Varanasi: Ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be at Varanasi today to inaugurate 280 projects worth Rs 1500 crores. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reach Varanasi at around 10:30 am and will head toward Banaras Hindu University where he is scheduled to spend major time of the day.

 He will first inaugurate multiple public projects and works -- including the MCH wing at the BHU hospital, a multi-level parking facility at Godauliya, Ro-Ro vessels for tourism development on the Ganga river, and a three-lane flyover bridge on the Varanasi-Ghazipur highway. These projects are worth a total of around ₹744 crores, the PMO said

PM to inaugurate Rudhraksha Convention Centre

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate an international cooperation and convention centre, 'Rudraksh', in Varanasi today that will offer a glimpse of the cultural richness of the ancient city of Kashi. As many as 108 Rudraksha have been installed at this convention centre and its roof is shaped like a Shiva Linga, officials said, adding that the entire building will glow with LED lights at night. The two-storey convention centre has come up at posh Sigra area on 2.87 hectares of land and has a seating capacity of 1,200 people.

The officials said the objective of the project is to provide opportunities for social and cultural interactions between people at the international convention centre in Varanasi that would strengthen the city's competitiveness by developing its tourism sector. It is ideal for holding international conferences, exhibitions and music concerts and other events and the gallery is done up with murals depicting Varanasi's art, culture and music, they added. The Japan International Cooperation Agency-assisted Varanasi International Cooperation and Convention Centre's (VCC) main hall may be partitioned into smaller spaces when needed. According to the officials, it will be an environment-friendly building, fit for level 3 of Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA). VCC will be equipped with adequate security and safety systems. It will have a regular entrance, a service entrance and a separate VIP entrance, making it an ideal destination for holding all types of international events.

The other projects include, according to news agency ANI -- a 100-bed model maternal and child health (MCH) wing at the Institute of Medical Sciences of the Banaras Hindu University (BHU), multi-level parking facilities, highway development projects, and tourism projects as well.