In comparison, about 9 million people visit Vatican City in a year and about 20 million Mecca.
Since Modi inaugurated the Hindu pilgrimage site of Kashi Vishwanath Corridor on the banks of the Ganges in 2021 in his constituency of Varanasi, more than 130 million tourists have visited the area, according to government data.
With nearly $200 billion in revenue, tourism contributes about 7% of India's economy, which is below most large emerging and developed economies by up to 5 percentage points.
The new temple and renovations of many others are likely to greatly boost the electoral prospects of the Hindu nationalist party of Modi, who is widely expected to win a rare third straight term in general elections due by May.
Muslims account for about 14% of India's population of 1.42 billion, most of them Hindus.
Persons:
Krishna, Narendra Modi, Modi, Lord Ram, Monday's, Modi's, Sandeep Shastri, Krishn Kaushik, Ed Osmond
Organizations:
Das NEW, Indian, Monday, Jefferies, Analysts, Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Ministry
Locations:
Das NEW DELHI, Ayodhya, Vatican, Kashi Vishwanath, Varanasi, India's, Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi