KOCHI: The Ernakulam district administration, in collaboration with keyboardist Stephen Devassy, will organise a music concert as part of a fundraising initiative for the rehabilitation of flood-affected people in the district. The event named ‘We shall overcome’ will be held at Marine Drive ground, here, on October 29.
District Collector Mohammed Y Safirulla said Ernakulam was worst affected by the devastating August floods. “Now we have reached the rehabilitation stage for which a huge amount is required. Houses for the flood victims have to be constructed and their livelihoods have to be restored. People have been contributing to the Chief Ministers Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF). It is really encouraging to see the artists coming forward to contribute for society,” he said.
There will a seating arrangement for 25,000 people. The event will be held from 6 pm to 10 pm and there will be no entry fee. However, there will be counters set up where people can donate money which would be deposited to the CMDRF. “People coming for the concert can contribute wilfully and the artists will be performing for free,” he said.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran and Local Self- Government Minister A C Moideen will participate. During the event, Rs 6.85 crore collected by Rotary Club will be handed over to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
Stephen Devassy said the concert would start by felicitating fishermen community active in the rescue operations during the floods. “We have composed a song as a mark of respect for the fishermen community who came to the rescue of people. Leading singers, instrumentalists and music directors will also perform. We will also have a tribute to violinist Balabhaskar who recently passed away in a road accident. Balabhaskar’s band-Big Band- will perform with our band- Solid Band,” Stephen said.K P Nandakumar, joint director, Kerala Tourism, said such events would help in revitalising the tourism sector of the state.
‘We Shall Overcome’ will be a historical event as for the first time in the state, a band of musicians from jail would be performing at a public event. Stephen Devassy said last year he had conducted a musical performance at a Central Jail. During the concert, he came across a professional-level performance by jail artists. “So we decided to invite these jail inmates to perform at our event which is taking place for a novel purpose. More than 10 jail inmates are likely to take part,” he said. The organisers have received the approval of Director General of Prisons and Correctional Service R Sreelekha for including jail inmates in the concert. “We also have sought the permission of the state government. We hope to receive a positive reply from the government soon,” Stephen said.