KOLLAM: Chief Minister Oommen Chandy inaugurated the Grand Kerala Shopping Festival Season -9 here on Tuesday.
He said the Tourism Department has linked the festival with the ‘Visit Kerala 2015’ to make it more attractive for tourists. All the commercial houses will work in close association to make the event a big success .He hailed the efforts taken by the Tourism Department to make the festival a hit over the past five years.
There are additions to the festival making it a new experience this time. ‘Shopping For Others’ is planned to help the underprivileged, he said.Presiding over the event, Tourism Minster A P Anil Kumar said the 45-day festival was only second to Onam celebrations in the state.
It has been scheduled such that it attracts tourists from overseas who flow in great number during December and January, he said.A A Azeez, MLA, working chairman of the festival, welcomed the gathering. He said it was a privilege for the people of Kollam as the opening ceremony was being held in Kollam for the first time. Kollam had hosted the closing ceremony in the past, he said. During the last festival over 55 lakh coupons were sold and this year the target is over 1 crore with gifts worth `15 crore. Anil Mohammad, director, GKSF, presented the report.