Mysuru: This city of palaces witnessed the launch of the logo for 407th Dasara celebrations by district in-charge minister Dr H C Mahadevappa here on Monday with the ten-day festivities scheduled to commence on September 21.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Mahadevappa said besides an increase in the budget for Dasara festivities to Rs15 crore, Mysuru City Corporation has sought Rs 21 crore to spruce up the city through civil works as compared with Rs 5 crore allotted for civil works last year. For the first time, Rs 117 crore has been allotted to improve 17roads leading to Mysuru city. In addition, Rs 50 lakh has been allotted for Dasara festivities at Srirangapatna and Rs 1 crore for Dasara at Chamarajnagar. The events planned would ensure elegance during these ten days without either a grand show or one of a low-scale. The theme has been chosen to strengthen democracy, by unveiling principles and objectives of the Indian constitution, he added.
He said the Dasara website would be launched in a week’s time with Dasara Gajapayana, the journey of (first batch of 8 elephants) elephants towards Mysuru (for acclimatization exercise ahead of the famous processions scheduled to commence from Nagapura hamlet near Nagarahole in Hunsur taluk on August 14. A traditional welcome would be accorded to these elephants in the courtyard of Mysuru Palace, at 12.05 PM on August 15, Dr Mahadevappa added.
Among special plans to mark Dasara are special tourism packages, including ‘palace on wheels (to visit 13 palaces), a heritage tour (to view heritage buildings), museum on wheels (to visit 8 major museums), Mysuru by air (in helicopter ride to have aerial view of Mysuru). While commercial flights under regional connectivity scheme are expected to begin operations from Mysuru to Chennai, plans for flights to Bengaluru are in pipeline with the district administration planning to write to the ministry of defence for an air show, he added.
Besides illumination of Mysuru city and cultural programmes infront of Mysuru Palace, tourists would be welcomed to a pack of events including Dasara sports, including national sports, yoga dasara, women and children’s dasara.
