A colourful road show was taken out in connection with the ongoing national conference of the INTUC, from the Rajendra Maidan to the conference venue at Marine Drive on Saturday evening.
While the delegates representing different States marched under the banner of each State, artistes from 15 States staged dances and art forms unique to their region.
The road show that took about an hour to cross each point became a visual treat to hundreds of people returning home from work.
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The participants dressed in ethnic attire also raised national integration slogans in their language and it was a new experience for Kochi.
Seva Dal volunteers marched at the front and at the rear.
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Art forms like Pandimelam, Shingarimelam, Valpayattu and Ammankudam were among those staged. As they converged on the Marine Drive to the accompaniment of Panchavadyam and women artistes performing chendamelam, the V.P. Marickar Nagar resembled a mini-India.
The Opposition Leader Ommen Chandy and KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala were among the leaders who greeted the rallyists.
The past few days saw the city take a tricolour hue, with banners and festoons adorning roads and junctions.
The rally also disrupted traffic along the Park Avenue Road for over an hour. This had a fallout on the other arterial roads as well.
The INTUC plenary session is scheduled to discuss the ‘Kerala model’ of development. The session’s slogan is “More productivity, more benefits”. Explaining the concept, INTUC State president R. Chandrasekharan said it focussed on the workers’ role in increasing productivity and benefits rather than on more wages.