District in-charge Minister Ambarish said, the platinum jubilee celebration of the formation of the district will be held in the last week of December, for three days, and President Pranab Mukherjee would be invited to inaugurate the event.
He was speaking to media persons, here, on Monday, after chairing a preparatory meeting — attended by district level officials and people’s representatives — in the wake of Mandya district completing 75 years, after bifurcation from Mysore district.
Stating that the celebrations would begin either on December 23 or December 26, depending the availability of the dignitaries, he said, the State government had alloted Rs 2 crore for the celebrations and more funds will be mobilised from private companies, non-government organisations and philanthropists.
“Besides unveiling of a statue of Nalvadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar, the illustrious ruler of the Yadu dynasty, who effected the bifurcation of the then vast Mysore district for effective administration by decentralisation, several cultural and literary programmes will be held to mark the occasion. Apart from the main stage, related programmes will be held at two more venues,” he said.
He said, the programmes will begin from the grassroots level, from Gram Panchayat and Taluk levels, under the leadership of the respective MLAs, and culminate in the district-level main event. “Various sports, games and competitions will be held from the GP-level to the district-level and a torch (jyothi) will tour across the district. A blueprint for the celebrations has been chalked out, which would be presented before the representatives of major organisation in the district and modified if valuable suggestions are given,” he said.
Anger against journalists
When media persons raised the issue of the district performing poorly in the Tourism sector, Ambarish said, “We have constructed Sathyagaraha Soudha in Shivapura, Maddur taluk, but nobody visits it.”
Journalists hit back, saying that tourists will not visit a place to see just a building. There should be something worthy to be seen inside the building.
There are a lot of valuable things to be seen in Srirangapatna, but tourists suffer due to the pathetic condition of roads in the town.
If there was no basic infrastructure, how would tourism develop, they asked.
Ambarish abruptly ended the conversation and walked out, murmering, “Executing a work is not as easy as pointing out drawbacks”.
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