Varanasi, 17 Sept (HS): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi

Adityanath arrived in Varanasi on Thursday to attend events marking Prime

Minister Narendra Modi's birthday and his 25th year in public life.

The Chief Minister will flag off the Seva Sankalp Bike Yatra here

along with Union Defense Minister Rajnath Singh. The journey, which begins in

Varanasi and ends in Vadnagar, Gujarat, will travel through 10 states, 193

districts, and 1,159 villages over 22 days. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N.

Chandrababu Naidu, Union Minister Chirag Paswan, and Bharatiya Janata Party

(BJP) state president Pankaj Choudhary, along with several other distinguished guests,

were present at the event.

Key leaders and

Union Ministers, such as Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath, Union Minister

Chirag Paswan and Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu, prayed at Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi on Prime Minister Narendra

Modi’s birthday, September 17. Within the

temple's inner sanctum, the dignitaries conducted Vedic darshan and pujan ceremonies,

praying for Prime Minister Modi's

health, longevity, and ongoing prosperity,

as he represents

the Varanasi Lok Sabha constituency. Temple priests performed

ritual prayers while Vedic hymns were chanted, offering prasad, garlands, and traditional angavastrams to the leaders

who visited.

The visit came before a series of commemorative welfare and public outreach activities scheduled in Varanasi, such as honoring 51 ‘Seva Yatris’ and the official launch of the ‘Seva Sankalp’ cross-country

motorcycle rally linking Modi’s

workplace in Varanasi to his

birthplace, Vadnagar in Gujarat. After the rituals,

Rajnath Singh, Yogi Adityanath, Chandrababu Naidu, and Chirag Paswan gave out 76 kilograms

of laddus to the 'Bikers Yatris' post the

jalaabhishek ceremony.

Before the commencement of the bike journey, the Seva Yatris

reached Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple and performed Jalabhishek of Baba

Vishwanath by taking Ganga water from Lalita Ghat. Amidst tight security,

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also performed

Abhishek for the long life of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the sanctum

sanctorum of Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple. During the religious ritual, wishes

were made for the healthy life and long life of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

During this, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Union Minister

Chirag Paswan, BJP State President Pankaj Chaudhary were also present in the

sanctum sanctorum of the temple.

BJP Kashi region president Ashok Chaurasia said that 51 seva

yatris arrived at Lalita Ghat this morning. After collecting Ganga water, they

arrived at the Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple amid the sound of drums and conch

shells. Following this, the Jyotirlinga was anointed with water from the holy

rivers. Following the ritualistic worship, the 22-day bike journey from

Varanasi to Vadnagar will begin.

At 12 noon at the Rudraksh Convention Center in Sigra,

guests will view an exhibition documenting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 25 years

in public life. Following this, he will address a program in the auditorium.

During the event, Rajnath Singh and Yogi Adityanath will flag off the

Seva Sankalp Bike Yatra for Vadnagar.

The journey will pass through 10 states, 193 districts and

1,159 villages: According to Ashok Chaurasia, the journey, which runs from

Kashi to Vadnagar and then from Vadnagar to Kashi, will pass through 50

districts of Uttar Pradesh. 88 overnight stops and 187 halts have been

scheduled during the journey. From Kashi, 500 Seva Yatris will depart for

Vadnagar on bikes via 10 different routes.

Earlier today, Lucknow Mayor Sushma Kharakwal initiated a

month-long continuous mega sanitation campaign throughout the state capital to

align with Modi’s birthday. The initiative includes deploying the full

municipal workforce every day into specific areas to unclog sewers, water

bodies, and drainage systems.Mayor Kharakwal conveyed congratulations to Prime

Minister Modi on behalf of the Lucknow Municipal Corporation and BJP members,

characterizing the sanitation project as a coordinated, enhanced endeavor. Each

day, according to the zones, our whole team will be sent to a designated area,

she mentioned. She remarked that the initiative will methodically tackle civic

infrastructure, saying, One day, water bodies will be restored; another day,

sewers will be unclogged; and on another, all drains throughout Lucknow will be

maintained. This manner, our efforts will persist continuously for a full

month.

Hindusthan Samachar / Abhishek Awasthi