Gopalpur beach festival to be held from December 24

BERHAMPUR: The famous Gopalpur beach festival is scheduled to start from December 24. The beach festival is being organised by Ganjam District Hoteliers Association (GDHA) with help from the Ganjam district administration and police. The five-day cultural extravaganza is aimed at attracting tourists to the serene Gopalpur beach resort.
The State Tourism Department has decided to include the five-day period in December as the time for Gopalpur beach festival in the tourism calendar of Orissa, said Revenue Minister Shri Surya Narayan Patro. Shri Patro attended a high-level preparatory meeting of the beach festival held in the office of the Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC), southern division on October 20. The meeting was attended by RDC Satyabrata Sahu, DIG R.P. Koche, district Collector V.K. Pandian and Berhampur Superintendent of Police R.K. Sharma. Members of the GDHA also took part in this meeting.
Shri Patro, who is also adviser of the beach festival organising committee, asked the organisers to make all efforts so that tourists coming to the beach festival would recommend others to visit the beach resort to enjoy the festival in coming years. According to him, its inclusion in Orissa’s tourism calendar would help in better marketing of the event outside the State. It may be noted that the beach festival was discontinued for three years till 2008. It was again revived by the GDHA last year. President of the association Uma Shankar Panigrahy said now they would make it a regular affair so that the tourists from outside the State could plan a trip to Gopalpur which may coincide with the beach festival.
Crafts expo
RDC Satyabrata Sahu said ‘Gramashree Mela’, an exhibition of rural crafts, would coincide with the beach festival. The exhibition-cum-sale of rural art and craft would continue for seven days even after the conclusion of the beach festival. The SP and the DIG discussed the law and order and traffic related issues during the festival. The Collector congratulated the hoteliers for taking up the initiative. He promised all possible help from the administration to the organisers. The beach festival would try to showcase the local folk art forms. Cultural troupes from all over the country would take part in the festival.
Courtesy: The Hindu