Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit Varanasi on Saturday, where he will announce 15 developmental projects worth Rs 180 crore in a big push ahead of Lok Sabha elections.

The Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stone for 14 new development projects worth Rs 98.74 crore. On his last visit to Varanasi, PM Modi had announced development projects worth Rs 2,400 crore.

Modi’s visit to his Lok Sabha constituency will be the second in as many months. He will inaugurate the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and South Asia Regional Centre (ISARC) on the campus of National Seed Research and Training Centre (NSRTC) in Varanasi.

The centre will serve as a hub for rice research and training in South Asia and the SAARC region.

Modi will also attend the 'One District, One Product' Regional Summit at Deendayal Hastakala Sankul (Trade Facilitation Centre & Crafts Museum) in Varanasi.

A commemorative postal stamp on the Maharaja Suheldeo will be released by the prime minister in Ghazipur, where he will also address a public rally at the RTI Ground.

However, BJP ally and chief of the SBSP party, Om Prakash Rajbhar, had earlier alleged that the BJP is giving a ‘lollipop’ to the Rajbhar community by releasing stamps of Suheldeo. Rajbhar has been attacking BJP in the state for quite some time. He had even hinted at the party going solo in the 2019 general elections. Rajbhar is an MLA from Zahoorabad assembly constituency in Ghazipur district.

Another key BJP ally, Apna Dal, has distanced itself from Modi’s event in Varanasi. Apna Dal had alleged that the saffron party was not giving “due respect” to its allies in the state.

Meanwhile, arrangements are being made to welcome the prime minister with chief minister Yogi Adityanath monitoring the preparations.

“All the necessary arrangements for the PM’s visit have been made. Apart from Varanasi, PM Modi will also be going to Ghazipur where he has a program scheduled at ITI ground,” said District Magistrate, Surendra Singh.