A grand procession organised by the Department of Tourism in association with various stakeholders of the tourism industry and organisations marked World Tourism Day here on Wednesday.
Notably, five Dasara elephants - Arjuna, Dhananjaya, Mahendra, Varalakshmi and Vijaya- were part of the tourism day procession, drawing the attention of bystanders. Mayor Shivakumar flagged off the Tourism Day procession at the palace in the presence of tourists and stakeholders. Foreign tourists who had come to witness the grandeur of the palace were greeted with roses.
Mysore pak sweets and tourist guides were presented to international tourists even as folk troupes performed amidst the traditional welcome.
Deputy Commissioner K.V. Rajendra, Police Commissioner Ramesh B., ZP CEO K.M. Gayathri, Palace Board Deputy Director T.S. Subramanya, Karnataka Tourism Forum’s B.S. Prashanth, Deputy Mayor Roopa, Mysuru Travels’ Association’s Jayakumar, Hotel Owners Association president Narayanagowda and several others were present at the inauguration.
After launching the procession, the Deputy Commissioner, Police Commissioner, Superintendent of Police Seema Latkar, and DCP Muthuraj went on a ride in a horse-drawn sarot. The Deputy Commissioner, in his address, said Mysuru has a prime spot in the international tourism map and is a major hub for visitors.
Somanathapura temple near Mysuru is now a World heritage site and the stakeholders need to spread awareness on this among the visitors so that they could visit the site.
The procession began from the palace and passed through a portion of the Jamboo Savari route - K.R. Circle, Sayyaji Rao Road, and the Government Ayurveda Hospital Circle, before returning on the same route to the palace.
Mounted police personnel and the men and women dressed in traditional Kodava attire, Sarots and Shahpasand Tongas, tourism students, folk troupes like puja kunita, garudi kunita and cultural troupes were part of the procession.
Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation, Mysore Hotel Owners’ Association, Mysuru Travels Association, and other organisations extended support to the Tourism Department to organise the event.
