Amid chants of Vedic hymns and blowing of conch shells, Prince Charles and his wife Camilla Parker Bowles on Wednesday took part in an elaborate "Ganga Arti" for the peace of those who died in mid-June calamity in Uttarakhand.
Amid the controversy of Narendra Modi's rally being denied permission in the temple town, Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday "invited" the Bharatiya Janata Party prime ministerial candidate for an "open discussion" in Varanasi.
Rising water levels in the Ganga and Varuna rivers have caused a fresh bout of floods in Varanasi, inundating low-lying areas, disrupting daily life, and damaging crops.
Film folk visited the Maha Kumbh Mela and take special blessings.
Lakhs of devotees on Thursday thronged the Ganga banks in Haridwar, including Har Ki Pauri, to take a dip in the sacred river on the occasion of Makar Sankranti which also marks the first major bath of the ongoing Ardhakumbh mela in Uttarakhand.
Security agencies were examining CCTV footage at the site of the blast at a Ganga ghat in Varanasi which left a child dead and 37 injured even as a forensic team from Agra collected samples from the spot.
The water level of major rivers, including the Ganga and the Yamuna, in Uttar Pradesh has crossed the danger mark at several places.
Observing that working conditions have made doctors and health professionals susceptible to violence, the Supreme Court on Tuesday constituted a 10-member task force to formulate a national protocol for ensuring safety and facilities for them in the wake of the rape and murder of a medic in Kolkata.
Clash of the two richest titans, a celebrity and a 'royal', is on the cards in Himachal Pradesh's Mandi Lok Sabha constituency, known for electing erstwhile 'royals' maximum number of times.
Abe, who is on a three-day day visit to India from Friday, along with Modi will attend the 'Ganga Arti', a beautifully choreographed ritual worship of the holy river performed daily at the fabled Dashashwamedh Ghat.
Accompanied by a large entourage, including the kids, the couple reached Varanasi by a private plane in the afternoon.
Escalating his attack on the Election Commission, Narendra Modi questioned the poll body's neutrality over denial of permission for a public meeting at a venue of his choice in Varanasi even as appealed to party workers to maintain peace while protesting the move.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led party believes that art appeals to everyone and there is no better way to connect than through street theatres.
Why not agree that, yes, India is a Hindu country though not all Indians are Hindus? And that for those who are not, our Constitution is sturdily secular and always will be, says Karti Sandilya.