Bhubaneswar: Rajya Sabha MP and senior Biju Janata Dal leader Prasanna Acharya urged the Centre to declare the weeklong Dhanuyatra festival of Odisha’s Bargarh as a national festival.
The Rajya Sabha MP from Odisha wrote a letter to the Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha in this regard.
“The festival of Dhanuyatra, a great mass festival held annually at Bargarh in Odisha is based on the noble deeds of Lord Krishna who symbolizes virtues and righteousness. Dhanuyatra depicts the story of Lord Krishna from the point of marriage between Devaki and Vasudeva until death of the tyrannical King Kansha in hands of Lord Krishna,” Acharya mentioned it in a notice in Rajya Sabha dated December 7, 2019.
“During the eleven-day long festival, the whole town of Bargarh becomes the city of Mathura, the capital of Kansha’s kingdom and river Jeera becomes the river Yamuna and village Ambapali situated on the other side of the rivet Jeera becomes Gopapura, the childhood place of Lord Krishna and the entire zone is transformed into a very big stage where the full episode starting from birth of Lord Krishna, his childhood and death of Kansha in hands of Krishna is enacted in different parts,” the MP said.
“This festival started in 1948 with the inertia of festive mood due to India’s independence and victory over unjust British rules symbolically shows the victory of Lord Krishna, the embodiment of truth, justice and righteousness over Kansha who personifies arrogance, tyranny. It is an example how a mythological story is depicted In the biggest open-air theater of the world by hundreds of well-trained artists and witnessed by lacs of people from all over the country including foreign tourists,” he added.
As Dhanuyatra has mythological importance and cultural values, the parliamentarian urged the Centre to declare Dhanuyatra Mahotsav as a national festival with adequate financial assistance.
Ms Kalinga