Varanasi - Geography and Climate

Geography and Climate

Varanasi is located in the middle Ganges valley of North India, in the Eastern part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, along the left crescent-shaped bank of the Ganges, averaging between 50 feet (15 m) and 70 feet (21 m) above the river. It has the headquarters of Varanasi district. By road, Varanasi is located 797 kilometres (495 mi) southeast of New Delhi, 320 kilometres (200 mi) southeast of Lucknow, 121 kilometres (75 mi) east of Allahabad, and 63 kilometres (39 mi) south of Jaunpur. The "Varanasi Urban Agglomeration" – an agglomeration of seven urban sub-units – covers an area of 112.26 km 2 (approximately 43 mi²). The urban agglomeration is stretched between 82° 56’E – 83° 03’E and 25° 14’N – 25° 23.5’N. Neighbourhoods of the city include Adampura, Kotwali, Jaitpura, Dhupchandi, Chaukaghat, Kail Garh, Guru Nanak Nagar, Chaitganj, Naipokhari, Sigra, Maulvibagh, Sihgiribagh, Bulanala, Chowk, Bangali Tola, Luxa, Khanna, Gopal Vihar, Giri Nagar, Mahmoorganj, Maheshpur, Bhelpura, Shivala, Anandbagh, Nagwar, Dumraon, Gandhinagar, and Gautam Nagar, Lamka.

Being located in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of North India, the land is very fertile because low level floods in the Ganges continually replenish the soil. Varanasi is often said to be located between two confluences: one of the Ganges and Varuna, and other of the Ganges and Assi, which having always been a rivulet rather than a river. The distance between these two confluences is around 2.5 miles (4.0 km), and religious Hindus regard a round trip between these two places – a Pancha-kroshi Yatra (a five-mile (8.3 km) journey) ending with a visit to a Sakshi Vinayak Temple as a holy ritual.