A red carpet welcome awaits Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his two-day visit to his parliamentary constituency Varanasi on Thursday.

The district administration and Bharatiya Janata Party have geared up their preparations to make the prime minister’s visit a grand success. The BJP is more enthusiastic as Modi is visiting Kashi for the first time after the consecration of Ram Lalla in the newly-built Ram Janmabhoomi temple in Ayodhya, when the Lok Sabha elections are round the corner.

The party has made six grand welcome points between Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport, Babatpur and Officers Guest House in Banaras Locomotive Works (BLW) where the prime minister will stay. At each of these gates, a senior BJP leader will remain present along with supporters to welcome Modi on his arrival.

Elaborate security arrangements have been made at all the venues and routes. Several traffic restrictions have been imposed on all the routes from where the prime minister’s motorcade will pass through.

The prime minister will participate in a programme to be organised at Swatantrata Bhawan in Banaras Hindu University (BHU) on the second day of his visit on February 23. After that the prime minister will go to Sant Ravidas temple located at Seer Govardhan where he will have darshan of Sant Ravidas, the Dalit poet of medieval period, and taste langar. Later the prime minister will unveil the statue of Sant Ravidas and address a public meeting.

After this, the prime minister will go to Banas (Amul) dairy plant located in Karkhiyaon where, before addressing a huge public meeting, he will give gift of 36 projects worth Rs 14,316 crore to Purvanchal (eastern UP) including his own parliamentary constituency Varanasi.

The prime minister will inaugurate 23 projects worth Rs 10,972 crore and lay the foundation stones of 16 projects worth Rs 3,344.07 crore.

The major projects of Purvanchal that the prime minister will inaugurate on the occasion include Rs 3,191 crore Ghagra bridge on NH-233 (Phase-I), Rs 2,935 crore Sultanpur-Varanasi four-lane road (Phase-I) on NH-56, Rs 2,143 crore six-lane Varanasi-Karmnasha bridge (Phase-I) on NH-19 and Rs 1,248 crore Varanasi-Hanumana four-lane widening in Phase-I.

Besides, Modi will also inaugurate Rs 622 crore milk processing unit at Banas project in Varanasi apart from Rs 200 crore 600 TPD Waste to Charcoal at Green Coal Plant set up by NTPC, Rs 214.37 crore LPG Bottling Plant of HPCL, Rs 39.22 crore development of five paraos (stoppages) of Panchposhi Marg, Rs 36 crore catamaran boat ride facilities in Varanasi and Ayodhya, Rs 35.10 crore ROB near Babatpur railway station, Rs 32.77 crore spiritual tourist development works in Seer Govardhan, Rs 24.35 crore Paavan Path development of religious pilgrimages in Kashi, Rs 9.74 crore silk printing facility in Jagatpur and Rs 9.64 crore STP automation and online effluent monitoring system in Varanasi.

Apart from these, the prime minister will also lay the foundation stones of Rs 1,317 crore six-lane Varanasi-Ranchi-Kolkata road under Bharat Mala Yojana, Rs 1,149 advanced research and manufacturing plant of BHEL in Karkhiyaon, Rs 432.75 crore new premises of National Institute of Fashion Technology at Bada Lalpur, Rs 150 crore new medical college project in Pandeypur, Rs 147.39 crore National Centre of Aging in Banaras Hindu University, Rs 62. 54 crore Ravidas Park and Museum at Seer Govardhan and many other projects.