From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru

Bengaluru, Aug 20: Karnataka’s Tourism Department hosted the ‘Namma Bengaluru Habba’ at Sankey Tank in the city on Sunday.

The festival aimed at creating awareness about the importance of preserving the environment and saw the participation of over 1000 enthusiastic participants, 15 stalls and 20 unique performing artists.

Amidst the beautifully decorated streets, alongside the performances of stilt-walkers, street musicians and jugglers, the festival gave participants the opportunity to cruise around the lake with fly boards and jet skis.

This unique green festival also offered visitors a peek into the rich cultural heritage of Karnataka through breath-taking art performances like Yakshagana, Dollu Kunita and Hulivesha along with interesting performances by magicians, face painters, caricature and tattoo artists at various pockets around the periphery of the lake.

There were also various stalls and a flea market selling organic produce and eco-friendly products including terracotta jewellery, natural soaps, millet-based products, jute, plants, dream catchers and wind chimes. Gym trainers along with professional yoga and zumba instructors also engaged the public as part of the festival.

Priyank Kharge, IT and BT Minister, said: “The protection of the environment is a cause of concern today and it is events such as this that will create awareness among the public and lead to greater sustainability. It was great to see the enthusiastic participation of so many people from across the city, coming forward to support this cause. The festival was a community building activity aimed at the preservation of Bengaluru as one large team."

He said the use of electric cars/golf carts for senior citizens and pregnant women to access the event venue was a great example of reiterating our commitment towards environment protection.

The festival also incorporated a free health check-up for the public alongside informative and interactive workshops on important topics by citizens and organizations on various green initiatives including rain water harvesting, waste management, pottery, terracotta jewellery etc.