43 sq mi 72 Neighbourhoods of the city include Adampura Anandbagh Bachchhaon Bangali Tola Bhelpura Bulanala Chaitganj Chaukaghat Chowk Dhupchandi Dumraon Gandhinagar Gautam Nagar Giri Nagar Gopal Vihar Guru Nanak Nagar Jaitpura Kail Garh Khanna Kotwali Lanka Manduadih Luxa Maheshpur Mahmoorganj Maulvibagh Nagwar Naipokhari Shivala Siddhagiribagh and Sigra 71 Located in the Indo Gangetic Plains of North India the land is very fertile because low level floods in the Ganges continually replenish the soil 73 Varanasi is situated between the Ganges confluences with two rivers the Varuna and the Assi stream The distance between the two confluences is around 2 miles 4 km and serves as a sacred journeying route for Hindus which culminates with a visit to a Sakshi Vinayak Temple 74 Climate Varanasi experiences a humid subtropical climate Koppen climate classification Cwa with large variations between summer and winter temperatures 75 76 The dry summer starts in April and lasts until June followed by the monsoon season from July to October The temperature ranges between 22 and 46 C 72 and 115 F in the summers Winters in Varanasi see very large diurnal variations with warm days and downright cold nights Cold waves from the Himalayan region cause temperatures to dip across the city in the winter from December to February and temperatures below 5 C 41 F are not uncommon The average annual rainfall is 1 110 mm 44 in Fog is common in the winters while hot dry winds called loo blow in the summers 77 In recent years the water level of the Ganges has decreased significantly upstream dams unregulated water extraction and dwindling glacial sources due to global warming may be to blame 78 79 Climate data for Varanasi 1981 2010 extremes 1901 2012 Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec YearRecord high C F 31 4 88 5 36 1 97 0 41 5 106 7 45 2 113 4 47 2 117 0 47 2 117 0 45 0 113 0 40 1 104 2 39 7 103 5 39 4 102 9 36 0 96 8 32 8 91 0 47 2 117 0 Average high C F 22 5 72 5 26 5 79 7 32 7 90 9 38 8 101 8 40 1 104 2 38 3 100 9 33 8 92 8 33 0 91 4 32 9 91 2 32 4 90 3 29 3 84 7 24 7 76 5 32 1 89 8 Average low C F 8 9 48 0 11 7 53 1 16 3 61 3 21 6 70 9 25 3 77 5 27 1 80 8 25 9 78 6 25 6 78 1 24 6 76 3 20 3 68 5 14 0 57 2 9 8 49 6 19 3 66 7 Record low C F 1 0 33 8 1 7 35 1 6 7 44 1 11 1 52 0 17 3 63 1 20 5 68 9 20 0 68 0 20 4 68 7 17 8 64 0 11 7 53 1 5 0 41 0 2 2 36 0 1 0 33 8 Average rainfall mm inches 16 7 0 66 22 8 0 90 9 2 0 36 5 7 0 22 16 8 0 66 106 8 4 20 260 9 10 27 280 8 11 06 228 9 9 01 29 0 1 14 7 2 0 28 4 2 0 17 989 0 38 94 Average rainy days 1 5 1 8 0 7 0 7 1 7 5 2 12 9 12 5 9 1 1 9 0 4 0 4 48 7Average relative humidity at 17 30 IST 63 50 35 25 31 50 74 78 77 68 66 66 57Mean monthly sunshine hours 232 5 240 1 291 4 294 0 300 7 234 0 142 6 189 1 195 0 257 3 261 0 210 8 2 848 5Mean daily sunshine hours 7 5 8 5 9 4 9 8 9 7 7 8 4 6 6 1 6 5 8 3 8 7 6 8 7 8Average ultraviolet index 6 7 10 11 12 12 12 12 11 8 6 5 9Source 1 India Meteorological Department sun 1971 2000 80 81 82 Source 2 Weather Atlas 83 Climate data for Varanasi Airport 1981 2010 extremes 1952 2012 Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec YearRecord high C F 32 3 90 1 35 8 96 4 42 4 108 3 45 3 113 5 46 8 116 2 48 0 118 4 43 9 111 0 39 8 103 6 42 3 108 1 39 0 102 2 35 3 95 5 32 7 90 9 48 0 118 4 Average high C F 22 8 73 0 26 8 80 2 33 2 91 8 39 2 102 6 40 3 104 5 38 7 101 7 34 2 93 6 33 3 91 9 33 2 91 8 33 0 91 4 29 7 85 5 24 9 76 8 32 4 90 3 Average low C F 9 1 48 4 11 8 53 2 16 3 61 3 21 8 71 2 25 3 77 5 27 3 81 1 26 4 79 5 26 1 79 0 25 1 77 2 20 7 69 3 14 6 58 3 10 2 50 4 19 6 67 3 Record low C F 0 3 32 5 2 4 36 3 7 9 46 2 11 4 52 5 17 8 64 0 14 3 57 7 21 4 70 5 21 7 71 1 19 1 66 4 8 9 48 0 4 3 39 7 2 3 36 1 0 3 32 5 Average rainfall mm inches 15 4 0 61 19 9 0 78 6 8 0 27 6 2 0 24 19 4 0 76 111 4 4 39 299 2 11 78 264 2 10 40 232 7 9 16 30 3 1 19 6 5 0 26 4 1 0 16 1 016 1 40 00 Average rainy days 1 3 1 6 0 7 0 6 1 8 5 4 12 8 12 2 9 0 1 8 0 5 0 6 48 4Average relative humidity at 17 30 IST 61 50 33 22 30 48 73 77 76 63 58 62 55Source India Meteorological Department 80 81 DemographicsSee also List of cities in Uttar Pradesh According to provisional data from the 2011 census the Varanasi urban agglomeration had a population of 1 435 113 with 761 060 men and 674 053 women 84 The Varanasi municipal corporation and CB had a combined population of 1 212 610 of which 642 882 were males and 569 728 in 2011 The population in the age group of 0 to 6 years was 137 111 1 The population of the Varanasi urban agglomeration in 2001 was 1 371 749 with a ratio of 879 females every 1 000 males 85 However the area under Varanasi Nagar Nigam has a population of 1 100 748 86 with a ratio of 883 females for every 1 000 males 86 The literacy rate in the urban agglomeration is 77 while that in the municipal corporation area is 78 86 Approximately 138 000 people in the municipal area live in slums 87 Religion Main article Religion in Varanasi Religion in Varanasi City 2011 88 Hinduism 70 11 Islam 28 82 Christianity 0 34 Sikhism 0 22 Jainism 0 12 Buddhism 0 04 Other or Not stated 0 35 Hinduism is predominantly followed in Varanasi with Islam being the largest minority Nearly 70 of the population follows Hinduism The city also agglomerate different religions such as Christianity Sikhism Jainism and Buddhism The city is also a centre for Buddhist pilgrimage At Sarnath Buddha gave his first teaching after attaining enlightenment Hence agglomerating Buddhist population in the region In the sacred geography of India Varanasi is known as the microcosm of India 89 In addition to its 3 300 Hindu religious places Varanasi has 12 churches three Jain mandirs nine Buddhist shrines three Gurdwaras Sikh shrines and 1 388 Muslim holy places 90 Languages Languages in Varanasi Municipal Corporation and Cantonment Board area 2011 Census 91 Hindi 83 87 Urdu 9 03 Bhojpuri 4 81 Bengali 0 92 Others 1 37 At the time of the 2011 Census of India 83 87 of the population of Varansi Municipal Corporation and Cantonment Board spoke Hindi 9 03 Urdu 4 81 Bhojpuri and 0 92 Bengali as their first language 91 Administration and politicsAdministration General administration Varanasi division which consists of four districts and is headed by the Divisional Commissioner of Varanasi who is an IAS officer of high seniority the Commissioner is the head of local government institutions including Municipal Corporations in the division is in charge of infrastructure development in his division and is also responsible for maintaining law and order in the division 92 93 94 95 96 The District Magistrate of Varanasi reports to the Divisional Commissioner The current Commissioner is Deepak Agarwal 97 98 99 Varanasi district administration is headed by the District Magistrate of Varanasi who is an IAS officer The DM is in charge of property records and revenue collection for the central government and oversees the elections held in the city The DM is also responsible for maintaining law and order in the city hence the SSP of Varanasi also reports to the DM of Varanasi 92 100 101 102 103 The DM is assisted by a Chief Development Officer CDO four Additional District Magistrates ADM Finance Revenue City Protocol Executive one Chief Revenue Officer CRO one City Magistrate CM and four Additional City Magistrates ACM The district has three tehsils each headed by a Sub Divisional Magistrate The current DM is Kaushal Raj Sharma 104 105 99 Police administration Varanasi district comes under the Varanasi Police Zone and Varanasi Police Range Varanasi Zone is headed by an Additional Director General ranked IPS officer and the Varanasi Range is headed Inspector General ranked IPS officer The current ADG Varanasi Zone is Biswajit Mahapatra 106 and IG Varanasi Range is Vijay Singh Meena 107 The district police up to the date of 24 March 2021 was headed by a Senior Superintendent of Police SSP who is an IPS officer and is assisted by six Superintendents of Police SP Additional Superintendents of Police Addl SP City Rural Area Crime Traffic Protocol and Protocol who are either IPS officers or PPS officers 108 Each of the several police circles is headed by a Circle Officer CO in the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police 108 The last SSP was Amit Pathak 108 On 25 March 2021 the Government of Uttar Pradesh passed an order to divide the Varanasi police into Varanasi City Police and Rural Police 109 Since then City Police is headed by the Commissioner of Police CP who is an IPS officer of ADGP rank and is assisted by two Additional Commissioners of Police Addl CP who is of DIG rank and two Deputy Commissioners of Police DCP who are of SP rank And Rural Police is headed by SP rank 110 Infrastructure and civic administration The development of infrastructure in the city is overseen by the Varanasi Development Authority VDA which comes under the Housing Department of Uttar Pradesh government The divisional commissioner of Varanasi acts as the ex officio chairman of the VDA whereas the vice chairman a government appointed Indian Administrative Service IAS officer looks after the daily matters of the authority 111 The current vice chairman of the Varanasi Development Authority is Pulkit Khare 112 The Varanasi Municipal Corporation oversees civic activities in the city the head of the corporation is the mayor and the executive and administration of the corporation is the responsibility of the municipal commissioner who is appointed by the government of Uttar Pradesh and is either an IAS officer or Provincial Civil Service PCS officer of high seniority The current mayor of Varanasi is Mridula Jaiswal and the municipal commissioner is Nitin Bansal 113 Water supply and sewage system is operated by the Uttar Pradesh Jal Nigam 114 Politics Varanasi is represented in the Lok Sabha by the current Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi who won the Lok Sabha elections in 2014 and subsequently in 2019 by a huge margin 115 116 Healthcare Hospitals in the city include the Sir Sunderlal Hospital a teaching hospital in the Banaras Hindu University Heritage Hospital Marwari Hospital Pitambari Hospital Mata Anand Mai Hospital Rajkiya Hospital Ram Krishna Mission Hospital Shiv Prasad Gupta Hospital Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital managed by the state government and Varanasi Hospital and Medical Research Centre The urban parts of the Varanasi district had an infant mortality rate of 70 per 1 000 live births in 2010 2011 117 The Railway Cancer Hospital is now being run by the Tata Memorial Centre after intervention by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who represents Varanasi 118 Sushruta an ancient Indian physician known as the primary author of the treatise Sushruta Samhita the Sanskrit text of surgery lived in Varanasi and practised medicine and surgery sometime during the 5th century BCE Since 1922 Ayurveda has been a subject of training in the Banaras Hindu University and in 1927 a separate Ayurvedic College was established 119 120 There are many ayurvedic centres in Varanasi providing treatments such as Panchakarma as well as other treatments 121 Public maintenance Because of the high population density of Varanasi and the increasing number of tourists the Uttar Pradesh government and international non governmental organisations and institutions have expressed grave concern for the pollution and pressures on infrastructure in the city mainly the sewage sanitation and drainage components 122 Pollution of the Ganges is a particular source of worry because of the religious significance of the river the dependence of people on it as a source of drinking water and its prominence as a symbol of Varanasi and the city itself 123 The sewage problem is exacerbated by the role of the Ganges in bathing and in river traffic which is very difficult to control 122 Because of the sewage people using local untreated water have higher risk of contracting a range of water borne stomach diseases 124 Parts of Varanasi are contaminated with industrial chemicals including toxic heavy metal Studies of wastewater from Varanasi s sewage treatment plants identify that water s contamination with metals and the reuse of this water for irrigation as a way that the toxic metals come to be in the plants that people grow for food 125 126 One studied example is palak a popular leafy vegetable which takes up heavy metal when it is in the soil and which people then eat 127 Some of the polluting sludge contains minerals which are fertiliser which could make polluted water attractive to use 128 Pesticides used in local farming are persistent enough to be spread through the water to sewer treatment then back to the farms as wastewater 128 Varanasi s water supply and sewage system is maintained by Jal Nigam a subsidiary of Varanasi Nagar Nigam Power supply is by the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited The city produces about 350 000 000 litres 77 000 000 imp gal 92 000 000 US gal per day 129 of sewage and 425 tonnes 418 long tons 468 short tons per day of solid waste 130 The solid wastes are disposed in one landfill site 131 Economy Banarasi sari Tourists shopping for jewellery in VaranasiAccording to the 2006 City Development Plan for Varanasi approximately 29 of Varanasi s population is employed 132 Approximately 40 are employed in manufacturing 26 work in trade and commerce 19 work in other services 8 work in transport and communication 4 work in agriculture 2 work in construction and 2 are marginal workers working for less than half of the year 133 Among manufacturing workers 51 work in spinning and weaving 15 work in metal 6 work in printing and publishing 5 work in electrical machinery and the rest work in a wide variety of industry sectors 134 Varanasi s manufacturing industry is not well developed and is dominated by small scale industries and household production 132 Silk weaving is the dominant industry in Varanasi 135 Muslims are the influential community in this industry with nearly half a million of them working as weavers dyers sari finishers and salespersons 136 Weaving is typically done within the household and most weavers are Momin Ansari Muslims 137 Varanasi is known throughout India for its production of very fine silk and Banarasi saris brocades with gold and silver thread work which are often used for weddings and special occasions The production of silk often uses bonded child labour though perhaps not at a higher rate than elsewhere in India 138 The silk weaving industry has recently been threatened by the rise of power looms and computer generated designs and by competition from Chinese silk imports 132 Trade Facilitation Centre is a modern and integrated facility to support the handloom and handicraft sector in Varanasi providing trade enhancement and facilitation to both domestic amp international buyers Hence carrying forward the rich traditions of handlooms and handicrafts In the metal manufacturing sector Banaras Locomotive Works is a major employer 134 Bharat Heavy Electricals a large power equipment manufacturer also operates a heavy equipment maintenance plant 139 Other major commodities manufactured and traded in Varanasi include hand knotted Mirzapur carpets rugs dhurries brassware copperware wooden and clay toys handicrafts gold jewellery and musical instruments 135 Important agricultural products include betel leaves for paan langra mangoes and khoa solidified milk 134 140 Tourism Tourism is Varanasi s second most important industry 141 Domestic tourist most commonly visit for religious purposes while foreign tourist visit for ghats along River Ganges and Sarnath Most domestic tourists are from Bihar West Bengal Madhya Pradesh and other parts of Uttar Pradesh while the majority of foreign tourists are from Sri Lanka and Japan 142 The peak tourist season falls between October and March 142 In total there are around 12 000 beds available in the city of which about one half are in inexpensive budget hotels and one third in dharamsalas 143 Overall Varanasi s tourist infrastructure is not well developed 143 In 2017 InterContinental Hotels Group made an agreement with the JHV group to set up Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza hotel chains in Varanasi 144 Tourist arrival in Varanasi 145 146 Year International Domestic Total2013 285 252 4 966 161 5 251 4132014 287 761 5 202 236 5 489 9972015 302 370 5 413 927 5 716 2972016 312 519 5 600 146 5 912 6652017 334 708 5 947 355 6 282 0632018 348 970 6 095 890 6 444 8602019 350 000 6 447 775 6 797 775The prominent malls and multiplexes in Varanasi are JHV Mall in the Cantonment area IP Mall in Sigra IP Vijaya Mall in Bhelupur Vinayak Plaza in Maldhaiya and PDR Mall in Luxa The city has several banks including the Indian Bank Andhra Bank Bank of Baroda Canara Bank Central Bank of India Corporation Bank Indian Overseas Bank and State Bank of India 147 Notable landmarksMain article Tourist attractions in Varanasi A view of the Ghats in Varanasi from the Ganges Apart from the 19 archaeological sites identified by the Archaeological Survey of India 148 some of the prominent places of interest are the Aghor Peeth the Alamgir Mosque the Ashoka Pillar the Bharat Kala Bhavan Art Museum the Bharat Mata Mandir the Central University for Tibetan Studies the Dhanvantari Temple the Durga Temple the Jantar Mantar the Kashi Vishwanath Temple the Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple the Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith the Shri Vishwanath Temple on the BHU campus the Ramnagar Fort the Riverfront Ghats the Tulsi Manas Temple 149 Ganges view from Bhadaini water works VaranasiJantar Mantar The Jantar Mantar observatory constructed in 1737 is located above the ghats along the Ganges and is adjacent to the Manmandir and Dasaswamedh Ghats and near the palace of Jai Singh II of Jaipur While less equipped than the observatories at Jaipur and Delhi the Jantar Mantar has a unique equatorial sundial which is functional and allows measurements to be monitored and recorded by one person 150 Ramnagar Fort Ramnagar Fort was built in 1750 by Kashi Naresh Raja Balwant Singh The Ramnagar Fort located near the Ganges on its eastern bank and opposite the Tulsi Ghat was built in the 18th century by Kashi Naresh Raja Balwant Singh with cream coloured chunar sandstone The fort is a typical example of the Mughal architecture with carved balconies open courtyards and scenic pavilions At present the fort is in disrepair The fort and its museum are the repository of the history of the kings of Benares Cited as an eccentric museum it contains a rare collection of American vintage cars bejewelled sedan chairs an impressive weaponry hall and a rare astrological clock 151 In addition manuscripts especially religious writings are housed in the Saraswati Bhawan which is a part of a museum within the fort Many books illustrated in the Mughal miniature style are also part of the collections Because of its scenic location on the banks of the Ganges it is frequently used as an outdoor shooting location for films 151 152 Ghats The Ghats in Varanasi are world renowned embankments made in steps of stone slabs along the river bank where pilgrims perform ritual ablutions The ghats are an integral complement to the Hindu concept of divinity represented in physical metaphysical and supernatural elements 153 Varanasi has at least 84 ghats most of which are used for bathing by pilgrims and spiritually significant Hindu puja ceremony while a few are used exclusively as Hindu cremation sites 154 155 156 Steps in the ghats lead to the banks of Ganges including the Dashashwamedh Ghat the Manikarnika Ghat the Panchganga Ghat and the Harishchandra Ghat where Hindus cremate their dead Many ghats are associated with Hindu legends and several are now privately owned 157 Many of the ghats were constructed under the patronage of the Marathas Shindes Scindias Holkars Bhonsles and Peshwas Most are bathing ghats while others are used as cremation sites A morning boat ride on the Ganges across the ghats is a popular tourist attraction The extensive stretches of ghats in Varanasi enhance the riverfront with a multitude of shrines temples and palaces built tier on the tier above the water s edge 40 The Dashashwamedh Ghat is the main and probably the oldest ghat of Varanasi located on the Ganges close to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple Drone shot of a Dashashwamedh Ghat in 2022It is believed that Brahma created this ghat to welcome Shiva and sacrificed ten horses during the Dasa Ashwamedha yajna performed there Above and adjacent to this ghat there are also temples dedicated to Sulatankesvara Brahmesvara Varahesvara Abhaya Vinayaka Ganga the Ganges and Bandi Devi which are all important pilgrimage sites A group of priests performs Agni Pooja Sanskrit Worship of Fire daily in the evening at this ghat as a dedication to Shiva Ganga Surya Sun Agni Fire and the entire universe Special aartis are held on Tuesdays and on religious festivals 155 The Manikarnika Ghat is the Mahasmasana the primary site for Hindu cremation in the city Adjoining the ghat there are raised platforms that are used for death anniversary rituals According to a myth it is said that an earring of Shiva or his wife Sati fell here Fourth century Gupta period inscriptions mention this ghat However the current ghat as a permanent riverside embankment was built in 1302 and has been renovated at least three times throughout its existence 155 The Jain Ghat is believed to birthplace of Suparshvanatha 7th Tirthankara and Parshvanatha 23rd tirthankara The Jain Ghat or Bachraj Ghat is a Jain Ghat and has three Jain Temples located on the banks of the River It is believed that the Jain Maharajas used to own these ghats Bachraj Ghat has three Jain temples near the river s banks and one them is a very ancient temple of Tirthankara Suparswanath Ghats in Varanasi Dashashwamedh Ghat Manikarnika Ghat The Jain Ghat Bachraj Ghat Kedar Ghat during Kartika PurnimaTemples Main articles Hindu temples in Varanasi and Religion in Varanasi The Kashi Vishwanath Temple the most important temple in Varanasi Shri Vishwanath Mandir has the tallest temple tower in the world 158 The 18th century Durga Kund Temple Parshvanath Jain templeAmong the estimated 23 000 temples in Varanasi 36 the temples most popular for worship are the Kashi Vishwanath Temple of Shiva the Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple and the Durga Temple known for monkeys that reside in the large trees nearby 66 159 30 The Kashi Vishwanath Temple on the Ganges is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga Shiva temples in Varanasi 159 The temple has been destroyed and rebuilt several times throughout its existence The Gyanvapi Mosque which is adjacent to the temple is the original site of the temple 160 The temple which is also known as the Golden Temple 161 was built in 1780 by Queen Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore The two pinnacles of the temple are covered in gold and were donated in 1839 by Ranjit Singh the ruler of Punjab The dome is scheduled to receive gold plating through a proposed initiative of the Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs of Uttar Pradesh Numerous rituals prayers and aartis are held daily at the temple between 02 30 and 23 00 162 The Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple which is situated by the Asi River is one of the sacred temples of the Hindu god Hanuman 163 The present temple was built in the early 1900s by the educationist and Indian independence figure Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya the founder of Banaras Hindu University 164 According to Hindu legend the temple was built on the spot where the medieval Hindu saint Tulsidas had a vision of Hanuman 165 During a 7 March 2006 terrorist attack one of three explosions hit the temple while a wedding was in progress and resulted in injuries to 30 people apart from 23 deaths 164 Following the attack a permanent police post was installed inside the temple 166 There are two temples dedicated to the goddess Durga in Varanasi Durga Mandir built in the 16th century exact date not known and Durga Kund Sanskrit kund meaning pond or pool built in the 18th century A large number of Hindu devotees visit Durga Kund during Navratri to worship the goddess Durga The temple built in the Nagara architectural style has multi tiered spires 161 and is stained red with ochre representing the red colour of Durga The building has a rectangular tank of water called the Durga Kund Kund meaning a pond or pool During annual celebrations of Nag Panchami the act of depicting the god Vishnu reclining on the serpent Shesha is recreated in the Kund 167 While the Annapurna Temple located nearby to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple is dedicated to Annapoorna devi the goddess of food 159 the Sankatha Temple adjacent to the Sindhia Ghat is dedicated to Sankatha the goddess of remedy The Sankatha Temple has a large sculpture of a lion and a cluster of nine smaller temples dedicated to the nine planets 159 Parshvanath Jain temple is the temple of Jain religion dedicated to Parshvanath the 23rd Thirthankara who was born at Bhelpur in Varanasi The idol deified in the temple is of black colour and 75 centimetres 30 inches in height It is located in Bhelapur about 5 kilometres 3 1 miles from the centre of Varanasi city and 3 kilometres 1 9 miles from the Benares Hindu University It belongs to the Digambar sect of Jainism and is a holy tirtha or pilgrimage centre for Jains Other temples of note are the Bharat Mata Mandir dedicated to the national personification of India which was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi in 1936 the Kalabhairav Temple the Mrithyunjay Mahadev Temple and the New Vishwanath Temple located in the campus of BHU the Tulsi Manas Mandir 159 Mosques Alamgiri MosqueThere are 15 mosques of significant historical value in Varanasi Of particular note are the Abdul Razzaq Alamgir Bibi Razia Chaukhambha Dhai Nim Kangore Fatman Ganje Shahada Gyanavapi and Hazrat Sayyed Salar Masud Dargah Many of these mosques were constructed from the components of the Hindu shrines which were destroyed under the auspices of subsequent Muslim invaders or rulers The two such well known mosques are the Gyanvapi Mosque and the Alamgir Mosque 168 The Gyanvapi Mosque was built by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in 1664 CE after destroying a Hindu temple 169 Gyan Vapi Sanskrit the well of knowledge the name of the mosque is derived from a well of the same name located within the precincts of the mosque 170 The remains of an erstwhile temple can be seen in the foundation the columns and at the rear part of the mosque 171 The facade of the mosque is modelled partially on the Taj Mahal s entrance 172 The mosque is administered by the Anjuman Inthazamiya Masajid AIM 173 The Alamgiri Mosque was built in the 17th century by Aurangzeb over the ruins of a Hindu temple 174 The Hindu temple that was destroyed was dedicated to Vishnu and had been built by Beni Madhur Rao Scindia a Maratha chieftain When emperor Aurangzeb had captured Banaras he had ordered total destruction of all Hindu temples there Aurangzeb then built a mosque over the ruins of this temple in 1669 175 and named it as Alamagir Mosque in the name of his own honorific title Alamgir which he had adopted after becoming the emperor of Mughal empire 176 171 The mosque is located at a prominent site above the Panchganga Ghat which is a funerary ghat facing the Ganges 177 The mosque is architecturally a blend of Islamic and Hindu architecture particularly because of the lower part of the walls of the mosque having been built fully with the remains of the Hindu temple 176 The mosque has high domes and minarets 178 171 Two of its minarets had been damaged one minaret crashed killing a few people and the other minaret was officially brought down because of stability concerns 171 Non Muslims are not allowed to enter the mosque 179 The mosque has a security cordon of a police force 180 Shri Guru Ravidass Janam Asthan Memorial of Sant Ravidas at Sant Ravidas GhatShri Guru Ravidass Janam Asthan at Sir Gobardhan is the ultimate place of pilgrimage or religious headquarters for followers of the Ravidassia religion 181 The foundation stone was laid on 14 June 1965 on Ashad Sankranti day at the birthplace of Ravidas The temple was completed in 1994 182 Sarnath Sarnath the suburb of VaranasiSarnath is located 10 kilometres north east of Varanasi near the confluence of the Ganges and the Varuna rivers in Uttar Pradesh India The deer park in Sarnath is where Gautama Buddha first taught the Dharma and where the Buddhist Sangha came into existence through the enlightenment of Kondanna 183 The city is mentioned by the Buddha as one of the four places of pilgrimage to which his devout followers should visit It was also the site of the Buddha s Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta which was his first teaching after attaining enlightenment in which he taught the Four Noble Truths and the teachings associated with it 183 CultureLiterature See also The City of Varanasi in Literature Renowned Indian writers who have resided in the city were Kabir Ravidas and Tulsidas who wrote much of his Ram Charit Manas here Kulluka Bhatt wrote the best known account of Manusmriti in Varanasi in the 15th century citation needed Later writers of the city have included Acharya Shukla Baldev Upadhyaya Bharatendu Harishchandra Devaki Nandan Khatri Premchand Hazari Prasad Dwivedi Jaishankar Prasad Kshetresa Chandra Chattopadhyaya Sudama Pandey Dhoomil Vagish Shastri and Vidya Niwas Mishra citation needed Several newspapers and journals are or were published in Varanasi such as Varanasi Chandroday and its successor Kashivartaprakashika which became a weekly journal first published on 1 June 1851 184 The main newspaper is Aj a Hindi language nationalist newspaper first published in 1920 185 The newspaper was the bulwark of the Indian National Congress and is a major newspaper of Hindi northern India 185 Art Wall paintings Varanasi 1973Varanasi is a major centre of arts and designs It is a producer of silks and brocades with gold and silver thread work carpet weaving wooden toys bangles made of glass ivory work perfumes artistic brass and copper ware and a variety of handicrafts 186 187 The cantonment graveyard of the British Raj is now the location of Varanasi s Arts and Crafts 188 Notable artists musicians and dancers and historians who are connected with the city include Thakur Jaidev Singh Mahadev Prasad Mishra Bismillah Khan Ravi Shankar Girija Devi Gopal Shankar Misra Gopi Krishna Kishan Maharaj Lalmani Misra Premlata Sharma N Rajam Siddheshwari Devi Samta Prasad Sitara Devi 189 Chhannulal Mishra Rajan Sajan Mishra Ritwik Sanyal Soma Ghosh Devashish Dey Ramkrishna Das and Harish Tiwari Music Main article Music in Varanasi Sant Goswami Tulsidas Awadhi a Hindi poet and propagator of Bhakthi music in VaranasiVaranasi s music tradition is traced to the Pauranic days According to ancient legend Shiva is credited with evolving music and dance forms During the medieval era Vaishnavism a Bhakti movement grew in popularity and Varanasi became a thriving centre for musicians such as Surdas Kabir Ravidas Meera and Tulsidas During the monarchic rule of Govind Chandra in the 16th century the Dhrupad style of singing received royal patronage and led to other related forms of music such as Dhamar Hori and Chaturang Presently the Dhrupad maestro Pandit Ritwik Sanyal from Varanasi is working for the revival of this art music 190 In recent times Girija Devi the native famous classical singer of thumris was widely appreciated and respected for her musical renderings 191 Varanasi is also associated with many great instrumentalists such as Bismillah Khan 190 and Ravi Shankar the famous sitar player and musicologist who was given the highest civilian award of the country the Bharat Ratna 192 Varanasi has joined the global bandwagon of UNESCO Cities of Music under the Creative Cities Network 193 Festivals On Maha Shivaratri February a procession of Shiva proceeds from the Mahamrityunjaya Temple to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple 66 Dhrupad Mela is a five day musical festival devoted to dhrupad style held at Tulsi Ghat in February March 194 The Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple celebrates Hanuman Jayanti March April the birthday of Hanuman A special puja aarti and a public procession is organised 195 196 Since 1923 the temple has organised a five day classical music and dance concert festival named Sankat Mochan Sangeet Samaroh wherein iconic artists from all parts of India are invited to perform 66 The Ramlila of Ramnagar is a dramatic enactment of Rama s legend as told in Ramacharitamanasa 64 The plays sponsored by Kashi Naresh are performed in Ramnagar every evening for 31 days 64 On the last day the festivities reach a crescendo as Rama vanquishes the demon king Ravana 64 Kashi Naresh Udit Narayan Singh started this tradition around 1830 64 Chhath Puja is celebrated on the sixth day of the lunar month of Kartika October November 197 198 199 The rituals are observed over four days 200 They include holy bathing fasting and abstaining from drinking water vrata standing in water and offering prasad prayer offerings and arghya to the setting and rising sun 201 Some devotees also perform a prostration march as they head for the river banks Chhath puja is dedicated to the sun god Surya and his sister Chhathi Maiya 202 Chhath is considered as Mahaparva by the Bhojpuri people 203 It is said that the Chhath Mahaparva was started in Varanasi 204 An actor reeenacting Krishna standing on the serpent Kaliya during the Nag Nathaiya festival in VaranasiNag Nathaiya is celebrated on the fourth lunar day of the dark fortnight of the Hindu month of Kartik October November It commemorates the victory of Krishna over the serpent Kaliya On this occasion a large Kadamba tree Neolamarckia cadamba branch is planted on the banks of the Ganges so that a boy playing the role of Krishna can jump into the river on to the effigy representing Kaliya He stands over the effigy in a dancing pose playing the flute while an audience watches from the banks of the river or from boats 205 Bharat Milap celebrates the meeting of Rama and his younger brother Bharata after the return of the former after 14 years of exile 66 It is celebrated during October November a day after the festival of Vijayadashami Kashi Naresh attends this festival in his regal attire The festival attracts a large number of devotees 206 Ganga Mahotsav is a five day music festival organised by the Uttar Pradesh Tourism Department held in November December It culminates a day before Kartik Purnima also called the Ganges festival On this occasion the Ganges is attended by thousands of pilgrims release lighted lamps to float in the river from the ghats 66 194 The primary Muslim festivals celebrated annually in the city are the ld ul fitr Ramzan Bakrid Mid Sha ban Bara Wafat and Muharram Additional festivals include Alvida and Chehlum A non religious festival observed by Muslims is Ghazi miyan ka byaha the marriage of Ghazi Miyan 207 208 EducationMain article Educational institutions in Varanasi The Banaras Hindu University in VaranasiHistorically Varanasi has been a centre for education in India attracting students and scholars from across the country 209 210 Varanasi has an overall literacy rate of 80 male literacy 85 female literacy 75 84 It is home to a number of colleges and universities Most notably it is the site of Banaras Hindu University BHU which is one of the largest residential universities in Asia with over 20 000 students 211 The Indian Institute of Technology BHU Varanasi is designated an Institute of National Importance and is one of 16 Indian Institutes of Technology Other colleges and universities in Varanasi include Jamia e Imania the Institute of Integrated Management and Technology Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith Nav Sadhana Kala Kendra Sampurnanand Sanskrit University and Sri Agrasen Kanya P G College Various engineering colleges have been established in the outskirts of the city Other notable universities and colleges include Institute of Medical Sciences Sampurnanand Sanskrit Vishwavidyalaya Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies and Harish Chandra Postgraduate College Some research oriented institutes were also established by the government such as International Rice Research Institute IRRI 212 Indian Institute of Vegetable Research 213 and National Seed Research and Training Centre 214 Indian Institute of Technology in VaranasiVaranasi also has three Kendriya Vidyalaya Among them Kendriya Vidyalaya BHU holds the regional office of Varanasi Region of KVS and is seat of Deputy Commissioner Kendriya Vidyalaya BHU is also accredited by the British Council Other KVs are Kendriya Vidyalaya 39 GTC and Kendriya Vidyalaya DLW St Joseph s Convent School in Shivpur Varanasi was established by the Sisters of Our Lady of Providence of France as a Catholic Christian minority institution with the approval of the Government of Uttar Pradesh It is an autonomous organisation under the diocese of the Bishop of Varanasi It provides education not only to the Catholic Christian children but also to others who abide by its rules 215 Another important institution is the Central Hindu School in Kamachha This was established by Annie Besant in July 1898 with the objective of imparting secular education It is affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education and is open to students of all cultures 216 217 Schools in Varanasi are affiliated with the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education ICSE the CBSE or the Uttar Pradesh Board of Technical Education U P Board The overall state of education in Varanasi is not good 218 Schools in Varanasi vary widely in quality with private schools outperforming government schools 218 In government schools many teachers fail to come to class or to teach children 218 Some government schools lack basic equipment such as blackboards and sufficient desks and chairs for all students 218 Private schools vary in quality with the most expensive conducting lessons in English seen as a key to children s success and having computers in classrooms 218 Pupils attending the more expensive private schools tended to come from upper class families 218 Lower cost private schools attracted children from lower income families or those lower income families with higher education aspirations 218 Government schools tend to serve lower class children with lower education aspirations 218 MediaMain article Films shot in Varanasi Varanasi caters a lot of shooting from different film industries in India 219 The temple town has emerged as a hub to Hindi film industry and South film industry 220 Also a chunk of Bhojpuri movies are shot in the city 221 A few Bollywood movies that were shot include Gangs of Wasseypur Raanjhanaa Piku Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan and Super 30 222 223 224 225 226 Some parts of the Hollywood movie The Curious Case of Benjamin Button were also shot 227 Web series such as Mirzapur and Asur were also shot in temple town 228 229 Newspapers are widely available in Hindi and English Aj Hindi newspaper was established in 1920 in Varanasi 230 Some publishers in the city are Dainik Jagran 231 Hindustan 232 Amar Ujala 233 Jansandesh Times 234 Rajasthan Patrika 235 Aj 230 Times of India 236 Hindustan Times 237 The city also hosts a Doordarshan Kendra which was established in 1984 by the Hon ble Prime Minister of India late Smt Indira Gandhi In 1998 Doordarshan studio was setup 238 FM AM Stations available in the city are 239 240 241 Radio City 91 9 MHz Red FM 93 5 MHz BIG FM 95 0 MHz Radio Mirchi 98 3 MHz Radio Sunbeam 90 4 MHz AIR Vividh Bharati 100 6 MHz Gyan Vani 105 6 MHz AIR Varanasi 1242 AMMobile apps such as InVaranasi Varanasi and LiveVNS provide a wide range of information related to travel and local news 242 243 244 SportBasketball cricket and field hockey are popular sports in Varanasi 245 The main stadium in the city is the Dr Sampurnanda Stadium Sigra Stadium where first class cricket matches are held 246 The city also caters an AstroTurf hockey stadium named Dr Bheemrao Ambedker National Hockey Stadium 247 The Department of Physical Education Faculty of Arts of BHU offers diploma courses in Sports Management Sports Physiotherapy Sports Psychology and Sports Journalism 248 Also BHU caters sports complexes including badminton court tennis court swimming pool and amphitheater 249 Gymnastics is also popular in Varanasi and many Indian girls practise outdoors at the ghats in the mornings which hosts akhadas where morning exercise a dip in the Ganges and a visit to Lord Hanuman forms a daily ritual 250 Despite concerns regarding water quality two swimming clubs offer swimming lessons in the Ganges 251 The Varanasi District Chess Sports Association VDCSA is based in Varanasi affiliated to the regional Uttar Pradesh Chess Sports Association UPCSA 252 TransportVaranasi is well connected by air rail and road One of the major factors in Varanasi is its access to all parts of the country Within the city mobility is provided by taxis rickshaws cycle rickshaws and three wheelers but with certain restrictions in the old town area of the city 253 Air transport The Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport is the main airport that serves Varanasi Varanasi is served by Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport IATA VNS ICAO VEBN which is approximately 26 km 16 mi from the city centre in Babatpur 254 The airport s new terminal was inaugurated in 2010 and it was granted international airport status on 4 October 2012 255 Air India Air India Express Buddha Air IndiGo Malindo Air SpiceJet SriLankan Airlines Thai AirAsia Thai Smile and Vistara operate flights from Varanasi to Ahmedabad Bangkok Colombo Delhi Gaya Kathmandu Khajuraho Sharjah Kuala Lumpur Mumbai Hyderabad Bengaluru Goa Guwahati Jaipur Kolkata and several other cities 256 Over 3 010 702 passengers passed through the airport in 2019 20 making it the 20th busiest airport in India The total aircraft movement for the session 2019 20 was 24 056 while cargo tonnage equalled 3 580 Total footfall of the international passengers for the session 2019 20 was 231 730 257 258 259 Railways Varanasi Junction is the main railway station which serves Varanasi Banaras railway station at nightVaranasi Junction commonly known as Varanasi Cantt Railway Station is the city s largest railway station More than 360 000 passengers and 240 trains pass through each day 260 Banaras railway station is also a Terminal station of Varanasi Because of huge rush at Varanasi Junction the railway developed the station as a high facilitated terminal Varanasi City railway station is also one of the railway stations in Varanasi district It is 4 km North East of Varanasi Junction railway station It serves as Terminal station because of heavy rush at Varanasi Junction Mughalsarai Junction railway station is also the important station in Varanasi suburban Some important express trains operating from the Varanasi Junction railway station and Manduadih railway station are Shiv Ganga Express runs between New Delhi Junction and Manduadih station while Mahamana Express runs between Varanasi junction and New Delhi Junction the Udhna Varanasi Express that runs between Udhna Surat junction and Varanasi a distance of 1 398 kilometres 869 mi 261 the Kashi Vishwanath Express that runs between Varanasi and New Delhi railway station 262 the Kanpur Varanasi InterCity express also called Varuna express which runs over a distance of 355 kilometres 221 mi and connects with Lucknow the capital city of Uttar Pradesh and Varanasi 263 and the Sabarmati Express which runs between Varanasi and Ahmedabad Vande Bharat Express a semi high speed train was launched in the month of February in 2019 in the Delhi Varanasi route 264 The train reduced the time travel between the two cities by 15 percent as compared to the Shatabdi Express 265 Varanasi has following railway stations within the city suburbs 266 267 Station Name Station Code Railway Zone Number of PlatformsVaranasi Junction Also Varanasi Cantt BSB Northern Railway 9Banaras Railway Station BSBS North Eastern Railway 8Varanasi City Railway Station BCY North Eastern Railway 5Kashi Railway Station KEI Northern Railway 3Sarnath Railway Station SRNT North Eastern Railway 3Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction DDU East Central Railway 8Shivpur Railway Station SOP Northern Railway 3Bhulanpur Railway Station BHLP Northern Railway North Eastern Railway 2Lohta Railway Station LOT Northern Railway 3Ropeway Kashi ropeway is under construction since 2023 It will be 3 75 kilometres 2 33 mi long and will have a maximum capacity of 3000 passengers per hour per direction 268 104 105 269 It will cover the cantonment area to Godowlia which will reduce travel time from the current 45 minutes to around 15 minutes 270 Roads Ring Road Phase IAuto rickshaws and E rickshaws are the most widely available forms of public transport in the old city 271 In the outer regions of the city taxis are available 271 Daily commuters prefer city buses which operate on specific routes of urban and suburban areas The city buses are operated by Varanasi City Transport Service Limited 272 Nearly 120 buses are operated by Varanasi City Transport Service Limited 273 The following National Highways pass through Varanasi 274 275 276 277 278 National Highway Route Total LengthNH 19 Delhi Mathura Agra Kanpur Prayagraj Varanasi Mohania Barhi Palsit Kolkata 1 323 km 822 mi NH 233 Varanasi Azamgarh Tanda Basti Siddharthnagar Lumbini Nepal 288 km 179 mi NH 35 Mahoba Banda Chitrakoot Prayagraj Mirzapur Varanasi 346 km 215 mi NH 31 Unnao Raebareli Pratapgarh Varanasi Patna Samsi 968 km 601 mi NH 7 Varanasi Jabalpur Nagpur Hyderabad Bangalore Kanyakumari 2 369 km 1 472 mi The heavy traffic of the city is monitored through Integrated Traffic Management System The smart traffic management system equips the city with automatic signal control system separate signal system for pedestrians traffic management centre at state level area traffic control system corridor management and dynamic traffic indicators for smooth movement of traffic 279 Varanasi Traffic Police keeps an eye through Smart Command and Control Centre 280 281 Inland waterways National Waterway 1 passes through Varanasi In 2018 a new inland port was established on the banks of Ganges River 282 The Multi Modal Terminal is designed to handle 1 26 million metric tons of cargo every year and covers an area of 34 hectares 283 Nearly 170 crore was invested by the Government to setup an inland port 284 Maersk started its container service in 2019 by moving 16 containers on NW 1 from Varanasi to Kolkata The port also catered PepsiCo IFFCO Fertilizers Emami Agrotech and Dabur for cargo movement 285 ProjectsDue to growing population and industrial demands the city is being implanted with several infrastructural projects 286 In fiscal year 2014 18 the city was awarded with projects worth 30 000 crore 287 The city is being invested by both private and public players in different sectors 288 Currently there are many undergoing projects and many have been planned Road Road in Varanasi CantonmentThe Government is executing seven road projects connecting Varanasi the total project cost being 7100 crores and the total length of the project being 524 km Some important projects are Six lane Varanasi Aurangabad section of NH 19 289 Six lane Varanasi Allahabad NH 19 290 Four lane Varanasi Gorakhpur NH 29 291 Ghagra Bridge Varanasi section of NH 233 289 Four lane Varanasi Azamgarh Section NH 233 292 Four lane Varanasi Sultanpur NH 56 293 New four lane Varanasi Ayodhya Highway 294 Varanasi Ring Road Phase 2 295 Ganga Expressway Phase 2 296 Varanasi Ranchi Kolkata Greenfield Expressway 297 Purvanchal Link Expressway 298 Accommodation All ranges of accommodations are available Hotels lodges are available Lots of dharamshalas or nattukottai chatrams are also available For yatris who want to breath their last in this holy city specific accommodations are also available Railways A BLW manufactured trainIn 2018 the budget reflected undergoing rail projects of worth 4500 crore Some important projects are 299 3rd rail line between Varanasi Mughalsarai 300 New Delhi Varanasi High Speed Rail Corridor 301 Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor Jeonathpur Railway Station 302 Kashi Railway Station to be developed as Intermodal Station IMS 303 304 Airport Extension of runway by 1325 meters First of its kind National Highway under the airport runway 305 New terminal with passenger capacity of 4 5 million per year 306 Metro The Varanasi Metro is a rapid transit proposed for Varanasi The proposed system consists of two lines spanning from BHEL to Banaras Hindu University 19 35 km and Benia Bagh to Sarnath 9 885 km The feasibility study of the project was done by RITES and was completed in June 2015 There will be 26 stations including 20 underground and six elevated on the two lines which includes total length of 29 235 km consisting of 23 467 km underground while 5 768 km will be elevated 307 308 309 310 The total estimated completion cost for construction of Varanasi Metro is estimated to be 13 133 crore 311 Commercial Rudraksha Convention Centre 312 Kashi Vishwanath Corridor 313 100 acres freight village for multimodal terminal 314 Film city to be developed in area of 106 acres 315 Bus terminal cum shopping mall 316 317 IT Park 318 Textile Park 319 320 Integrated Commissioner Complex ICC twin towers 321 Sister citiesCountry City Japan Kyoto 322 323 Nepal Kathmandu 324 325 See also India portal Hinduism portalBhogabir Bibliography of Varanasi Guptakashi Koreans in Varanasi List of people from Varanasi Pradosha Ramanathaswamy Temple Rameswaram Shivaratri Shivdwar Sonbhadra Uttarkashi Vibhuti Banarasi BabuGallery Horse on the Varanasi Beach Boat ride on the Ganges River A cow walking down the street Monkey GoatReferencesNotes The name Varanasi was officially revived after 1947 16 This is the case at the same time as traditions have been transformed in the face of modernization generational changes and emigration 18 19 Citations a b Varanasi City Census of India Varanasi M Corp censusindia gov in Archived from the original on 6 May 2021 Retrieved 10 February 2021 Census of India Varanasi CB censusindia gov in Archived from the original on 6 May 2021 Retrieved 10 February 2021 Dikshit Rajeev 13 May 2023 In Varanasi BJP s Ashok Tiwari defeats SP by 1 33L votes The Times of India Retrieved 21 May 2023 Varanasi City 7 January 2022 Archived from the original on 19 August 2021 Retrieved 21 November 2020 District Census Handbook Varanasi PDF censusindia gov in Archived PDF from the original on 25 November 2020 Retrieved 23 December 2020 Urban Agglomerations Cities having population 1 lakh and above PDF Office of the Registrar General amp Census Commissioner India Archived PDF from the original on 17 October 2013 Retrieved 12 May 2014 a b 52nd Report of the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities in India PDF nclm nic in Ministry of Minority Affairs Archived from the original PDF on 25 May 2017 Retrieved 26 December 2018 Western Standard Bhojpuri Archived 1 March 2014 at archive today Digital Library of Language Relationships 2012 Yogi Adityanath is right Route to UP s 1 trillion GDP goal passes through hinterland Retrieved 25 September 2019 permanent dead link Executive Summary PDF Archived PDF from the original on 19 August 2019 Retrieved 29 December 2019 Slum Free City Plan of Action Varanasi PDF Archived PDF from the original on 28 June 2020 Retrieved 28 June 2020 Singh Padam Keshar Satyendra 8 March 2016 Development of Human Development Index at District Level for EAG States PDF Statistics and Applications 14 1 amp 2 2016 Archived PDF from the original on 4 March 2022 Retrieved 4 March 2022 San Chirico Kerry P C 2012 Banaras in Juergensmeyer Mark Roof Wade Clark eds Encyclopedia of Global Religion Volume 1 pp 114 116 ISBN 9780761927297 The city was identified in the Pali language as Baranasi from which emerged the corrupt form of the name Banaras by which the city is still widely known The name that appears on the 1909 version official map of India a b San Chirico Kerry P C 2012 Banaras in Juergensmeyer Mark Roof Wade Clark eds Encyclopedia of Global Religion Volume 1 pp 114 116 ISBN 9780761927297 in the fifth century BCE the Kingdom of Kashi was one of the 16 kingdoms to emerge from the ascendant Aryan tribes Varanasi Encyclopaedia Britannica 1 September 2021 retrieved 14 December 2021 Varanasi also called Benares Banaras or Kashi city southeastern Uttar Pradesh state northern India San Chirico Kerry P C 2012 Banaras in Juergensmeyer Mark Roof Wade Clark eds Encyclopedia of Global Religion Volume 1 pp 114 116 ISBN 9780761927297 Varanasi is the city s revived post independence designation which combines the names of two rivers on either side of it Fouberg Erin H Moseley William G 2018 Understanding World Geography New York John Wiley amp Sons p 173 ISBN 9781119473169 OCLC 1066742384 The city of Varanasi India is central to the death tradition in Hinduism Hindus see Varanasi as the world of death and life and some make pilgrimages to Varanasi to die In Hindu tradition if a person dies in the holy city of Varanasi on the Ganges River he or she is attains moksha or freedom from the cycle of death and rebirth Pilgrims travel to Varanasi to cremate their deceased relatives on the ghats along the river Eck Diana 2013 1981 Banaras the City of Light Alfred Knopf Inc Columbia University Press p 324 No other city on earth is as famous for death as is Banaras More than for her temples and magnificent ghats more than for her silks and brocades Banaras the Great Cremation Ground is known for death At the center of the city along the riverfront is Manikarnika the sanctuary of death with its ceaselessly smoking cremation pyres The burning ghat extends its influence and the sense of its presence throughout the city Parry Jonathan P 2000 1994 Death in Banaras Lewis Henry Morgan Lectures Cambridge University Press p 1 ISBN 9780521466257 As a place to die to dispose of the physical remains of the deceased and to perform the rites which ensure that the departest attains a good state after death the north Indian city of Banaras attracts pilgrims and mourners from all over the Hindu world Singh Ravi Nandan 2022 Dead in Banaras An Ethnography of Funeral Travelling Oxford UK Oxford University Press The present day Banaras at first sign is a new place Rightly so the baton must then pass on to an all new chronicling of the place Yet a connecting link as always may come into play between the book s time and other times of Banaras Let me give an example of what such a connection might look like Jonathan Parry 1994 in his classic Death in Banaras laments in the preface to the book that he could not incorporate the coming in of the electric crematorium in his descriptions of the funerary organization in Banaras Two decades later into my fieldwork I found that it is in part the efficiency of the open air manual cremation that Parry so effectively captures in his book that explains how a promising symbol of industrial modernity the electric crematorium falls short of the typecast In the years between his book and my fieldwork the electric crematorium sat lonely and was sparingly used against the cheer of the always on busy manual pyres whose flames continue to dot the scene of the ghats in a contrasting relief In this above sense I believe Parry already provides us a portrait of the electric crematorium s social imaginary in Banaras The question of the shift from wooden pyres to the electric crematorium is then not about competing technologies but that of ethics with which the dead are tended to amidst the assemblies of funeral travellers Garces Foley Kathleen 2022 At the Intersection of Death and Religion in Garces Foley Kathleen ed Death and Religion in a Changing World 2 ed London and New York Routledge p 186 doi 10 4324 9781003126997 ISBN 978 0 367 64930 2 It is not uncommon for immigrants to discover that their long established death practices are deemed unacceptable by civil authorities in their new home We see this for example in the experiences of Sikhs and Hindus living in Sweden and the United States where open cremation pyres are not permitted Market forces and social context also shape religious practices by limiting access to some goods and services while promoting others and offering new possibilities for action The logistical difficulty of transporting a body from the United States or the UK to the auspicious city of Varanasi India for cremation is surmounted by entrepreneurial service providers who manage the process for Hindu customers Arnold David 2021 Burning the Dead Hindu Nationhood and the Global Construction of Indian Tradition Oakland University of California Press p 11 ISBN 9780520379343 LCCN 2020026923 While Benares is undeniably central to the performance and perception of modern Indian cremation that history cannot be told from Benares alone Rather the narrative needs to encompass colonial India s two main metropolises Bombay Mumbai and Calcutta Kolkata as well as the movement of Indians overseas and their memorialization abroad The history of cremation in India is far more than the history of traditional rites and practices that it is conventionally taken to be if tradition is assumed to mean timeless custom and immutable belief On the contrary cremation in modern India and across the South Asian diaspora is a history of contestation and change of longing and denial adaptation and innovation India too has gifted to the world a modern cremation movement though its meaning form and global resonance necessarily differed substantially from the Western cremation movement with which it was nearly contemporaneous Williams Philippa 17 January 2019 Working Narratives of Intercommunity Harmony in Varanasi s Silk Sari Industry In Jeffrey Roger Jeffrey Craig Lerche Jens eds Development Failure and Identity Politics in Uttar Pradesh SAGE pp 211 238 ISBN 978 81 321 1663 9 Varanasi is the city where Hindus and Muslims are interwoven like threads as in the lovely silk saris for which Kashi Varanasi is so famous for Puniyani 2006 quoted Varanasi is most often represented as a sacred Hindu pilgrimage centre see Eck 1983 as its social and cultural urban spaces have been often examined through the imagined and lived realities of Hinduism Hertel and Humes 1993 Parry 1994 Singh and Rana 2002 But it is also home to a sizeable Muslim population which in 2001 comprised 30 per cent of the city s residents significantly more than the percentage of Muslims in UP Census of India 2001 Unlike the city s majority Hindu inhabitants 63 per cent who occupy a range of occupations in different economic sectors Muslims in the city are predominantly involved in the production of silk fabrics as well as other smaller artisanal industries see Kumar 1988 Muslims first settled in Varanasi in the eleventh century when following the defeat of an invading Muslim army women children and civilians were permitted to remain on the northern side of the city and serve the Hindu kings Many learned the craft of weaving incorporating their skills and designs into the fabrics Jean Baptiste Tavernier the French explorer and cultural anthropologist visited Varanasi between 1660 and 1665 and reported that in the courtyard of a rest house in the Chowk area the trading of reshmi silk and suti cotton fabrics was taking place between Muslim karigars artisans or craftsmen and Hindu Mahajans traders Puniyani Ram 21 April 2006 Tackling Terrorism Varanasi Jama Masjid Show the Way CounterCurrents Org Varanasi like many other cities of the country is the city where Hindus and Muslim of the city are interwoven like threads as in the lovely silk saris for which Kashi is so famous for This town has hundreds and hundreds of Muslims artisans weaving the beautiful silk apparels which are sold by the Hindu traders This is also a city where on one hand we see the likes of Munshi Premchand who wrote in Urdu as Nawab Rai and also crafted the acme of Hindi literature which is not only progressive but is also a celebration of composite traditions of the country This is also the city of the likes of Ustad Bismillah Khans whose Shahanai begins with devotion to Hindu deities and hums the pleasant enchanting music into the ears of the whole nation It is also the city which like most of the cities of the country highlights the intercommunity amity in its most pleasant flavor Mallet Victor 2017 River of Life River of Death The Ganges and India s Future Oxford UK Oxford University Press ISBN 9780198786177 LCCN 2017939064 Modi however went out of his way to court Varanasi s Muslims they account for nearly a quarter of the city s 1 6 million voters and to emphasize its multicultural syncretic traditions when he was on the campaign trail in 2014 He praised not only Hindu but also Muslim cultural figures including the musician Bismillah Khan and said Khan was arguably the greatest symbol of Ganga Jamuni tehzeeb Ganga Yamuna culture a riverine phrase often used to describe the intertwined Hindu Muslim culture of north India where those two rivers flow Modi also targeted the important Muslim community of sari weavers in the district of Lallapura Varanasi s silk wedding saris lavishly designed and interwoven with gold thread are much sought after by Indians from across the country and from overseas and Modi promised to help the weavers acquire modern technology quality raw materials and better marketing skills so they could compete with Chinese clothing manufacturers The weavers of Varanasi are an integral part of the city s history he wrote in a blog post on his nomination day It is my resolve to ensure that they stand on their own feet with pride and their future generations have a bright future pp 51 52 An earlier great poet son of Varanasi and symbol of north India s syncretic traditions was the fifteenth century Kabir whose pithy lines in Hindi are still much quoted today by Indians over social media Again the legends surrounding his life are confused He may have been born into a low caste Muslim community of weavers or been a Hindu by birth But he famously mocked the priesthoods and the rituals of both Muslims and Hindus even to the extent of deliberately leaving holy Varanasi to die in an obscure town when most north Indians would be heading in the other direction and yearning to expire within the boundaries of the city to find salvation His contempt for organized religion is reflected in the legend of his death Hindu and Muslim devotees argued over who should claim the poet s remains but when the cloth covering his body was lifted they found nothing underneath but a spray of flowers pp 60 61 Kumar Nita 2017 1988 The Artisans of Banaras Popular Culture and Identity 1880 1986 Princeton Legacy Library Princeton University Press pp 15 18 137 ISBN 9781400886999 The simplicty of weavers weddings is a contrast even to those of other Muslims such as the Pathans p 15 Contrary to the experience of most artisan production in modern times the silk weaving industry has actually flourished and remained the commercial backbone of the Hindu pilgrimage and religious centre of Banaras p 18 The debate on how Muslims in other parts of South Asia adjust an Islamic identity with a territorial cultural one which is heavily oriented towards local Hinduism is very instructive with regard to our material The weaver of Banaras is as shaukeen a man as the Hindu and central to his life style is the love of the outside of akharas and of music pp 137 138 San Chirico Kerry P C 2012 Banaras in Juergensmeyer Mark Roof Wade Clark eds Encyclopedia of Global Religion Volume 1 pp 114 116 ISBN 9780761927297 This was the period in which an enduring cultural imprint was made in the establishment of muhallas or neighborhoods that exist to this day in the presence of Sufi shrines dotting the landscape and in the creation of a singular syncretic culture Today Islam accounts for more than one third of Varanasi city s population There are as many Muslims here as there are Brahmans the majority of whom are weavers The relationship between the Muslims who weave Banaras s famous saris and the Hindus who sell them explains in part by historically there has been less communal tension here than in other cities throughout South Asia San Chirico Kerry P C 2012 Banaras in Juergensmeyer Mark Roof Wade Clark eds Encyclopedia of Global Religion Volume 1 pp 114 116 ISBN 9780761927297 Fogelin Lars 2015 An Archaeological History of Indian Buddhism Oxford and New York Oxford University Press pp 87 88 ISBN 978 0 1999 4821 5 In some specific cases the symbolism does seem specifically Buddhist The capital at Sarnath for example has four wheels carved on its drum see Figure 3 4 Critically this is the only Mauryan capital that includes wheel motifs It seems unlikely that it is merely coincidental that the capital was located at Sarnath the location of the Buddha s first sermon the place where the Buddha first turned the wheel of Dharma Rather it seems very likely that the wheel motif at least at Sarnath symbolized the wheel of Dharma in the specifically Buddhist sense of the term Varanasi Encyclopaedia Britannica 7 June 2022 retrieved 1 November 2022 It was the capital of the kingdom of Kashi during the time of the Buddha 6th century BCE who gave his first sermon nearby at Sarnath When the spirit of Kabir took over the ancient ghats of Benares The Sunday Guardian Live 30 November 2019 Retrieved 29 December 2019 Bose Melia Belli 2017 Royal Matronage and a Visual Vocabulary of Indian Queenship Ahilyabai Holkar s Memorial Commissions In Bose Melia Belli ed Women Gender and Art in Asia c 1500 1900 London and New York Routledge ISBN 9781351536554 Each time prior to Aurangzeb s razing the temple was rebuilt by prominent Rajputs such as Raja Todar Mal d 1586 finance minister and high ranking courtier to Mughal Emperor Akbar in 1585 Although he did not sponsor the temple s rebuilding among the Kashi Vishvanath s most illustrious donors is Raja Man Singh Kachhwaha of Amber who commissioned several other temples and ghats in the vicinity Raja Man Singh was also closely associated with the Mughal emperors Akbar and Jahangir in whose armies and courts he served Metcalf Barbara 2009 Introduction In Metcalf Barbara D ed Islam in South Asia in Practice Princeton and London Princeton University Press ISBN 978 1400831388 As Catherine Asher has argued the temples of a Hindu noble like the Rajput Man Singh built with Mughal patronage should be seen as imperial projects reflecting bonds between nobles and the king and making empire wide architectural styles Bourke Richard 8 September 2015 Empire and Revolution The Political Life of Edmund Burke Princeton University Press p 843 ISBN 9780691145112 Since 1724 Awadh in extent about the size of England had enjoyed effective autonomy as a quasi independent province within the Mughal Empire It came to terms with the British after the Battle of Buxar in 1764 finally signing up to the Treaty of Benares in 1773 This imposed on the Wazir of Awadh Shuja ud Daula the obligation to accept troops stationed in his territory while paying a subsidy to the British for the privilege The Wazir s successor Asaf ud Daula agreed to increase this subsidy under the Treaty of Faizabad in 1775 at the same time ceding Benares to the Company Markovitz Claude 24 September 2004 Birth of the British Empire in India 1765 1818 in Markovits Claude ed A History of Modern India 1480 1950 Anthem Press ISBN 9781843311522 In the face of the hostility of all the dynamic forces of the country the threat of the Marathas looming large on the frontiers Asaf could count henceforth only on the help of the English who exerted themselves to use this tumultuous situation to the full In exchange for their military protection the nawab granted them as early as 1775 the control of the region of Benares in addition to a substantial increase in indemnity Bayly Christopher 1983 Rulers townsmen and bazaars north Indian society in the age of British expansion 1770 1870 Cambridge University Press pp xii xiii ISBN 9780521229326 In 1801 a large area of Awadh situated in the Doab and Rohilkhand were ceded to the British It was added to districts conquered from the Marathas in 1803 4 around Delhi and Agra to form the Conquered and Ceded Provinces of the British Bengal Presidency The term Western Provinces and later North Western Provinces came into gradual use to describe this area and the adjoining Benares Division In 1856 the remaining Reserved Dominions of the ruler of Awadh were annexed to become the British Province of Oudh under a Chief Commissioner In 1901 the two provinces were amalgamated to become the United Province of Agra and Oudh a b Cunningham amp Sastri 2002 pp 131 140 Eck 1982 p 10 58 refers to Banares which Hindus call Kashi the City of Light p 10 and Hindus call it Kashi the luminous City of Light p 58 Talageri Shrikant G The Geography of the Rigveda Archived from the original on 8 August 2011 Retrieved 4 February 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Orient Longman p 71 ISBN 978 81 250 3226 7 Archived from the original on 10 March 2023 Retrieved 7 August 2022 In 1194 Muizzuddin returned to India He crossed the Jamuna with 50 000 cavalry and moved towards Kanauj A hotly contested battle between Muizzuddin and Jaichandra was fought at Chandawar near Kanauj We are told that Jaichandra had almost carried the day when he was killed by an arrow and his army was totally defeated Muizzuddin now moved on to Banaras which was ravaged a large number of temples there being destroyed Das 1991 p 17 Merriam Webster 1999 p 910 Gandhi 2007 p 90 S Roy 1974 AKBAR In R C Majumdar ed The History and Culture of the Indian People The Mughal empire Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan pp 119 120 Archived from the original on 4 April 2023 Retrieved 7 August 2022 Akbar then marched to Allahabad and onto Banaras which was sacked because it closes its gates against him Rima Hooja 2006 A history of Rajasthan pp 493 495 ISBN 978 8129108906 Archived from the original on 4 April 2023 Retrieved 7 August 2022 Among the architectural legacies left by Man Singh are the palaces within Amber fort Man Mandir Man Chat and Sarovar Ghat at Varanasi the Govind Dev temple at Vrindaban and temples at Pushkar Manpur Puri etc He also built forts at Salimpur Bengal Manihari Bihar Ramgarh Dhoondhar founded the towns of Akbarnagar Rajmahal Manpur near Gaya and the small township of Baikunthpur now called Baikathpur in Bihar s Patna district and carried out massive repairs and fresh construction including of palaces at the fort of Rohtas Mitra 2002 p 182 a b Prakash 1981 p 170 Schreitmuller 2012 p 284 Bayly C A 19 May 1988 Rulers Townsmen and Bazaars North Indian Society in the Age of British Expansion 1770 1870 CUP Archive pp 17 ISBN 978 0 521 31054 3 Archived from the original on 4 April 2023 Retrieved 7 June 2021 a b c d Bayly Christopher Alan 1983 Rulers Townsmen and Bazaars North Indian Society in the Age of British Expansion 1770 1870 Cambridge University Press p 489 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