BENGALURU: Come February 1, you can feast on ragi mudde (ragi balls) and avrekaalu saaru along with other local delicacies at the 81st Kannada Sahitya Sammelana in Shravanabelagola, Hassan district.
With ragi being the staple food of Hassan, the Kannada Sahitya Parishat (KSP) is planning to incorporate the cereal in several dishes during the sammelana. Sources at KSP said there is a proposal to prepare avrekaalu roti and hucchellu chutney for breakfast. “As the Shravanabelagola Mutt is in charge of the kitchen, the proposal is before them. They will confirm in a day or two,” a source said.
Organisers have made arrangements to prepare and serve food at five locations in Shravanabelagola. According to them, this is being done to avoid a huge rush at one place. “As many as 10,000 people can be fed at one place at a time. There will be 25 dedicated chefs at each of these kitchens,” a KSP source told Express.
Around 20,000 representatives and one lakh people are expected to attend the three-day literary festival, which will be presided over by Dalit poet Siddalingaiah. The organisers have already started making arrangements for the event at Shravanabelagola, Channarayapatna and Hirisaave village.
There are many educational institutions like the College of Agriculture and Morarji Desai Residential School where arrangements can be made for accommodation, said KSP district president H L Janardhan.
“We have urged representatives to register their names on or before January 20. However, in case the number of people attending the event is high, we are also looking into the possibility of making arrangements at Holenarasipura, Bellur Cross and Hassan city,” he said. Transportation will be arranged from all these places to the venue.
One of the major attractions of this year’s sammelana will be the flower show. “By using different flowers, we are making portraits of Rashtrakavis and Jnanpith awardees,” Janardhan said. They are also looking into a proposal to make sand sculptures of various writers and poets.