VARANASI, Aug. 3 -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday highlighted his government's farmer-centric policies and spoke about his deep emotional connection with the people of Varanasi, which he has been representing as an MP since 2014, noting that the uninterrupted stream of development continues to flow in the city. The PM was addressing a public gathering on Saturday in Banauli village, Sewapuri, Varanasi. During his daylong visit to the city, he inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for 52 projects worth around Rs 2,200 crore. He cited the PM-KISAN Samman Nidhi as proof of the government's firm commitment and recalled how Opposition parties like the Samajwadi Party and Congress had spread rumours in 2019, claiming the scheme would stop after elections or the money would be taken back. "Has a single installment stopped over the years? The PM-KISAN scheme is running without any break," he said. Presenting data, he shared that nearly Rs 3.75 lakh crore has been transferred directly to farmers' accounts so far. In Uttar Pradesh alone, 2.5 crore farmers have received over Rs 90,000 crore, while farmers from Kashi have got Rs 900 crore. Modi said there are no cuts, commissions or middlemen. "We have created a permanent system where there's no leakage and no one can steal the rights of the poor," he added. Reiterating the development mantra "jo jitna pichhra, use utnahi zyada prathamikta (the more backward one is, the higher the priority that one receives)," Modi announced that earlier this month, the central government approved a major new initiative-the Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhanya Krishi Yojana. He informed that Rs.24,000 crore will be allocated for this scheme. Modi also said, "I had a deep desire to visit Baba Vishwanath and Markandeya Mahadev during the holy month of Sawan." However, he noted that his presence could cause inconvenience to Mahadev's devotees or disrupt their darshan, hence he was offering his salutations to Lord Bholenath and Maa Ganga from here only. Recalling his recent visit to the historic Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple in Tamil Nadu, built by the renowned king Rajendra Chola, who had brought Gangajal from North India to symbolically unite the North and South. He highlighted that a thousand years ago, Rajendra Chola had proclaimed the vision of "Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat....