The two-day annual Chandigarh Carnival kicked off at the Leisure Valley on Saturday. Punjab Governor and UT Administrator General S F Rodrigues flagged off a colourful tableau of floats accompanied by young artistes and children in regional costumes. Organised by the Department of Tourism, Chandigarh Administration, the theme of this year’s carnival is ‘Chandigarh: A fine blend of the traditional and the modern’.

The carnival showcases different cultures of the region with various pavillions depicting the food, dress and regional art forms. CITCO’s food stall, ‘CITCO da Vehra’ had people savouring Punjabi delicacies including makki di roti and sarson da saag. The Haryana Chaupal, set up like a village, served the traditional dal, baati choorma and gatte ki sabzi. Several dances performances were also staged at the carnival. The major attractions at the carnival were an amusement park for children and the Children Traffic Park.

The State AIDS Control Society, Sarv Shiksha Abhiyaan, Chandigarh Traffic Police, Chandigarh Sahitya Akademi, Lalit Kala Akademi, Chandigarh Sangeet Natak Akademi, College of Architecture, College of Arts, Educational Institutes, Le Corbusier Centre and various departments of the Chandigarh Administration including Information Technology, Chandigarh Housing Board, State Legal Services Authority, Chandigarh Tourism, Chandigarh Police and Haryana Tourism have also set up stalls.

No takers for foreign culture?
The newest addition to the carnival — participation by several foreign countries, including Japan, Germany, France and Hungary — got a dull response. The stalls wore a deserted look with only a handful of visitors showing interest. “This year, the budget has been halved to Rs 20 lakh and the international pavillions were outsourced to Sahara Limited. Cutting costs for such a big event has proved to be counter-productive,” said an Administration official.