Varanasi is all decked up as it gears up to accord a traditional Indian welcome to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who will arrive in the holy city on Saturday evening to watch the world-famous Ganga aarti at the Dashashwamedh ghat along with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi.
Hectic preparations are on to welcome Abe and Modi, with the Dashashwamedh ghat getting a new-look and a fresh coat of paint, even as a four-layer security blanket has been thrown over the ancient city that will host the two VVIPs for a few hours.
It would be the second time when Modi will heed Ganga’s call and watch the Ganga aarti. He came here to watch the aarti after winning the parliamentary elections from here and before taking oath as PM.
Modi and Abe will watch the aarti from a 100-feet-long and 20-feet-wide floating stage that has been constructed by Army personnel for the occasion just off the Dashashwamedh ghat. In a break from tradition and as a mark of honour for Abe and Modi, the Ganga aarti will be performed by nine priests, instead of the usual seven.
In honour of the visit, Dashashwamedh ghat and adjoining ghats that have been renovated and decorated with several quintals of flowers have also been barricaded and security personnel deployed all along the banks in the area.
Two bullet-proof Mercedes cars that will form part of the cavalcade that will take the two PMs around the city have already arrived and all the crossings between Babatpur and Dashashwamedh ghat, including Babatpur, Kutchery, lahurabir, Maidagin and Godowlia, have been decorated with flowers and lights and huge cut-outs of both the PMs have been installed there. The two PMs will be welcomed by schoolchildren carrying flags of the two countries
The two PMs will land at lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport, Babatpur around 4 pm and will be received by Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav. Before heading for the ghats they will spend half an hour at the renowned Nadesar Palace where they are expected to meet select guests and dignitaries. Incidentally, Modi will be the second PM after the late Jawaharlal Nehru to enjoy the hospitality of Nadesar Palace, a special heritage property of the Taj Group.
After the aarti at Dashashwamedh ghat between 5.45 and 6.25 pm the two dignitaries will return to the hotel and attend a cultural programme and dinner, before departing for New Delhi.
A massive four-layer security cover is already in place for the two PMs. In the first layer, there would be SPG and NSG commandos as well as the special security team of Abe, while the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and Intelligence personnel would make up the second layer. This will be followed by paramilitary personnel, local police, Intelligence agencies, anti-bomb squad, anti-mines detection and the anti-sabotage team that will make up the third and the fourth layer.
According to the information, one ADG, DG (Security), IG, 25 SP rank officers, 50 ASPs, 50 COs, 100 SIs and 500 constables would be deployed at the ghats apart from two companies of ATS, three of SSB, two of ITBP, two of CRPF, seven of PAC and many others. Besides, no vehicles would be allowed in the area and
the traffic would be diverted from the Babatpur-Kutchery route on Varanasi-lucknow Highway.
Meanwhile, senior officers of Indian Railways, including IG and DIG, arrived here and held a meeting with the officers of GRP and RPF and
reviewed the security arrangements at Varanasi Junction (Cantt), Varanasi City, Manduadih, Kashi, and Shivpur railway stations.