Onam celebrations to conclude with cultural pageantry on Monday
• Chief Minister to flag off the show • Procession to offer vivid glimpses into cultural heritage
Trivandrum / September 11, 2022
Thiruvananthapuram, Sept. 11: The week-long Onam celebrations organised by the Kerala Government will conclude with a colourful cultural pageantry in the state capital on Monday (Sept 12) evening.
Chief Minister Shri Pinarayi Vijayan will flag off the cultural procession at 5 pm at Manaveeyam Veedhi, marking the finale of the festival that enthralled people across the state since Tuesday last.
Minister for General Education and Labour Shri V Sivankutty, Tourism Minister Shri PA Mohammed Riyas, Minister for Civil Supplies Shri G R Anil, Transport Minister Shri Antony Raju, and Pageantry committee chairman Shri D K Murali MLA will be present.
The show will offer vivid glimpses into the diverse artistic and cultural heritage of the country and the state, featuring spectacular floats and a variety of classical and folk traditions, Shri Sivankutty told a press conference here today.
The pageantry will feature 76 floats and 77 art forms, 10 of which will be from other states. The show will wind up at East Fort, after wending its way through the heart of the city from Vellayambalam.
Mounted Police, police and military bands and NCC cadets displaying pearl-studded parasols will line up in the show. There will be floats of central and state governments, quasi government entities as well as local self government and co-operative institutions.
Chief Minister Shri Pinarayi Vijayan, his cabinet colleagues and legislators will view the procession from a pavilion to be erected in front of the University College.
Special arrangements have been made near the Public Library for children from the Child Welfare Committee and inmates of the Care Home under the Social Justice Department.
Tourism Minister Shri PA Mohammed Riyas will inaugurate the valedictory function at Nishagandhi at 7 pm. Minister for General Education and Labour will preside over the function and actor Asif Ali will be the chief guest. Prizes to the winners of various competitions held as part of the Onam celebrations will be presented at the function,
Elaborate security arrangements and necessary traffic regulations have been made for the smooth progress of the procession, and for people to view it in a hassle-free manner. Educational institutions in the city will be declared holiday after 3 pm on the day.
Shri D K Murali MLA, Tourism Director Shri P B Nooh, District Collector Shri Geromic George, and City Police Commissioner Shri Sparjan Kumar were also present at the press meet.
The Chief Minister had inaugurated the celebrations on September 6, setting the stage for a variety of classical, folk, ethnic and popular art forms to come alive in multiple venues in the state capital and districts across the state for a week, coinciding with the iconic festival of Malayalis.
Held after the pandemic-induced break of over two years, the celebrations had attracted huge crowds all over the state. The cultural extravaganza also came as a bonanza for tourists visiting the state during Onam.
