Varanasi is located at an elevation of 80 @.@ 71 metres ( 264 @.@ 8 ft ) in the centre of the Ganges valley of North India , in the Eastern part of the state of Uttar Pradesh , along the left crescent @-@ shaped bank of the Ganges , averaging between 15 metres ( 50 ft ) and 21 metres ( 70 ft ) above the river . The city is the headquarters of Varanasi district . By road , Varanasi is located 797 kilometres ( 495 mi ) south @-@ east of New Delhi , 320 kilometres ( 200 mi ) south @-@ east of Lucknow , 121 kilometres ( 75 mi ) east of Allahabad , and 63 kilometres ( 39 mi ) south of Jaunpur . The " Varanasi Urban Agglomeration " – an agglomeration of seven urban sub @-@ units – cover an area of 112 @.@ 26 km 2 ( approximately 43 mi ² ) . Neighbourhoods of the city include Adampura , Anandbagh , Bachchhaon , Bangali Tola , Bhelpura , Bulanala , Chaitganj , Chaukaghat , Chowk , Dhupchandi , Dumraon , Gandhinagar , Gautam Nagar , Giri Nagar , Gopal Vihar , Guru Nanak Nagar , Jaitpura , Kail Garh , Khanna , Kotwali , Lanka Manduadih , Luxa , Maheshpur , Mahmoorganj , Maulvibagh , Nagwar , Naipokhari , Shivala , Siddhagiribagh , and Sigra .