Tax on the 326-year-old Jagannathpur Mela waived

This is a huge victory for devotees of Lord Jagannath when the Ranchi Municipal Corporation (RMC) waived a tax on the 326-year-old Jagannathpur Mela. The tax had been announced during the British era, but was imposed only last year. The tax was of Rs 1,000 each from shops at the 10-day annual fair that is hosted near the temple to mark the beginning of the Rath Yatra festival.
This is reported in telegraphindia.com dated 15 June 2017.

The duration of the mela is spread over 700 acres and is of 10 days and thee are nearly 4,000 shops and lakhs of visitors from Ranchi and elsewhere. The area is left littered at the end of the fair and the RMC had imposed the tax to meet cleaning costs. The mela is located on the eastern fringes of Ranchi and Jagannathpur will host the Rath Yatra on June 25 this year.


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Basanta Utsav in Visva-Bharati - time limit set for revelers to return to hostels

The Basanta Utsav in Visva-Bharati is a major festival celebrated to welcome spring and the authorities have issued a notification that students must return to their departments or hostels within an hour of the completion of the festivities.
This is issued because there have been complaints lodged by students in the past of teasing. Even after the end of the official song-and-dance programs in the ashram ground, many students continue to hold sessions in smaller groups. In view of the large number of people who come (roughly 1.5 lakh every year) proper care has to be taken. This year, the festival is on March 12.
This has been reported in telegraphindia.com dated 8 March 2017.

Apart from the Basanta Utsav program on the dais, thousands of students participate in a procession that starts from the Patha Bhavana campus and ends in front of the main dais. Even after the cultural program of songs and dances, many of the remain on the campus for hours.
In order to keep a check, additional CCTV cameras would be installed to monitor the crowd on the campus. Four temporary watch towers are also being constructed for policemen to keep an eye on the visitors. Students have also welcomed the move of the authorities.


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Annual Bamboo Festival 2016 in Kochi a big draw

The 13th edition of the annual Bamboo Fest 2016 in Kochi is turning out to be a big draw. It has not just sturdy Christmas stars but also ‘paayasam’ made from bamboo seeds. The festival is organised by the State Industries Department and has something for every curious visitor.
There are bamboo flutes and a heavy rush at counters that are selling eatables prepared of bamboo seed. Bamboo shoot pickle too is also a favorite and being tried out by one and all.
This has been reported in thehindu.com dated 5 December 2016.

There is also a large collection of fine furniture made of bamboo and cane apart from items for interior decoration, art work. Traditional ‘puttu’-makers are being sought after at the expo. In addition, dry flower arrangements from Nagaland, Tripura, and Meghalaya and artefacts from Sikkim are also attracting the visitors.
A major attraction at the festival is a bamboo hut put up by the Kerala State Bamboo Corporation. The 450-sq.ft. structure is kept at the entrance to the exhibition hall. It is a multi-storey bamboo hut and a typical example of environment-friendly construction. It was made out of flattened bamboo, bamboo stilts and boards and coir ropes. It is said that a hut of similar size can be constructed in 30 days at a approximate cost of Rs.1,350 per square foot.
The objective of this annual event is to make the public familiar with the diverse uses of bamboo and to provide artisans an opportunity to enter the market in a big way. The exhibition is being held at Marine Drive and will be on till December 6.


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21st annual Puri beach festival takes off with innumerable events

The 21st annual Puri beach festival took off with innumerable cultural performances and adventurous water sporting events lined up. The event started with a vedpath (chanting of vedic hymns), sankhadhwani (blowing of conch) and a display of fireworks.
In the three-day fest, there will be artistes from across the country performing their acts.
This has been reported in telegraphindia.com dated 26 November 2016.

The cultural evening began with a performance by Mahari dancer Rupashree Mahapatra and her team - the Odissi recital narrated the relationship between Lord Jagannath and his disciple. Incidentally, Mahari began in the Jagannath temple in Puri and was a ritual dance for the deities and has laid the foundation of the classical dance form of Odissi.
Then there was dances performed by artistes from Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra's Odissi school Srjan. Also performing was Kathak dancers of Arpana Rao and troupe from Mumbai apart from several folk dance forms. Melody troupes enthralled the audience with chart-buster songs from Bollywood. Against the backdrop of the scenic beach, the performances were extremely blissful.
Apart from cultural activities, there are a number of beach and adventure sports planned like beach karate, beach kabadi, volleyball, malkhamb, judo, and para sailing.


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Dahi handi is a festival of Hindus held on the occasion of the birthday of Lord Krishna - it is also known as Gokulashtami or Janmashtami. The dahi handi is all about a human pyramid with the teams trying to lay hands on the prize which is kept in a earthen pot which has to be broken.
This festival is a rage in Mumbai and the prize money runs into lakhs of rupees.
However, the very concept of a human ladder is risky and accidents do happen. It has been made popular through song and dance sequences by renowned Bollywood actors with the dahi-handi theme. A question arose on the height of the human pyramid and the minimum age for participants. The Supreme Court has to, now, pass an order on these aspects.
The Maharashtra Government had sought a clarification as to whether a youth below 18-years can participate in a `Dahi-Handi` ritual and whether the human pyramid formation could be in excess of 20 feet.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 10 August 2016.

The High Court had issued an order on August 11, 2014 indicating that the height of human pyramids should not exceed 20 feet and children below 18 years should not be allowed to participate in the Dahi-Handi function. But, the authorities were not following the order. Therefore, based on a a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), the High Court pulled up the government for its failure to obtain clarification from the apex court in this regard.


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This has been reported in dailymail.co.uk dated 6 June 2016.

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