Sultry conditions fail to dampen spirits of visitors at Mango Mela

Pinjore (Haryana), July 7, 2014:  Being unmindful of the sultry weather, zestful visitors thronged the 23rd Mango Mela at Pinjore Gardens on Sunday as the event concluded with feast and colourful celebrations. The Mela garnered a stupendous response as droves of people came to be part of the festivities and all previous records of footfall at Mango Mela have also been surpassed this year.
Sumita Misra, Managing Director, Haryana Tourism Corporation informed that this year the Mango Mela had got record number of 2,744 entries from mango growers and the new attractions introduced for the edition have been well received by visitors.
The day started with colourful competitions, including Rangoli making and Summer Art Mob (Drawing). In Rangoli competition, there were 24 teams from different schools comprising four students each while the Summer Art Mob had about 100 students participating with maximum five students from each school.
The group dance competitions for schools had students perform folk dances and also danced on popular Bollywood numbers. These high-voltage dance performances added verve to the Mela. On the other hand, tunes of the Day Performers reverberated from the terraces of the Gardens.
Haryana Tourism had specially invited senior citizens from registered societies for the event, who thoroughly enjoyed the Mela and also presented performances on stage. Senior citizens Usha and Parkash Ahluwalia, both in their seventies, surprised all onlookers when they danced on peppy numbers displaying immense confidence and stamina.
The Kids Fashion Show took away many hearts as tiny tots in the age group of 3-8 years cat walked on the ramp in their pretty outfits.
The mango display area was packed the whole day with thousands of visitors catching a glimpse of various varieties of mango and purchasing them.  Tafzeel Ahmed, a mango grower and exporter from Uttar Pradesh, had special gulab jamun variety of mangoes that sold like hot cakes.
The Crafts Bazaar and Food Court were a big hit with visitors. The craftspersons from different parts of the country registered a good business for their handlooms and handicrafts.  The people beeline at ice cream, kulfis and street food counters at the Food Court where adequate sitting arrangements had been made.

(SK Vyas/Jalandhar)