VARANASI: Police and district officials directed tighter one way crowd movement at Annapurna temple in Vishwanath Galli during an inspection on Thursday, November 5, 2026. The new security review follows the golden idol opening dates, as reported earlier on dalimss.news, and affects devotees visiting the shrine through November 10.
According to corroborated local reports published on November 6, Police Commissioner Mohit Agarwal and District Magistrate Satyendra Kumar checked entry and exit arrangements, barricades, parking and crowd handling. Visitors should follow the direction of movement given by personnel at the temple, and families needing help should identify a duty point before entering the queue.
The review also concerned people living and trading in the lanes around the shrine, near Kashi Vishwanath temple. Officials asked shopkeepers to keep goods off public paths and maintain clear approaches. Elderly visitors, people with disabilities, women and children were among the groups for whom personnel were directed to provide assistance.
The inspection details were cross-checked against local reports. The official Police Commissionerate page is an institutional reference, rather than a published account of this inspection.
What changed after the inspection
The officials discussed arrangements with temple Mahant Shankarpuri Maharaj and stressed coordination between police and temple management. Reports of the visit describe instructions for continued control room monitoring through CCTV and the use of drones to observe crowd movement and pressure around the temple.
The one way system was a specific instruction to personnel at their duty points. Entry and exit areas were to receive close attention, with additional police deployment where crowd pressure required it. For visitors, the practical implication is to follow the managed queue and seek directions from personnel when an approach is being regulated.
Reports also describe directions for women police personnel at sensitive points and monitoring by personnel in plain clothes. Officials asked teams to watch for pickpocketing, harassment and suspicious activity, and to respond promptly. These are preventive deployment instructions; the review does not establish that a particular offence occurred during darshan.
Police personnel were told to treat devotees politely, with the reports noting the use of respectful forms of address. Assistance and an immediate response to emergencies formed part of the directions. Visitors who need support can approach personnel at the duty points rather than struggle through a crowded section unaided.
Festival hours and the temple's standing information
The special golden idol darshan period runs from November 6 to November 10. Reports accompanying the November 5 review give daily festival access hours of 5 am to 11:15 pm IST. These hours relate to the special arrangements described during the inspection.
The trust's festival announcement confirms the five dates. Its standing home page separately lists ordinary temple hours of 4 am to 10 pm. Because those are different schedules, visitors should confirm the special queue arrangements with the trust before making an early or late journey.
For families choosing a festival date, the trust separately schedules Annakoot on November 10, with 108 types of offerings. It says distribution of Annakoot prasad begins the following day. That November 11 distribution is a separate item in the announcement and does not extend the stated November 6 to 10 golden idol darshan period.
The official contact page gives the address as D 9/1, Sri Annapurna Mata Mandir, Gate No 1, Vishwanath Galli. It lists 0542 2392619 and 8795777588 for enquiries. This identifies the shrine and provides an enquiry route without assuming that a particular street approach or parking area will remain available throughout the festival.
What residents and visitors should do
- Follow the movement directions at temple duty points and keep entry and exit paths clear.
- Ask personnel for assistance when accompanying an elderly person, a child or someone with a disability.
- Shopkeepers should keep merchandise within their premises and public lanes unobstructed.
- Confirm the day's special darshan arrangements with the temple before travelling.
The district administration's official helpline page lists 112 for police assistance and 108 for ambulance help. These general emergency contacts are separate from the temple enquiry numbers. Give the shrine name and Vishwanath Galli location clearly when seeking assistance.
The review called for continued monitoring and coordination during the darshan period. It did not provide a published street by street diversion map, a named festival parking list or a guaranteed waiting time in the reports checked. Residents should therefore use directions at the scene rather than treat an ordinary approach route as a confirmed festival route.
For other old city planning, readers can consult the earlier reports on festival parking and footpath checks and the separate Kashi Vishwanath booking pause. Each concerns a different arrangement; the new Annapurna inspection adds crowd movement and assistance directions for this darshan period.
