Driving through Malviya Bridge, Varanasi

Malviya Bridge, inaugurated in 1887 (originally called The Dufferin Bridge) is a double decker bridge over the Ganges at Varanasi. It carries rail track on lower deck and road on the upper deck. It is one of the major bridges on the Ganges and carries the Grand Trunk Road across the river.

It has 7 spans of 350 ft and 9 spans of 110 ft long and it was the first bridge of its type constructed in the Indian sub-continent by the engineers of Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway (O&R Railway). The engineer in charge of construction of the Dufferin Bridge was Frederick Thomas Granville Walton who went on to become the Engineer in Chief of the Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway company. The bridge was renamed as the Malviya Bridge in 1948 after Madan Mohan Malaviya. As the bridge is near Rajghat, it is also locally known as Rajghat bridge.

Varanasi / Banaras, is a city on the banks of the Ganges (Ganga) in Uttar Pradesh, 320 kilometres (200 mi) southeast of the state capital, Lucknow. It is the holiest of the seven sacred cities (Sapta Puri) in Hinduism and Jainism, and played an important role in the development of Buddhism. Some Hindus believe that death at Varanasi brings salvation. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and the oldest in India.Varanasi is also known as the favourite city of the Hindu deity Lord Shiva as it has been mentioned in the Rigveda that this city at older times was known as Kashi or "Shiv ki Nagri".

Many of its temples were plundered and destroyed by Mohammad Ghauri in the 12th century. The temples and religious institutions in the city now are dated to the 18th century.

The Kashi Naresh (Maharaja of Kashi) is the chief cultural patron of Varanasi, and an essential part of all religious celebrations. The culture of Varanasi is closely associated with the Ganges. The city has been a cultural center of North India for several thousand years, and has a history that is older than most of the major world religions. The Benares Gharana form of Hindustani classical music was developed in Varanasi, and many prominent Indian philosophers, poets, writers, and musicians live or have lived in Varanasi. Gautama Buddha gave his first sermon at Sarnath located near Varanasi.

Varanasi is the spiritual capital of India. Scholarly books have been written in the city, including the Ramcharitmanas of Tulsidas. Today there is a temple of his namesake in the city, the Tulsi Manas Mandir. One of the largest residential universities of Asia the Banaras Hindu University is located here. Varanasi, called by many names is also known as "the city of temples", "the holy city of India", "the religious capital of India", "the city of shiva", and "the city of learning".

Source: Wikipedia

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