The three-day Chilika Bird Festival and Boat Racing Competition, held in Mangaljodi and Barkul at Chilika Lake, concluded successfully, marking a new direction for promoting tourism in Odisha through boat racing and photography contests.
The valedictory ceremony was attended by Prithviraj Harichandan, Minister for Law, Works, and Excise, who served as the Chief Guest. In his address, the Minister highlighted that Chilika Lake is one of the world’s most significant tourist destinations and emphasised the importance of initiatives like boat racing for its promotion. He announced that approximately Rs 200 crore would be invested over the next three years to enhance fisheries resources, waterways, transportation facilities, fish jetties, and tourism infrastructure in the Chilika region. He expressed confidence that these initiatives would play a vital role in attracting thousands of tourists to Chilika every day in the coming years. The Minister commended the Tourism Department for proactively organising the boat race, describing it as a commendable initiative.
The boat racing competition at Chilika Lake showcased intense rivalry among various fisherman teams. Panidwar PFSC from Chilika secured first place, followed by Maa Domani Devi PFCS 2 in second place, with Bindhyagiri PFCS from Khordha taking third.
As part of the 6th National Chilika Bird Festival, a photography competition was organised, attracting 80 photographers who submitted 400 photographs. Out of these entries, 35 photographs were selected for an exhibition in Mangaljodi. In the Amateur category, Prabir Kumar Das achieved first place.
Notable dignitaries present at the event included Saroj Kumar Swain, Additional Secretary of the Tourism Department; Amlan Nayak, DFO of Chilika; and the Additional SP of Khordha. Other distinguished guests included P.K. Das, a retired IRS Officer; Jyoshna Behera, Chairperson of the Chilika Block; Amarendra Ramsingh, Chairperson of the Banapur Block; Arun Pattnaik, Vice-Chairperson, along with other senior officials from relevant departments.
