The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Groundnut farmers keep their promise to the big bull

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Tuesday, Nov 25, 2008
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Groundnut farmers keep their promise to the big bull

Staff Reporter

‘Kadlekai Parishe’ inaugurated at Bull Temple

— Photo: K. Murali Kumar

Time to go nuts: Transport Minister R. Ashok and Minister for Excise Katta Subramanya Naidu at the ‘Kadlekai Parishe’ in Bangalore on Monday.

BANGALORE: All roads led to Basavanagudi on Monday. The annual fair, “Kadlekai Parishe” (groundnut fair), saw thousands thronging to the Bull Temple on the first day of the festival.

Although the formal inauguration by Minister for Transport R. Ashok happened at noon, devotees queued up in front of the temple since morning for a darshan.

The Department of Religious and Charitable Endowments and Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike have jointly organised the fair and efforts have been made to add colour to the festival by organising many cultural programmes at different venues in the locality.

As usual, vendors were busy selling a variety of groundnuts — boiled, roasted, salted and so on. Palaniswamy, a vendor from Dharamapuri camping at the fair since Sunday, said that over 1,500 bags of groundnut had been brought to the fair from their area.

Over 100 vendors from Coimbatore, Tiruchi and Dharmapuri in Tamil Nadu had come here with their produce, he said.

“The business has just started, we can do well only if the Rain God permits,” he added.

Vendors from Kolar brought eatables such as bendu, battasu (sugar balls), jaggery, mixtures and puffed rice.

It was a picnic spot for college students and school children, who were seen there in large numbers.

Although organisers had provided 10 stalls exclusively for an exhibition-cum-sale of recipes of groundnuts on the Sri Dharmasthala Manjunatha Choultry premises, hardly two had been occupied.

Nearby temples such as Sri Gavi Gangadhareshwara Temple in Gavipuram, Karanji Anjaneyaswamy Temple, Dodda Ganapathi Temple and Mallikarjuna Temple were also crowded. “Over 12,000 devotees have visited the temple and it may reach 50,000 today. The temple will be kept open till 10.30 p.m.,” said Ananth, a member of the managing committee of Sri Gavigangadhareshwara Temple.

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