BHUBANESWAR: The sixth edition of the National Toshali Crafts Fair has set new records this year. The fair, billed as the most successful so far, came to a close on Monday after registering about a Rs 5-crore sales and drew more than 2.63 lakh visitors including foreign tourists. Till Sunday, the fair had recorded sales of Rs 4.73 crore. Last year, it had witnessed around 1.10 lakh footfalls and recorded Rs 3.4-crore business.It was organised by the Odisha Tourism and supported by the Ministry of Tourism, Development Commissioner, Handicrafts and Handlooms, and Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre.Besides handitcraft and handloom products, the fair showcased various classical, tribal and folk art forms. While this year, the number of stalls increased to 300, 100 more than last year, as many as 200 master craftsmen participated in the 13-day fair that had on display 148 kinds of crafts.“Even the food kiosks did more business than last year. These kiosks recorded Rs 9.36 lakh business last year, while this year it was Rs 14.72 lakh,” said OTDC manager Manoranjan Patnaik.The Toshali fair exuded the charm of a crafts village with works of tribal art and pottery. From the huge gateway to kiosk decorations, the sprawling eight-acre site of Janata Maidan spoke volumes about the rich traditions of Odisha. Besides, cultural programmes were staged every evening and comedian Ehsan Qureshy, singers Anuradha Paudwal and Sudesh Bhonsle were roped in.The most remarkable achievement of the organisers was the high degree of sanitation. The entire area was spick and span.Following the success, the Tourism Department has decided to scale up the annual fair to a more entertaining one from next year.
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