Bhubaneswar: Raja, an annual festival celebrating womanhood was inaugurated at Odisha Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC) headquarters in Capital city, Thursday. Promoting authentic Odia delicacies coupled with celebrations during Raja including swings, alata and mehndi for girls and young women, the Raja Mahotsav was inaugurated by Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi and Ekamra MLA Babu Singh. As part of the three-day festival, special arrangements have been made to ensure sale of Raja delicacies and sweets across all hospitality units of OTDC.
Further, traditional swings have been set up and Mehndi artists have been invited to the Panthanivas to decorate the hands of women visiting the hospitality facility, free of cost. To make the celebration grand, three ‘Pitha on Wheels’ vans have been provided for sale of Raja delicacies and shall be stationed at Master Canteen, KIIT Square and ITER – Khandagiri from 8am to 12noon and 4pm to 7pm. These vans will provide an option for take away of Raja Pithas and other delicacies. The Pitha on Wheels is also stationed at Sambalpur. Raja Pitha counters will be set up at Silvercity Boatclub, Cuttack, ISBT Café and Nimantran Restaurant Bhubaneswar for sale to public from June 14 to June 16. The Pitha counter will be operated at Kalinga convention hall of Panthanivas, Bhubaneswar till June 16. The event had officers from OTDC including director of OTDC Sachin Ramachandra Jadhav, g eneral mana g er Lalatendu Sahoo and Utkal Paryatan Nigam Employee Association working president Benudhara Patra among others.
ARINDAM GANGULY, OP