VIJAYAWADA: Swaraj Maidan in the city has always been busy entertaining the residents. A beehive of activity throughout the year, it is now all set to host a 50-day handloom and handicrafts exhibition from Wednesday evening.
Organiser of the exhibition M Rajshekhar Reddy said here on Tuesday that unlike the routine exhibitions, this one has something unique to offer. A 135-foot replica of one of the tallest towers in the world, Dubai’s Burj Khalifa (2723.1 ft) has been constructed to attract crowds. “Nowadays, nobody is interested in visiting routine exhibitions. There has to be some attraction and so we have come up with this idea,” said Reddy. The replica, which took more than 15 days to be built, is made of acrylic sheets, 50 tonnes of iron and concrete. Apart from that, scream tower ride, tsunami ride and snow world are other amusement options which are newly-introduced in the city. The scream tower has been imported from Italy. In addition to these, the exhibition will feature other regular attractions such as the giant wheel, train and cup-n-saucer to name a few.
To encourage the handloom and handicraft industry, stalls have been put up by craftsmen from 23 different states across the country. From Bengal’s cotton sarees to Jaipur’s bangles - everything is available at the 200 shops set up at the venue. One can also find home decor, footwear, crockery and other items on sale. While on week days the exhibition is open from 4 p.m to 10 p.m with an entry ticket of `30, on weekends it will be open from 3 p.m to 10 p.m with `40 entry fee. However, special discounts will be offered to school students, who visit the exhibition in groups with their identity cards.
As many as 200 workers from AP, TN and Maharashtra have been employed to set up the exhibition. It has also provided indirect employment to nearly 500 workers, Reddy added.