Tag: Varanasi

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Modi to contest from Varanasi

He further said that the efforts made by the central government in the last ten years continue with even greater vigour…reports Asian Lite News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is all set to contest for the third consecutive time from the Varanasi constituency in Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, on Saturday expressed his gratitude to the party and its workers for showing a ‘constant’ faith in him.

PM Modi, in a post on X, said that he is looking forward to ‘serving the people of Varanasi’ for the third time.

“I thank the @BJP4India leadership and bow to the crores of selfless Party Karyakartas for their constant faith in me. I look forward to serving my sisters and brothers of Kashi for the third time. In 2014, I went to Kashi with a commitment to fulfil people’s dreams and empower the poorest of the poor,” the PM said.

He further said that the efforts made by the central government in the last ten years continue with even greater vigour.

“Over the last ten years, we have made significant progress across various sectors and worked towards a better Kashi. These efforts will continue with even greater vigour. I would also like to convey a special gratitude to the people of Kashi for their blessings, which I cherish greatly,” the PM added.

PM Modi, in another post on X, said that his party is going to the people on the basis of our track record of good governance and ensuring the fruits of progress reach the poorest of the poor.

“Our party has announced candidates for some of the seats and will be announcing the rest in the coming days. I congratulate all those who have been nominated as our party’s candidates and wish them the very best. We are going to the people on the basis of our track record of good governance and ensuring the fruits of progress reach the poorest of the poor,” he said.

Further, the PM exuded his confidence in the people of the country to make his party manage another victory.

“I am sure that the 140 crore people of India will bless us yet again and give us even more strength in fulfilling their aspirations and creating a Viksit Bharat,” PM Modi added.

The BJP Saturday released its first list of 195 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, days after a marathon meeting of the party’s Central Election Committee (CEC) that was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

This is the third time PM Modi will be contesting from the Varanasi seat. In 2014, he defeated AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal and in 2019, won against Samajwadi Party’s Shalini Yadav.

Even before Modi, Varanasi had been a BJP stronghold, with the party retaining it consistently since 1991 except in 2004, when the Congress’s Rajesh Kumar Mishra had won.

In the first list of 195 candidates, the BJP included 28 women, 47 youth, 27 Scheduled Castes, 18 Scheduled Tribes and 57 OBCs. The party announced 51 candidates in Uttar Pradesh, 24 in Madhya Pradesh, 15 each in Gujarat and Rajasthan, 20 for West Bengal, 12 in Kerala, 11 each for Assam, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, nine in Telangana, five for Delhi, two for Jammu and Kashmir, two for Arunachal Pradesh, one for Goa, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Daman and Diu also.

The first list of 195 candidates released by the BJP on Saturday, however, made some drastic changes in Delhi, it has decided to field only Manoj Tiwari, the sitting Lok Sabha member from northeast Delhi, and Union Minister Meenakshi Lekhi has been replaced with young face Basuri Swaraj, daughter of late BJP veteran Sushma Swaraj, from New Delhi; former Madhya Pradesh Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, has been chosen to contest from Vidisha constituency in the state; and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla from Kota.

With Prime Minister Modi urging senior ministers from Rajya Sabha to contest Lok Sabha elections, the party fielded Union Ministers Bhupender Yadav from Alwar in Rajasthan, Mansukh Mandaviya from Porbandar and Parshottam Rupala from Rajkot (Gujarat), Rajeev Chandrasekhar from Thiruvananthapuram, and V Muraleedharan from Attingal constituency. Another Rajya Sabha member and national vice president of the BJP Saroj Pande will contest from the Korba Lok Sabha constituency in Chhattisgarh. Union Minister Rameshwar Teli is replaced by Cabinet minister and former Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal in Dibrugarh (Assam) constituency.

Union Ministers who are being fielded from their sitting seats are Gajendra Shekhawat in Jodhpur, Smriti Irani in Amethi, S P Singh Baghel in Agra, Sanjeev Balyan in Muzaffarnagar, Ajay Mishra Teni in Kheri, Arjun Ram Meghwal in Bikaner, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti in Fatehpur, Subhash Sarkar in Bankura and Nishit Pramanik in Cooch Behar. (ANI)

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Varanasi to host Y20 summit 

More than 100 delegates from G20 countries, Guest countries and International Organizations will discuss five identified themes of Y20…reports Asian Lite News

Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is organising Youth 20 Summit-2023 from 17th to 20th of this month in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.

More than 100 delegates from G20 countries, Guest countries and International Organizations will discuss five identified themes of Y20.

These themes include Future of Work: Industry 4.0, Innovation and 21st Century Skills, Peacebuilding and Reconciliation: Ushering in an Era of No War, and Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction.

The Y20 Summit is the culmination of Inception Meeting at Guwahati, 14 Youth-20 Consultations conducted at prominent educational institutions, Pre Summit at Leh, Ladakh, Brainstorming sessions, Y20 Chaupals and various Jan Bhagidari events conducted across the country in the run-up to the main Y20 Summit.

The Y20 Summit will bring together youth experts, decision-makers and youth representatives from G20 countries to negotiate, finalize and sign the Y20 Communiqué created from the conclusions of the discussions conducted during past few months.

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Varanasi to host G20 Development Ministers’ meet

During the G20 meeting, Chief Secretary Durgashankar Mishra will be personally monitoring the entire event. He has given necessary guidelines to the officials of Varanasi…reports Asian Lite News

After the successful completion of its first three-day G20 meeting of the Agriculture Working Group in April, Varanasi is again ready to host the G-20 Development Ministers’ Meeting from June 11 to 13.

Guests from 20 powerful countries will arrive in Varanasi ahead of the conference. A total of 11 G-20 meetings will be held in four cities in UP, including Greater Noida, Lucknow, Agra and Varanasi, out of which 6 meetings will take place in Varanasi alone.

A dinner will be organised on June 11 to welcome more than 40 ministers,heads of various departments, 160 foreign delegates and more than 100 foreign journalists in Varanasi.

On June 12, guests from across the globe, will participate in the Ganga Aarti through a cruise. Following this, all the guests will visit Sarnath on June 13. This is the place where Lord Buddha preached.

Guests will also visit Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya Hastkala Sankul, where they will be acquainted with the unique handicrafts of the Purvanchal region and the artisans.

During the G20 meeting, Chief Secretary Durgashankar Mishra will be personally monitoring the entire event. He has given necessary guidelines to the officials of Varanasi.

The city commissioner is responsible for the decoration of the city and the ADM Protocol is responsible for protocol logistics, hotel management, tourism and excursions. The Police Commissioner of Security Committee Varanasi and the Development Officer, are responsible to prepare the students.

The ADM will also be responsible for the venue of the program. Besides, the Vice President of Varanasi Development Authority has been deployed for public participation. The District Magistrate and the Divisional Commissioner will review the work.

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Varanasi gears up to host 3-day G20 summit

Varanasi, Apr 13 (ANI): Preparation is in full swing ahead of the first of the five G-20 meetings starting on April 17, in Varanasi on Thursday. (ANI Photo)

G20 delegates will also participate in the world-famous Ganga Aarti at Kashi. Guests from all over the world will also see the skills of the traditional handicraftsmen of Kashi…reports Asian Lite News

Varanasi City will hold its first three-day G20 meeting of the Agriculture Working Group from Monday.

In a three-day event from April 17-19, representatives from the 20 leading countries of the world and delegates from other partner countries will participate in the meeting of the agriculture Working group. To ensure a grand organisation of the G20 events, the Uttar Pradesh government-led by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has made complete arrangements. A message will be given in the three-day event, to promote nutritious foods, food security and environment-friendly farming to keep the whole world healthy, according to an official statement.

With the motto of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, India is hosting the G20 this year. There will be a total of 6 G20 meetings in Varanasi. The first of these meetings is starting on April 17. For this, on the instructions of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, the entire city has been decorated beautifully. Along with this, tight security arrangements have been made. The main meeting of the G20 will be held at Hotel Taj. After this, there will also be a program of Kashi tour for the guests, which mainly includes boating programs in Sarnath, Ganga, the abode of Lord Buddha.

In addition, G20 delegates will also participate in the world-famous Ganga Aarti at Kashi. Guests from all over the world will also see the skills of the traditional handicraftsmen of Kashi.

On the first day of the meeting at Varanasi, the opening of MACS (Meeting of Agricultural Chief Scientists) 2023, Sustainable Agrifood System for Healthy People and Planet. And the first session will be held on the topic of Food Security and Nutrition, the Role of Science, Technology and Innovation. In the second session will be held on the topic of Resilient Agri-Food Systems. And in the evening, the delegates will take a cruise to see Ganga Aarti.

On the second day of the meeting, a third session on the topic of Digital Agriculture and Sustainable Agri Value Chain will be organised. The fourth Session will be held on the topic of Public Private Partnership in Agriculture R and D, Perspective from Developed and Developing Countries. A discussion of the MACS (Meeting of Agricultural Chief Scientists) 2023 communique will be held, and only G20 members will participate. Statement by Incoming Presidency Brazil Statement by G20 MACS Chair, India.

The guests will proceed to Sarnath in the evening. And visit the museum and light and attend a sound show. Dinner will be held and a cultural program will be organised at Buddha Theme Park.

On the last day of the three-day event at Varanasi, a discussion and finalization of the MACS (Meeting of Agricultural Chief Scientists) 2023 communique.

The representative of 20 leading countries of the world and delegates from other partner countries will visit the Trade Facilitation (TFC) Center at Bada Lalpur in the afternoon. (ANI)

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Varanasi named as first-ever SCO tourism & cultural capital

The city of Varanasi has been nominated as the first-ever SCO tourism and cultural capital during 2022-2023 at the 22nd meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of State in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Friday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the SCO summit, which is the first in-person meeting of the regional group in two years owing to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The nomination of Varanasi as the first ever SCO tourism and cultural capital will promote tourism, cultural and humanitarian exchanges between India and the SCO member countries. It also underlines India’s ancient civilisational links with the member states of SCO, especially the Central Asian republics,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

Under the framework of this major cultural outreach programme, a number of events will be hosted in Varanasi during 2022-23, for which guests will be invited from the SCO member states. These events are expected to attract Indologists, scholars, authors, musicians, artists, photo journalists, travel bloggers apart from the invited guests.

The regulations for nominating SCO tourism and cultural capital were adopted at the Dushanbe SCO Summit in 2021 with an objective to promote cooperation between the SCO member states in the field of culture and tourism.

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Varanasi court adjourns Gyanvapi hearing till July 12

The hearing in the Gyanvapi case has been adjourned till July 12. The lawyer representing the Muslim side presented 51 arguments during the hearing today…reports Asian Lite News

The Varanasi district court on Monday heard arguments on the maintainability of a plea by five Hindu women seeking permission to worship the Shringar Gauri Sthal within the Kashi Vishwanath-Gyanvapi Masjid complex.

Earlier, claims were made by the Hindu side that a structure, resembling a Shivling was found in the mosque complex. The Masjid committee contested that it was a fountain and not a Shivling.

“Muslim side has given its arguments, the date for the next hearing is July 12 keeping in mind everyone’s convenience. Muslim side to keep its arguments on law-point in front of the court then,” said Advocate Vishnu Jain, representing the Hindu side in the Gyanvapi Masjid survey matter told to reporters.

The hearing in the Gyanvapi case has been adjourned till July 12. The lawyer representing the Muslim side presented 51 arguments during the hearing today.

The Supreme Court had on May 20 transferred the case from a civil judge (senior division) to a district judge, saying considering the “complexities and sensitivity” of the issue, it is better if a senior judicial officer having an experience of over 25-30 years handles this case. The bench also said that no manner of restriction should be imposed on Muslims entering the mosque to offer namaz or religious observances.

The matter had reached the Supreme Court on a petition filed by the Mosque Management Committee, which challenged the civil judge’s orders. The order permitted inspection, survey, and videography of the mosque’s complex to collect evidence about the alleged existence of idols of Hindu deities inside the mosque, which is adjacent to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. After the survey, the lawyers representing the Hindu side claimed that a shivling was found at the mosque premises.

They filed an application for the protection of the shivling, where upon the civil judge directed the district magistrate, Varanasi, to seal the area where the shivling was sighted. It also directed the deployment of the CRPF to protect the sealed area and prohibited people from entering it. (ANI)

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India offers Bangladesh use of inland waterways system up to Varanasi

“When it comes to roads, we already have a reciprocal agreement with Nepal. Our trucks can ply on Nepalese roads, Nepalese trucks can also come to Kolkata or wherever they need to go,” he stated…reports Asian Lite News.

With an aim to push two-way trade with Bangladesh, India has offered Dhaka the use of an inland waterways system up to Varanasi.

This was hinted by Indian High Commissioner in Bangladesh, Vikram K Doraiswami in a recent interview with Bangladesh daily Prothom Alo.

He emphasized that sub-regional connectivity is a good thing for everybody, a game changer.

“We are consistently interested in connectivity for better two-way trade with Bangladesh and for connectivity through Bangladesh,” said Doraiswami.

Mentioning that sub-regional connectivity is a good thing for everybody and that everybody will benefit from it he explained that just as people here correctly understand that India does want access to its northeast through Bangladesh, Bangladesh wants access into India, to Nepal, to Bhutan and now towards Myanmar also.

Recalling that the Prime Minister has specifically said this, the Indian High Commissioner said, “Just as we need you, you need us, so it makes sense to us to work together.”

“When it comes to roads, we already have a reciprocal agreement with Nepal. Our trucks can ply on Nepalese roads, Nepalese trucks can also come to Kolkata or wherever they need to go,” he stated.

“Bhutan has a non-reciprocal agreement with us where Bhutanese trucks can ply on Indian roads, including up to the Bangladesh border, but Indian trucks can’t go into Bhutanese territory. So that integration is already happening,” Doraiswami informed.

“So it actually makes sense for all four of us to integrate together. And this can progress towards Myanmar and Thailand also. There is no such initiative where only one side benefits. Everybody benefits,” he said, adding that Bangladesh can do it in a manner in which your interests are preserved, and our interests are also preserved, everybody’s interests are preserved.

Turning to the other ways of connectivity, the Indian High Commissioner said, there are railways.

“People in Bangladesh are not aware but since 1976 we have an arrangement for the use of Indian railway wagons to carry Bangladesh goods to Nepal and vice versa. It’s been a slow process because it’s only the last decade that Bangladesh has focused strongly on building the railway,” he reckoned.

“But more railway connectivity will be the game changer for Bangladesh, just as much as it is for the entire region. Railway is faster, environmentally friendly, carries much more goods and eventually can help seriously connect,” Doraiswami said.

“Similarly, airports. We can start looking at sub-regional connectivity for freight. And even inland waterways. We have even offered the use of our inland waterway system up to Varanasi so you can actually shop goods from Varanasi to Nepal, using the India-Nepal water connectivity,” he maintained.

“And looking at Bangladesh’s extensive riverine network, we could also ship goods to Tripura further afield from there,” the Indian envoy to Bangladesh added.

“So long term, we have to re-imagine connectivity as a benefit for everybody. It’s not a one-way benefit. But it is a fact, and I have been trying to convey this to people, there is this impression that somehow India has got connectivity across Bangladesh and Bangladesh hasn’t. Actually it’s the other way around,” he said.

According to Doraiswami, since the agreement on the Chattogram and Mongla port was signed, and the SOPs were signed that in 2019, there has been only one trial shipment of containers and the total number of containers has been exactly four, not 400.

“So your government and your establishment had taken all the blame for giving it, but nothing has actually happened! So there is really no reason for people to get upset,” he said.

“In fact, it would be much more useful if we could get this going, because there is money to be made from the transport. It will cost and we are happy to pay the cost,” the Indian High Commissioner said.

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