Dasara over but expo is still a big draw

Mysore: The Mysore Dasara may have ended two months ago, but the Dasara Exhibition is still proving to be a huge crowd puller, with over 3000 people visiting it every day during the week and nearly 5000 during the weekends, despite the monotony of the stalls and poor food on offer.

Although a few stalls have a variety of Dasara dolls and Rajasthani marble artefacts on sale and some have women entrepreneurs selling their produce , most have nothing new to offer, having only the usual women's fancy accessories, blankets and other similar products on sale. And the idea of devoting 101 stalls to artisans and craftsmen from across the country has clearly failed as a majority of these stalls remain vacant, having no takers.

Also, only 13 zilla panchayats have set up their stalls so far, although the government had directed all its departments to establish their stalls at the Dasara Exhibition from its opening day.

While a mega food street offering food unique to different parts of the state and country was promised as part of the exhibition, all that visitors get to eat is standard fare like mirchi bajji and papad , prepared in unhygienic conditions.

The promise to make the exhibition grounds clean and plastic- free has not been met either as rubbish and plastic bowls continue to litter them.

Security too is of concern as in the absence of an adequate number of CCTV cameras , visitors continue to lose their mobiles to thieves. At least 250 complaints of mobile thefts have been received from visitors to the exhibition , says the Nazarbad police.

The biggest attractions at the famous exhibition are the fountains, the Viyuth mela on energy conservation techniques organised by Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Company(CHESCOM) the amusement park for children and industrial pavilion where 61 industries are showing off their goods.