Walk in, one way only: Maidagin and Godowlia turn vehicle-free as Kashi heads into Sawan Monday and Nag Panchami

The queue outside Shri Kashi Vishwanath Dham ran about three kilometres on Sunday — and that was the day before. With the third Monday of Sawan and Nag Panchami arriving together, devotees from far-off districts and other states had already reached the city and were standing in line for hours, the whole temple quarter ringing with "Har Har Mahadev" and "Bol Bam". The administration has responded by changing how the lanes work. The road to the temple has been declared single-direction, so movement runs one way only, and Maidagin and Godowlia have been made no-vehicle zones. Barricading has gone up at multiple points with police deployed alongside, and a joint team from the temple administration and the district administration is moving devotees through in phases rather than letting the queue bunch up. Officials expect the crowd to grow further on the day itself, so extra arrangements for drinking water, shade and medical help have been put in place along the route. The practical upshot for anyone planning darshan: assume the last stretch is on foot, leave the car or scooter well short of Godowlia and Maidagin, carry water, and allow a good deal more time than usual. If you are simply moving around the old city on Monday for other reasons, the same two points are worth routing around entirely.

Compiled by HelloBanaras from public sources: Dainik Jagran