The city entered into a festive mood on the first day of the 83rd Akhila Bharatha Kannada Sahitya Sammelana, that is being held after 27 years on Friday. The three-day festival will conclude on November 26.
The main thoroughfares of the city and the venues of the convention were decorated with yellow and red, the colours representing the Kannada flag. A few KSRTC buses, ferrying people from other districts, were also decorated with yellow and red, showcasing their love for the Kannada language. A few two-wheelers were also seen painted in red and yellow.
The district administration has declared a holiday for schools and colleges, to facilitate them to participate in the literary fest in large numbers. A large number of youths, especially women dressed in their best, were seen thronging the Maharaja's College Grounds, the main venue of the literary fest and other places.
A number of volunteers, sporting the Kannada colour scarves, were seen guiding the people who had come from far off places to be a part of the festival. Besides, several women from Kalaburagi and North Karnataka have descended in the city, for serving food to the visitors, which is an integral part of the sammelana.
Food arrangement
Elaborate arrangements have been made for cooking and serving mouth-watering dishes on all the three days of the festival.
The Scouts and Guides Grounds, near the Deputy Commissioner's office, one of the venues, where food arrangement was made for the public, resembled a fair, with roadside vendors doing roaring business.
As it was a venue for food distribution for the general public, there was huge crowd waiting in queues. Arrangements were also made near the Maharaja's College grounds.
Roadside vendors did brisk business, right from cotton shirts, towels, banians, fruits like watermelons, guavas, pineapples, popcorn, ice candies and others eatables.
