Mysuru Dasara: A better Dasara with more folk troupes

MYSURU: The nine-day Dasara celebrations will culminate on Friday, with elephant Arjuna carrying the golden howdah, with the idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari in it. The city is geared up for the grand procession, with more than 5 lakh tourists, including around 5,000 foreigners, expected to take part.

The highlight of this year’s Dasara procession includes mesh barricades, elevated seating arrangements and cultural troupes from across the country. But the procession is expected to be carried out under the threat of cloudy weather and moderate rainfall.

According to the Dasara organising committee, the procession will start after a puja to Nandi Dhwaja between 2.30pm and 3.16pm in the Kumbha lagna at the Balarama entrance of the Palace. The Vijayadashami procession will be held inside the Palace, while the main Dasara procession will be held between the Palace and Banni Mantap. Chief minister HD Kumaraswamy will inaugurate the procession and receive honours from various cultural troupes.

The torchlight parade will be held after 7pm at Banni Mantap grounds. Governor Vajubhai Vala and CM Kumaraswamy will be present.

DC Abhiram G Shankar told TOI that this year, the procession will have more variety. “In all, 53 bands of folk artistes from Karnataka and other states will be presenting their performances. Apart from this, there will be 42 tableaux from different districts and departments. By 6pm, the tail-end of the procession will reach Banni Mantap.”

Elevated seats, mesh in place

The administration also made elaborate arrangements to seat tourists.“For the first time, to deter people from jumping in and out during the Dasara procession at Mysuru Palace, we have come up with mesh barricades so that once they get in, they can’t jump out easily. For a better view, we have elevated seats, and the last seat will be at a height of 6.5ft,” he said.