Cauvery agitation, farmers' plight may cast shadow on Dasara festivities
Mysuru: The 11-day Dasara festivities, which will take off on Saturday with a pooja to goddess Chamundeswari performed by Kannada poet Nadoja Dr Channaveera Kanavi in the presence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, are likely to be subdued this year owing to the Cauvery crisis, which has already led to a 70 per cent drop in tourists to Mysuru.
Nearly 60 per cent of the hotel rooms in the city were still vacant on Friday when in normal times almost 70 per cent should have been booked for the festivities by now.
Put off by the water dispute, no Tamil tourists have arrived for Dasara although in normal times they make up around 30 per cent of the tourists to the city this time of the year.
A priest decorating the idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari atop the Chamundui Hills.
There has also been a drop in tourists from Kerala, who usually account for 40 per cent of visitors to Mysuru for Dasara, owing to the high entry tax entry tax imposed by Karnataka. The city has seen a 50 per cent dip in foreign tourists as well with groups from Japan and UK cancelling their trips after the Cauvery agitation took a turn for the worse recently. Some tourists from France, USA and Europe are however still expected to make it for the festival.
The Mysuru royal family is meanwhile all set for the Navarathri festivities . Its young scion, Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar will ascend the golden throne and hold the symbolic private durbar at around 11 am Sunday morning and between 7.30pm and 8pm every day afterwards till the end of the fetival.
Saturday will see Mr Siddaramaiah inaugurating the cultural events before an illuminated Mysuru Palace, the Jagan Mohan Palace, Kalamandir, Town Hall, Ganabharathi and Chikkagadiyaara.
He will also kick- start the nine day Dasara sports by handing over a sports tattoo to noted sports personality, Ashwini Ponnappa in the presence of para-Olympic medal winner, Deepa Mallik. Minister for food and civil supplies, U T Khader will inaugurate the nine- day Dasara food festival. The festivities will conclude with the Vijayadashami Jumbo Savari and torchlight parade on October 11.
