Varanasi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday made a surprise visit to the under-construction Varanasi stadium and sports complex to review the work in progress there after attending a Kisan Samman Sammelan, Ganga Aarti at Dashashwamedh Ghat, and praying at the Kashi Vishwanath Temple.

Taking to X, PM Modi wrote: “Reviewed the progress at the Dr. Sampurnanand Sports Stadium in Kashi. This stadium and sports complex will greatly help the youth of Kashi.”

The Prime Minister was accompanied by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during his visit to the upcoming sports facility.

In the pictures shared by PM Modi, he can be seen interacting with the officials over the model of the sports complex besides inspecting other facilities.

The sports facility seems to be coming up along world-class standards with floodlights and lush green outfields.

This was PM Modi’s first visit to his constituency after scoring a hat-trick from Varanasi in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on a visit to the Parliamentary constituency Varanasi on Tuesday, his first after becoming Prime Minister for the third time, will grant certificates to more than 30,000 women from Self Help Groups (SHGs) as Krishi Sakhis.

He will also transfer the 17th installment of Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) to about 9.6 crore farmers, amounting to more than Rs 20,000 crore.

The felicitation of Krishi Sakhis signals the Modi government’s sincere efforts to expand its outreach to the rural community while lauding the contribution of women in agriculture.

About the Krishi Sakhi Convergence Programme (KSCP)

KSCP is an ambitious initiative under the aegis of the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Rural Development and it seeks to enhance the skills of rural women and also their contribution to agri-related businesses.

KSCP aims to transform rural India through the empowerment of rural Women as Krishi Sakhi, by imparting training and certification of Krishi Sakhis as Para-extension Workers.

Notably, the programme is an extension of Centre’s ambitious ‘Lakhpati Didi’ under which a roadmap for raising 3 crore lakhpati didis has been created.

Krishi Sakhis will also undergo a certification course, aligning with the objectives of Lakhpati didi program.

Krishi Sakhis as para-extension workers

Since the rural women have prior experience in agriculture, the programme will harness their expertise and potential. The Krishi Sakhi programme will create a trusted community resource.

Krishi Sakhis will be trained for 56 days and taught about various aspects of farming including soil health, soil conservation practices, integrated farming systems, livestock management and more. They will also be informed about the benefits of organising farmer field schools and agroecological practices.

These Krishi Sakhis will also undergo refresher training with a special focus on Natural Farming and Soil Health Card through DAY-NRLM agencies in coordination with MANAGE.

About earnings of Krishi Sakhis

After the certification course, the Krishi Sakhis will have to take a proficiency test. Those who qualify will be certified as para-extension workers, enabling them to undertake duties under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, on a fixed resource fee. Krishi Sakhis could earn an average of Rs 60,000 to Rs 80,000 in a year.

To date, 34,000 Krishi Sakhis out of 70,000 have been certified as Para-extension workers.

Programme operational in 12 states

Krishi Sakhi training programme has been implemented in at least 12 states and will be expanded to others soon. In Phase I, states like Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Odisha, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, and Meghalaya have been covered.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh):

Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered prayers at Dashashwamedh Ghat on the banks of the Ganges in Varanasi before filling his nomination from the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat today in Uttar Pradesh.

Today also marks the auspicious day of Ganga Saptami and PM Modi participated in prayers and performed the Ganga Aarti at the Ghat

PM Modi the sitting MP and BJP’s candiatate will file his nomination papers from the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat for the 2024 general elections, from where he has secured wins with large margins for the past two consecutive terms.

PM Modi will then offer prayers at Kal Bhairav Temple before filing his nomination.

PM Modi is seeking a third term and hoping for a record margin.

Varanasi goes in for polling on June 1 in the seventh and last phase of the general elections.
Security has been strengthened outside the office of the District Magistrate in Varanasi ahead of PM Modi’s nomination.

Ahead of the nomination, the Bharatiya Janata Party said in a post in hindi on X that the temple town of Kashi is once again ready to send its servant (PM Modi) to the Parliament.

“I have neither come here nor has anyone sent me here, Maa Ganga has called me… This relationship between Kashi, Kashi residents and the Chief Servant is one of development, trust and affection. Kashi is once again ready to send its beloved chief servant to the parliament by winning him with record votes,” BJP posted.

PM Modi also posted on X about his association with the city. “My relationship with my Kashi is amazing, inseparable and incomparable… all I can say is that it cannot be expressed in words!”

Voting in Varanasi will be held on June 1 in the seventh and last phase of the Lok Sabha polls.

On Monday evening, PM Modi held an extravagant roadshow in Varanasi on a five-kilometre-stretch on Monday evening.

PM Modi was accompanied by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and BJP state president Chaudhary Bhupendra Singh. The whole stretch reverberated with ‘Har Har Mahadev’ and ‘Jai Shree Ram’ chants as a huge crowd of supporters and residents gathered on either side of the road to cheer the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister Narendra started his roadshow by garlanding the statue of Mahamana Madan Mohan Malviya at the Singh Dwar of Kashi Hindu University at around 5 pm. After more than two and a half hours, the roadshow concluded at the Kashi Vishwanath Dham. After the roadshow, the Prime Minister offered prayers at the Kashi Vishwanath Dham along with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other BJP leaders.

Varanasi is the stronghold of the Bharatiya Janata Party and PM Modi. He won the seat twice- the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections.The Congress has pitted Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Rai against PM Modi in Varanasi. This is the third time Ajay Rai will face PM Modi in the Lok Sabha contest.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, PM Modi won the seat with over 6,74,664 votes and commanded a vote share of 63.6 per cent. In 2014, PM Modi contested two Lok Sabha seats- from Gujarat’s Vadodara and Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Varanasi (UP):

Arriving here days after being made BJP nominee for Varanasi Lok Sabha seat for the third time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was accorded a rousing reception at the Varanasi airport on Saturday.

BJP workers and locals lined up on the roads outside the airport from where PM Modi began a 28-km long roadshow during which he also stopped at the Kashi Vishwanath Temple to offer prayers.

#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a roadshow in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. pic.twitter.com/1Ors42a6JQ

— ANI (@ANI) March 9, 2024

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, senior party leaders and office bearers were present at the Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport in Babatpur to welcome the prime minister.

Prayed at the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. Har Har Mahadev! pic.twitter.com/sDeJIDioYF

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 9, 2024

BJP regional chief Dilip Patel said that Varanasi district and metropolitan unit made elaborate arrangements for Modi’s visit.

The locals, including women and children, showered flowers on the prime minister during the roadshow amid playing of drums, he said.

PM Modi is also scheduled to visit Atulanand School located in Gilat Bazaar and Kabir Chaura, among other places on the route of the roadshow, Patel said.

Patel said the prime minister will make a night halt at the BLW Guest House here. On the second day of his visit on Sunday, he will leave for Azamgarh from Bareka helipad at around 10 am.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)