Puri: After the effects of coronavirus pandemic begin to recede, visitors coming to the holy city will surely find it a completely changed place due to a series of makeovers that the city has adopted in due course of the pandemic.
As a part of Puri municipality’s recently undertaken beautification drive, murals are being drawn on the outer walls on either sides of VIP road.
The lecturers and students of Odisha College of Art and Craft here have been roped in for giving the city a beautiful makeover.
“The job has been taken up following the direction of the Puri municipality. Walls on the both sides of the VIP roads were decorated with colourful paintings in 2017. Over the years, they got faded away due to being exposed to rain and sun.
We are now painting the outer wall of Gopabandhu Ayurved Mahavidyalay. Our paintings will depict the entire story of car festival, cultural heritage and other festivals observed in the city. Famous tourist spots like Konark’s Sun Temple, Chilika etc will also be featured here,” informed principal, Odisha College of Art and Craft, Durgamadhav kar.
“We hope tourists will find these paintings both attractive and informative. Most importantly, our students were sitting idle and the municipality’s this drive will help them overcome the crisis.
Puri residents have welcomed the move. “We appreciate the step taken by the Puri municipality. But good quality colours should be used so that the paintings can stand up to harsh weather conditions,” they observed.
According to artiste Deviprasanna Nanda, once the pandemic situation comes to an end, there will be huge flow of tourists to this holy city. So, besides the VIP road, all the roads, lanes and by lanes will also have to be decorated to give the city a complete new look.
PNN