By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, September 27, 2015 : The capital city here on Sunday wore a festive look on the concluding day of the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India‘s [FHRAI] Golden Jubilee Convention on the occasion of World Tourism Day here.

For the first time, a unique tourism carnival was organised jointly by Department of Tourism & FHRAI here which ran from Master Canteen Square to Rupali Square in the morning.

The carnival process was led by Bikers groups on luxury bikes followed by vintage cars. Bollywood diva Mahima Choudhry rode pillion on one of the lead bikes in the procession. The colourful extravaganza comprised of 8 floats or  exclusively designed for this Carnival on different themes. Of the 8 floats, the World Tourism float led the carnival procession followed by Odisha Tourism float displaying different tourist destinations in the state and FHRAI’s own float exhibiting the apex organisation of all the leading regional hotel associations of India.

The carnival showcased the rich cultural diversity and tourist potential of Odisha and was flagged off by Odisha Governor Dr SC Jamir in the presence of State Industry Minister Debiprasad Mishra, Tourism Minister Ashok Chandra Panda, MP Dr. Prasanna Kumar Patsani, legislators BK Mohanty and Priyadarshi Mishra, City’s Mayor Ananta Naryan Jena, Chief Secretary G C Pati, besides a host of senior officials and functionaries and delegates of FHRAI.

Consulate Generals of France and USA, representatives from Italy and many other dignitaries were also present.

The carnival was a spectacular show of variety of tourism products with a dozen tableaux depicting Buddhist heritage of Odisha, Wildlife, Tribal Art & ancient Buddhist treasures of Dhauli, Dancing troupes of Odisha, West Bengal, Jammu Kashmir, Punjab, Assam, etc and vintage cars, motor cycles, College & School children carrying placards of the World Tourism Day theme “1 Billion Tourists – 1 Million Opportunities.

The float on Buddhism was very impressive and drew wide applause from all the delegates from across India as well as abroad. The other floats were on wildlife assets, Handicraft float showcasing various handicraft products of India, KIIS and DAV School.

Speaking on the unique carnival Convention Technical Committee Chairman Debashish Pattnaik said, “This unique World Tourism Day Carnival was planned to showcase rich culture and heritage as well as popular tourist destinations in the state. Simultaneously famous tourist destinations in India and worldwide along with dance forms from different parts of India was showcased to mark the World Tourism Day. We are happy that this was made possible for the first time during the FHRAI’s Golden Jubilee Convention at Bhubaneswar wherein hundreds of hospitality sector stakeholders have gathered at the city. Certainly this Carnival will popularise Odisha’s rich heritage and culture at the World stage.”