The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Kanyakumari district in a festive mood

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Sunday, Sep 07, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Kanyakumari district in a festive mood

Athapookkalam: Students making flower decorations at a college in Nagercoil

People in various parts of Kanyakumari district, irrespective of their caste and religion, are preparing themselves for celebrating Onam festival in a grand manner.

Textile and jewellery shops in Nagercoil, Thuckalay and Marthandam are crowded with shoppers. In this district, bordering Kerala, though Tamil is spoken by all, there are two lakh people with Malayalam as mother tongue and 50 percent of the people kno w Tamil and Malayalam both in written and spoken form. All these people are preparing to celebrate Onam on September 12.

‘Thalai Onam’ will be celebrated on September 11 by offering clothes and gifts to farmers, elders, plantation workers and servants at home.

Laying of Athapoo (floral decoration) began on Tuesday in various parts of the district. It was inaugurated by the Director of Archaeology (Kerala), G. Ramachandran, at Padmanabhapuram Palace. The 79th Onam celebrations will be conducted for 10 days at Padmanabhapuram, the erstwhile capital of Travancore State.

Onabanthu is a traditional sports still played in this area. Procession will be taken out on the four streets of Padmanabhapuram, accompanied by ‘Elephant Ampari’ and traditional art forms such as ‘Kathakali’ will be performed, said V. Gangatharan Nair, Onam committee president.

Since the first day of Onam is considered auspicious, floral decoration was laid in various colleges such as Noorul Islam College of Engineering at Kumarakovil, Devi Kumari College for Arts and Science in Kuzhithurai, Sri Ayyappa College and St. Xavier’s College at Chunkankadai.

At Thovalai, famous for flowers, prices of jasmine, rose, lily, lotus and hibiscus have skyrocketed due to high demand.

Jasmine and lily selling which were selling at Rs. 100 a kg has shot up to Rs. 150.

Prizes are given to best floral decorations throughout the district by various clubs. People used to change the design and the flowers every day while laying Athapoovu. The celebrations will be on a grander scale on the 10th day of Thiruvonam.

All the provisional stores in Kottar, Marthandam, Kalaichanthai, Kanakamoolam Market at Vadasery in Nagercoil and APTTA Market in Ozhuginasery are doing brisk business as people from different parts of the district and neighbouring Kerala have been buying provisional items, vegetables and fruits to celebrate Onam with Sadhya (nine course meal).

P. S. SURESH KUMAR

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