Karnataka - Madikeri   

Large crowd at Dasara car festival

A WINNER: The Dandina Mariyamma temple car which won the first prize at the Madikeri Dasara that concluded on Tuesday.

Madikeri: A large number of people from across the district and outside witnessed the grand Dasara car procession taken out by the “dasha mantaps” (10 bedecked cars) here all through Monday night until dawn on Tuesday, culminating in this year’s Dasara celebrations.

The 10 mantaps converged on the General K.S. Thimayya Circle here after Monday midnight. The mantaps depicted scenes of gods and goddesses slaying the demons to the accompaniment of music and narrations.

The mantaps from the Kundurumotte Chowtti Mariyamma temple, Dandina Mariyamma temple, Kanchi Kamakshi temple, Kote Mariyamma temple, Chowdeshwari temple, Pete Sri Ram Mandir, Kodandarama Temple, Karawale Bhagavathi temple, Balaka Balarama Mandira, and Kote Ganapathi temple were taken out in a procession on the main streets of the city here. Dazzling lights in vivid colours added verve to the whole show.

Rainfall in the early afternoon on Monday and towards evening did not deter visitors from thronging the areas where mantaps were being decorated. People gathered in large numbers towards midnight at the Gandhi Maidan and enjoyed Mangalore Shades orchestra till dawn on Tuesday.

All the mantaps reached the Banni Mantap located in Mahadevpet and returned during the day on Tuesday to the respective temples.

Four Karagas taken out from the temples of the Shakti Devatas on the first day of the Dasara festivities here also reached the Banni Mantap and were taken back to the respective temples.

V. Dhananjaya Kumar, former Union Minister, M.P. Appachu Ranjan, Madikeri MLA, and S.G. Medappa, MLC, were the guests at the official function that commenced at 11 p.m. on Monday.

In the best mantap category, the Dandina Mariyamma temple car won the first prize, the Kote Ganapathi car the second prize and the Chowdeshwari temple car got the third prize.

Deputy Speaker K.G. Bopaiah distributed prizes to the winners at the valedictory function at the Ranga Mandira in the early hours of the morning on Tuesday.

Hotels and homestays in and around Madikeri were full as accommodations were booked well in advance. Roadside eateries and fancy shops made brisk business all along the Mahatma Gandhi Road (Raja Seat Road), Major Muthanna Circle and the surrounding areas.

The police had made tight security arrangements and the event remained incident free both in Madikeri and Gonicoppa, Superintendent of Police Manjunath Annigeri told The Hindu on Tuesday.

Dasara in Gonicoppa town also concluded in a grand manner on Monday afternoon with 17 tableaux being taken out in the town to signal the close of the festivities.

The tableau on the theme of plastic removal won the first prize followed by the one which depicted the tragic end of Y.S. Rajashekara Reddy, former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.

The tableau depicting brave soldiers won the third prize.

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