Mysuru’s Dasara procession will be held on Vijayadashami on October 21, with the district administration completing final arrangements for the city’s major annual public event. The procession will begin after the traditional Nandi flag puja at the palace and will cover about five kilometres before reaching Bannimantap.
Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar is scheduled to perform the Nandi flag puja at the palace’s Balarama Gate between 1.36pm and 1.56pm. Later, between 4.10pm and 4.35pm, he will offer flowers to the Chamundeshwari idol placed in the 750-kilogram golden howdah carried by Prashantha, the newly designated captain of the elephant team. The ceremony will formally mark the start of the procession.
Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara, Mysuru district in-charge minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah, Kannada and Culture Minister Shivaraj S. Tangadagi, MLA T.S. Srivatsa and member of the erstwhile royal family Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar are expected to attend. The royal family will also conduct the traditional private durbar and Vijayadashami procession-related ceremonies at the palace.
The procession will include cultural troupes, tableaux and the ‘Paramparaya Ratha’, which will showcase Karnataka’s cultural heritage. This year, tableaux from 15 districts have been permitted. Air Force and Navy tableaux and a music band will also participate. Around 12 foreign ambassadors, Kerala Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan and Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy are expected to attend, according to the report.
The elephant team has undergone several rounds of training, including a final rehearsal at the palace on Monday. The participating elephants include Abhimanyu, the flag elephant; Gopi, the Noubat elephant; Mahendra, Srirama, Srikanta, Kaveri, Chaitra, Lakshmi, Sugriva, Ekalavya and Rupa. Prashantha will carry the golden howdah at the end of the elephant procession.
Security arrangements include the deployment of six thousand police personnel under the supervision of 23 superintendents of police. District Commissioner G. Lakshmikanth told Prajavani that around 150 members of the Kannada film industry, including actors, producers and directors, would participate in an illuminated vehicle, with separate seating arrangements made for them.
Only dignitaries, invitees and visitors holding gold cards, tickets or passes will be allowed inside the palace premises for the restricted programme. Seating for 48,000 people has been arranged. The district administration has also made provision for a live broadcast through the official Mysuru Dasara website, mysoredasara.gov.in.
The procession is scheduled to be followed by the torchlight parade at Bannimantap at 7pm. Governor Sudha Yadav is expected to review the parade and receive the ceremonial salute. A drone display and the torchlight event will mark the formal conclusion of the 11-day Dasara celebrations. Other Vijayadashami processions are also scheduled across Karnataka, including the lighted tableau procession in Madikeri and the Mangaluru Dasara procession from the Kudroli Gokarnanatha Temple.
