2 min readLudhianaJan 12, 2014 10:43 PM IST
First published on: Jan 12, 2014 at 10:43 PM IST
Artistes from Kerala,
Union sports minister Jitendra Kumar along with Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal inaugurated the 18th National Youth Festival at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) on Sunday. The tight budget and winter chills have somewhat dampened the spirit of the fest this year.
Unlike previous years, the teams from SAARC countries are missing at the fest this time. The delegation from Sri Lanka arrived at the last moment. “Last time Mangalore had hosted the event, where more than Rs 12 crore were spent on the arrangements, which were much better. Here, accommodations are not good and we are being given dirty blankets,” one of the participants told Newsline.
This year, while the state government has contributed Rs 4 crore to the festival’s budget, Rs 2 crore has been spent by the Centre. Dressed in native attires, the contingents from different states participated in a cultural procession. However, the winter chills of Punjab made it difficult for people from southern states to tolerate the weather. “We have to wear saris as per our tradition and dance on the ground, but it is too cold here. We never experienced this in Kerala, but it is fun,” a participant from the Kerala team said.
The food festival and handicrafts exhibition too started off on Sunday here. While 102-member Sikkim team was the largest, the smallest team was the 3-member Arunachal Pradesh team. Punjab and Chandigarh contingents got resounding applause from the audience when they entered performing bhangra.
Artistes from Kerala,
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