The holy city of Varanasi resembles a big construction site these days. The moment you get out of the Babatpur airport and drive towards the city you will see that both sides of the road have been dug up.
The city is no different. Heavy machines are at work, digging large parts of the already congested roads. Different agencies are involved. The state government is building new sewage pipe lines, the central government is setting up new electricity cables and telecom companies are expanding their infrastructure. As a result moving around the city is quite a nightmare, but many in the city do not mind this inconvenience as long as it gives them a better life one day.
The Assi ghat where the Prime Minister launched the Swachch Bharat Abhiyan in November 2014 wears a new look. The silt has been removed completely, neatly painted benches have been installed and Sulabh International workers clean it at least five times a day. A retired central government scientist, Lallan Kumar Pandey, who visits the ghat every day said, "Change is definitely happening but not at the pace it should."
Pandey's friend, who is sitting next to him, joins the conversation saying, "Akhilesh Yadav is not cooperating with the central government". Almost all people we spoke to were full of praise for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the work he has started.
The Prime Minister's constituency office has become like a mini PMO. Every week, three union ministers - Mahesh Sharma, Manoj Sinha and Santosh Gangwar- visit the constituency. Officials from PMO and central ministries keep flying down for meetings related to infrastructure development. The holy city has become a hub for high-level VIP visits, but it may take a few years before it actually looks like a VIP city. The reason is, most projects are at very initial stages. Construction of highway projects, solid waste disposal systems and the IPDS scheme to boost the city's electricity infrastructure will take three to five years to be completed.
But, the state government is not far behind. A senior official in the district administration told us that the Samajwadi Party is doing a lot for the district as well. The sewage systems are being overhauled so that sewage doesn't flow into Ganga, cleaning up of Varuna corridor is on at full pace, social security schemes have been announced and new ambulances are being procured. If the PM visits Varanasi four times a year the chief minister does the same and both the BJP and the SP claim credit for the development work in Varanasi.
BJP's Varanasi district president Hansraj Vishwakarma tells us the PM is working very hard for the city, 'like a diligent student', and that his effort will bear fruit. He is sure the PM's work in Kashi will have resonance across Uttar Pradesh in the 2017 assembly election, but the Samajwadi Party's district chief, Satish Fauji, claims the PM has not done anything for the city. He says, "zero, no work has been done by PM. They just use the broom. Even Rs 5 lakh haven't reached the city. No one has done more work than Akhilesh Yadav". Fauji alleges RSS and BJP workers in Varanasi are masters in spreading lies and claiming credit for things which they haven't done.
The reason why both BJP and SP are focusing their attentions on Kashi is because it could hold the key to Poorvanchal, or Eastern UP, which has approximately 71 seats. A good show in this region could help swing the election. Both BJP and SP want to showcase Kashi to garner more Hindu votes in the election. It would be too early to say who holds the edge because the development work is not yet over and the BJP hasn't even announced its CM candidate. The big battle for UP is still eight months away and a lot can change till then.
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