Punnamada all set for Nehru Trophy boat race

Elaborate arrangements have been made for the 60th Nehru Trophy Boat Race which will be held at the Punnamada lake here from Thursday to Saturday.

All arrangements have been made at the VIP pavilion and the finishing point for the smooth conduct of the race.

Hundreds of boat race lovers gathered at the finishing point to watch the boats practising  on Monday evening.

The preliminary round of the race will begin on Thursday and the finals will be held on Saturday.

As part of the boat race, the Nehru Trophy Boat Race committee has arranged various cultural and art competitions. A ‘vikasana samskarika sangamam’ will be held at the Government Muhammadans School here on Tuesday. G Sudhakaram MLA will inaugurate the sangamam. Chief Minister’s Economic Advisor Shafi Mather will deliver the keynote address. Collector P Venugopal will preside over the function. Writers K L Mohana Varma, Sara Joseph, M G Sasibhooshan, Ezhacheri Ramachandran, R Gopalakrishnan, M K Harikumar and Nedumudi Harikumar will speak.

A painting competition will be held at the municipal square. A cultural procession will be held at 3 pm on Tuesday. After the procession,  a ganamela will be performed by M G Sreekumar and Rimmy Tomy. On August 8, a photo exhibition will be held at the Town Square. A vanchipattu competition will be held at 11 am. Press Academy chairman N P Rajendran will inaugurate a senior journalists’ meet in the evening. A vanchipattu competition will be held at the Harippad Boys HS on August 9.

The dragon boat race and canoeing will be held at the Punnamada lake at 2.30 pm on the same day. Minister V S Sivakumar will inaugurate the cultural meet. 

A ganamela by the Alappuzha Blue Diamond and a mega comedy show by Kottayam Nazir will be held after the meet.

On August 10, the first round competitions of the small boats will be held. A musical fusion of Mattannoor Shankarankutty and Balabhaskar at the Town square and a mega show at 8 pm are the other programmes.

The final race of the small boats and the snake boats will be held from 2.30 pm on August 11. Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar will inaugurate the boat race.

Union Tourism Minister Subodh Kant Sahai will be the chief guest. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, Union Minister of State for Power K C Venugopal and other state ministers will be present.