Explained: What Is New at Kashi Vishwanath Temple Complex For Pilgrims, Tourists

The main draw of the project is the link between the main temple with the Lalita Ghat. Earlier, people had to pass through congested streets to reach the temple from the river bank.

New Delhi: The area around the centuries-old Vishwanath temple in Varanasi got a major facelift as Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor on Monday. The corridor links the Vishwanath temple to the ghats of the Ganga -- an ancient connection that had been cut off due to encroachment and haphazard construction.

The temple is one of the 12 jyotirlingas in India and draws lakhs of visitors from India and abroad every year.

The phase one of the project has been constructed at a cost of around Rs 339 crore and is now spread over five lakh square feet. The earlier premises were just around 3,000 square feet. Now, around 50,000-75,000 devotees can be accommodated in the temple premises. Some of the phase 1 buildings will be opened to the public in a few more weeks.

Kashi Vishwanath Temple Complex Gets A Facelift

The Kashi Vishwanath project houses 23 buildings. The buildings will provide facilities like yatri suvidha kendras, tourist facilitation centre, Vedic kendra, Mumukshu bhavan, bhojshala, city museum, viewing gallery, food court, among others.

The main draw of the project is the link between the main temple with the Lalita Ghat. Earlier, people had to pass through congested streets to reach the temple from the river bank. 

Since, the temple was not directly connected to the banks of the Ganga, the corridor will enable devotees to walk directly to the temple after collecting water from the river. Besides, people can also visit the temple after taking a boat from any of Varanasi's numerous ghats.

Over 40 ancient temples, which were found during the demolition of buildings, have now been conserved and made part of the project.

At the entrance, grand gateways and ornamental arches have been built in heritage architecture style in four directions.

Stone-made sculptures of Bharat Mata, statues of Saint Adi Shankaracharya and Maharani Ahilyabai Holkar have been erected inside the complex. Maharani Ahilyabai is believed to have constructed the temple in around 1780 AD. In the 19th century, Maharaja Ranjit Singh had got the temple crowned with a golden 'shikhar'.

The cultural history of the Vishwanath temple and 84 ghats will be showcased on "smart signages" for tourists.

LED screens will display information on the history and architecture of Kashi. The famous Ganga aarti and the aarti at the Kashi Vishwanath temple will be shown on the LED screens in the city for tourists.