The Mysore Dussehra festival celebrations will likely see low turnout due to stringent restrictions due to the coronavirus crisis. The 10-day event, which is the biggest tourist attraction during Navratri, could see only a few hundreds of attendees this year as celebrations would be confined to Mysore palace and Chamundi hills.
According to the Covid technical committee’s proposal, the inaugural ceremony will be held on October 17 at Chamundi hills followed by cultural programmes in the evenings for eight days for not more than two hours at the Mysore Palace. The lighting of lamps at select places will be done between 7-10 pm for ten days and the ‘jumbo savari’ or elephant procession will be held on October 26.
Only 300 people will be allowed for the ‘Jumbo savari’ while 200 people can take part in the inaugural programme. Not more than 50 people can take part in the cultural event at the Mysore Palace, the proposal read. Artists from Mysore and nearby regions will be allowed. Artists from other states and countries will not allowed to take part in the celebrations.
The number of people allowed for the planned events includes officers, staff on duty, artists, artisans, and security personnel. They will be required to have passes approved from the district administration. The committee has closed the event for the public and has recommended virtual screenings.
Those participating in the events are mandated to get Covid-19 RT-PCR negative test results issued before October 14. Wearing of maks and a distance of six feet between attendees must be maintained as per the committee’s report.
The Karnataka government had decided that the Dussehra celebrations would be a low key affair after a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa was held in September.
“The festival is going to be a low-key affair, but we will ensure all rituals all followed. Celebrations will be limited to Chamundi hills and Mysore Palace premises. This is to ensure more people don’t gather,” Tourism, Kannada and Tourism Minister CT Ravi had said after the meeting on September 8.
Mysuru Dussehra is celebrated in October during Navratri and ends on the tenth day Vijayadashami. After Bengaluru, Mysore records second highest in Covid-19 cases with more than 40,000 reported infections. The fatality rate is at 2.1 per cent while the district has a test positivity rate of 17 per cent.
(With inputs from Stacy Pereira)
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