Pics: Dayanand Kukkaje

Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (RJP)

Mangaluru, Oct 19: The nine-day Mangaluru Dasara or Navaratri celebrations will culminate with the grand procession of thousands of devotees through the city on Friday, October 19.

The procession began from Kudroli Shree Gokarnanatheshwara Temple in the evening and will end early morning on Saturday October 20.

Idols of Navadurga, goddess Sharada Devi and lord Ganapathi were carried in the procession with much fervour and enthusiasm by the massive crowd.

The procession started with rituals held in the temple premises in the presence of former union minister B Janardhan Poojary along with other office-bearers and members of the administration committee of the Temple.

Mangaluru Dasara is a festival where people of all communities join in to witness the celebrations.

A number of tableaux, large decorative umbrellas and music bands added colour to the procession.

The traditional chende sets, bhajans and Dollu Kunita flanked the procession.

For the past nine days, the roads in the city have been decorated with colourful lights and arches.

On October 14, chief minister Kumaraswamy visited the Kudroli Temple for inauguration of Dasara.

The procession began at the temple complex and is scheduled to end at same venue with the immersion of the idols at the Pushkarini pond inside the temple complex on Saturday morning.

Adequate security is in place to prevent any untoward incident.

The duration of the procession has been brought down to 12 hours this time instead of usual 16 hours.