64 years back 'city of lights' was named Varanasi

Varanasi is an ancient city of India was named 64 years back. The city is widely known also as Kashi due to the famous Kashi Vishwanath temple.

Varanasi: The 'city of lights' which is known as Kashi or Banaras got renamed on 24 May, 1956 as Varanasi.

The name 'Varanasi' has been mentioned in Matysa Puran of Hindu mythology.

The Varanasi Gazetter which was published in 1965 mentions in its page number 10 that the districts official named the city as Varanasi.

The Gazetter has also mentioned about its rich cultural activities.

According to Hindu mythology, Varanavati river has been mentioned in Arthaveda which is consider similar to Varuna in modern days.

The Agni Puran mentions Assi river as holy place.

In 1965, Allahabad's administrative officer Isha Joshi published the documents related with Varanasi ancient culture. The same documents were made available online after digitization in 2015.

BHU professor, Kshmendra Tripathi said: "To know the history of Varanasi we need to turn over the pages back. The oldest city in the world Kashi, has been established in 11 era after the name of king Kash. This has been mentioned in Arthveda. Kashi has evolved with every generation."