VARANASI: Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu arrived in the millennia-old city Varanasi on Friday evening on a two-day pilgrimage and attended the Ganga aarti at the Dashashwamedh Ghat, decorated extensively to welcome the distinguished guest.
The Vice President was accorded a warm welcome at the Banaras railway station when he arrived along with his family members by a special train after offering prayers at Shri Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya.
The Vice President was greeted with a performance of traditional folk art and dance at the railway station as he deboarded the train with his family. Governor Anandiben Patel and Deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak were also present. UP minister Ravindra Jaiswal received the Vice President at the railway station. Senior officials including the divisional commissioner Deepak Agrawal, Commissioner of Police A Satish Ganesh and district magistrate Kaushal Raj Sharma were also there to welcome him.
The Vice President went to the historic Dashashwamedh Ghat where he took part in the grand Ganga Aarti organised by the Ganga Seva Nidhi.
Before attending the special aarti at the beautifully decked up ghat, the Vice President performed puja of the holy Ganga.
Ganga aarti is one of the main attractions of the city and was also witnessed by then Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and PM Narendra Modi in December 2015.
During his stay, the Vice President will offer prayers at Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple on Saturday morning.
The Vice President will offer prayers at Kashi Vishwanath Temple on Saturday morning.
Shri Kashi Vishwanath temple enshrines one of the ‘Dwadash Jyotirlingas’ (12 Jyotirlingas) of Lord Shiva. He will also see the Shri Kashi Vishwanath Dham (Corridor), which was inaugurated by the PM in December last year. The Vice president will then proceed to Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Smriti at Padao to pay his tributes and will leave for Delhi in the evening.
There was heavy security as per protocol for the Vice President’s visit and traffic diversions were in place on the routes of his cavalcade.
