100th district

16th May 2018

We reached Varanasi yesterday and coincidentally it is the 100th district for the ShikshaDaan Yatra. We are thrilled, as Varanasi is our Prime Minister’s constituency and it has great significance in India’s history and Hinduism. The Kashi Vishwanath temple has one of the 12 Jyotirlingams and hence is amongst the holiest of Shiva temples in India.

Besides the spiritual importance of Varanasi (also known as Kashi and Benaras), it is also an important centre for Vedic studies, Sanskrit language and handloom weaving. The handloom weavers of Varanasi are famous for their Benarasi sarees that are a must in any wedding trousseau. These sarees are made of finely woven silk with a unique additional embellishment (called supplementary weft) upon the regular weave. There are about 100000 weavers in Varanasi, but unfortunately most of them are utterly poor as the handloom industry follows a feudal structure and the middleman makes all the money.

ShikshaDaan hopes to meet some NGOs in Varanasi over the next few days and also some of the NGOs that specifically work with the handloom weavers.

Today also happens to be Krishnan’s birthday so our celebrations are doubled. A picture from our lunch today to celebrate Krishnan’s birthday and the ShikshaDaan Yatra reaching 100 districts.