Will organise 'meaningful, grand' Mysuru Dasara this year; plans afoot to host air show too: CM
Bengaluru, July 31: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday said that the government has decided to organise Mysuru Dasara in a ''meaningful and grand way'' and is planning to have an ''air show'' as part of the celebrations this year.
The chief minister said this after chairing a Dasara high-level committee meeting here.
Celebrated as ''Nada Habba'' (state festival), Dasara festivities are a grand affair in the palace city of Mysuru every year, depicting Karnataka's rich culture and traditions, coupled with reminiscence of royal pomp and glory.
''It is the opinion of the members of the Dasara high-level committee to organise Mysuru Dasara Mahotsava in a meaningful and grand way. Dasara is a traditional festival and it should become a people's festival,'' Siddaramaiah told reporters after the meeting.
Light decorations across Mysuru, processions, 'Jamboo Savari' (a procession of caparisoned elephants), and tableaus are the main attraction of the Dasara festival, he said. While selecting tableaus this time, it will be ensured that they inform people about the state's traditions, special aspects of various districts, and implementation of the five guarantees schemes of the government, he said.
''Dasara's another main attraction, the torchlight parade, along with cultural events, film festival, Raita (farmers) Dasara, and Yuva (youth) Dasara will be there this year as well,'' he added.
The 10-day event every year showcases Karnataka's cultural heritage resplendent with folk art forms, and attracts large crowds and tourists.
Siddaramaiah said the Dasara celebrations would be inaugurated at Chamundi Hills on October 15 at an auspicious time between 10:15 to 10:30 am after offering prayers to goddess Chamundeshwari. A Dasara exhibition will also be inaugurated on the same day.
Light decorations at the palace, important buildings and trees across Mysuru city will begin on October 15 and will remain for a week after the end of the festivities, he said. ''Officials have been told that light decorations should be good and this time and it should be done in nearby areas too.'' The CM said he has asked officials to give priority to local artists from the state in cultural programmes.
Stating that the committee has authorised him to choose the chief guest of the Dasara inauguration, he said he will discuss and decide on it.
''Dasara should be grand, but there should not be any unnecessary spending, and it should attract more tourists,'' he said, adding that the 'Dasara Executive Committee' will submit a proposal on how much funds are needed for the celebrations, and accordingly the government will decide.
Stating that there are also plans to organise an air show during Dasara, Siddaramaiah said he will discuss with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh about it.
It has also been decided to organise Dasara in Srirangapatna and Chamarajanagar as per usual practice.
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Sensex, Nifty surge nearly 2 pc as US suspends additional 26 pc tariffs on India till July 9
Mumbai (PTI): Benchmark Sensex surged by 1,310 points while Nifty closed above 22,900 level on Friday on gains in banking, oil and metal shares as investors rejoiced the 90-day suspension of additional import duties by the US.
Defying a bearish trend in world markets, the 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex jumped 1,310.11 points or 1.77 per cent to settle at 75,157.26. During the day, it soared 1,620.18 points or 2.19 per cent to 75,467.33.
The NSE Nifty surged 429.40 points or 1.92 per cent to 22,828.55. In intra-day trade, the benchmark rallied 524.75 points or 2.34 per cent to 22,923.90.
The US announced suspension of additional tariffs on India for 90 days until July 9 this year, according to the White House executive orders. On April 2, US President Donald Trump slapped universal duties on about 60 countries exporting goods to America and additional steep levies on countries like India, potentially impacting sales of products from shrimp to steel in the world's biggest economy.
Tata Steel was the lead gainer among Sensex shares, rising by 4.91 per cent after the company announced a transformation plan, including job cuts, for its Netherlands steel plant to improve efficiency and margins.
HDFC Bank rose by 2.33 per cent, emerging as the biggest contributor to the Sensex's rise. Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, NTPC and Adani Ports were among the gainers.
IT behemoth TCS dropped 0.43 per cent after the company reported a 1.7 per cent decline in the March quarter net profit due to lower margins. Asian Paints declined 0.76 per cent.
"An unexpected pause on reciprocal tariffs by the US provided relief in the midst of the uncertainty. Though the IT major’s (TCS) result missed the street estimates, it opines optimism in the latter half of FY26 owing to growth in the order book," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.
The BSE smallcap gauge jumped 3.04 per cent and midcap index rallied 1.84 per cent.
All BSE sectoral indices ended higher. Commodities surged the most by 3.40 per cent, followed by consumer durables (2.92 per cent), utilities (2.76 per cent), power (2.64 per cent), energy (2.51 per cent), industrials (2.34 per cent) and consumer discretionary (2.25 per cent).
As many as 3,115 stocks advanced while 846 declined and 118 remained unchanged on the BSE.
Equity markets would remain closed on Monday for Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar Jayanti.
World markets largely slumped amid growing concerns due to a tit-for-tat tariff war between China and the US.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index and South Korea's Kospi settled lower while Shanghai SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended higher. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index dropped nearly 3 per cent. European markets were trading lower.
US markets ended significantly lower on Thursday a day after a sharp rally. The Nasdaq composite tanked 4.31 per cent, S&P 500 slumped 3.46 per cent and Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 2.50 per cent.
China on Friday raised its additional tariffs on imports from the US to 125 per cent in retaliation to the Trump administration's 145 per cent levies on Chinese exports.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 4,358.02 crore on Wednesday.
Indian stock markets were closed on Thursday for Shri Mahavir Jayanti.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.32 per cent to USD 63.53 a barrel.
On Wednesday, the BSE benchmark dropped 379.93 points or 0.51 per cent to settle at 73,847.15. The Nifty declined 136.70 points or 0.61 per cent to 22,399.15.
