Curtains come down on grand Mysuru Dasara festival
Mysuru (PTI): Curtains came down on the 10-day Dasara festival with the grand finale in the form of 'Jamboo Savari' in this royal city on Tuesday.
An impressive procession of caparisoned elephants with the deity of Mysuru city Chamundeshwari enthroned on a 750 kg golden 'houdah' of the pilot 'jambo' Abhimanyu was held from the front of the imposing Mysuru palace.
The procession was led by the cavalry of the Karnataka police.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, District in-charge Minister H C Mahadevappa, the titular king of Mysuru Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar and the members of the royal family paid obeisance to Goddess Chamundeshwari.
Earlier in the day, the chief minister took part in the Nandi Dhwaja Pooja.
In celebrating the 'Naada Habba' or the state festival, the city wore a grand look as it was decorated with colourful lighting. Various cultural events took place as well.
A grand tableaux of 31 districts of the state and various important government departments were displayed in the procession from in front of the palace, depicting their unique features.
Ballari district showcased the cultural aspects of the Hakki-Pikki tribes while Belagavi district displayed a model of the historic Mahalingeshwara temple.
Bengaluru Urban district showcased the achievement of ISRO's Chandrayaan-3, while Kolar presented the Gaarudi dance, Bidar focused on the distinct wildlife and Chamarajanagar exhibited a model of the famous Male Mahadeshwara temple. Chikkamagaluru created a display of the diverse flora and fauna as well as the aromatic coffee produced in the district.
Kushti is also among the key attractions along with the various cultural events during these 10 days.
The festival culminated as the procession reached Bannimantap from the palace.
Thousands of people had thronged to watch the grand finale of the Dasara celebrations. People from across the globe visit this royal city to witness the magnificent sights, famous worldwide for their regal splendour.
Vijayadashami or Dasara is celebrated as the triumph of good over evil as Goddess Chamundeshwari killed Mahishasura. She later made the hill nearby her abode, which came to be known as Chamundi Hills after the Goddess herself.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
