UP waits for maiden visit of President to his native state

Lucknow, Sept 14: Uttar Pradesh's capital Lucknow has been decked up for the maiden visit of President Ram Nath Kovind, beginning today. Amid tight security arrangements, President Mr Kovind will visit Lucknow and Kanpur, his native place, during the two-day visit, starting this afternoon. All roads on which the President's cavalcade would pass have been decked up. Security personnel have already taken up their positions while barricading have been put up to control the traffic. The President, would commence his UP tour, with paying tribute to Dalit icon Dr B R Ambedkar at the Ambedkar Mahasabha on the Vidhan Sabha Marg. During his 15-minute programme, Mr Kovind will pray before the 'Asthi Kalash' of Dr Ambedkar at the Mahasabha. Thereafter, the President will go to Indira Gandhi Prathistan to attend the citizen reception in which UP Governor Ram Naik and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath would be present. According to officials here today, the President will arrive in a special Indian Air Force plane at the Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport here around 1545 hrs, where he will be received by Mr Naik, the Chief Minister and some Ministers. As per the schedule, on the first day, Mr Kovind will pay tributes to Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar at the Ambedkar Mahasabha here. He will also attend a reception programme at the Indira Gandhi Pratisthan, officials said. President Kovind will have dinner at the official residence of the Chief Minister tonight. Tomorrow, the President will meet some people at the Raj Bhavan and before leaving for Kanpur, he will pay tributes to RSS ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyay at the 'Smriti Vatika' in Lucknow and thereafter will leave for Kanpur. The President will participate in a 'Swachhta hi Sewa' programme in Kanpur. He will also inaugurate a Solid-Liquid Waste Management Scheme in Kanpur and distribute tri-cycles meant for carrying garbage among 'safai' workers. The Governor and Mr Adityanath will also be present at the event. The President would also visit the residence of RSS leader Ishwar Chandra Gupta in the Tilak Nagar area of Kanpur during his visit. The President will return later in the evening to Lucknow and then fly back to New Delhi. The last time Mr Kovind was in town was on June 25 as the National Democratic Alliance's Presidential nominee. UNI