Maha govt comes up with festival calendar to boost tourism

In a bid to increase tourist footfall and explore tourism potential in different parts of Maharashtra, the state government is set to host 16 festivals over a period of one year, a senior official said. The festivals will be organised in religious, historical sites and places studded with natural beauty, he said.

Speaking to PTI, the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation's (MTDC) managing director Shraddha Joshi said, We have finalised a year-long calendar of festivals, which will be organised in different parts of the state. The step was taken so that tourists, stakeholders and people of these regions are aware about it well in advance.

The concept of each festival is yet to be finalised and work on it is underway, she said. Some of the festivals on the MTDC's calendar are: Mahabaleshwar festival (May 27-28), Fireflies festival in Bhandardara (June 3-4), tribal tourism festival in Javhar (July 8-9), monsoon festival at Amboli, Sindhudurg and Bhandardara (August 12-16), Prabhu Shriram Mahotsav (August 12-13), tribal tourism festival in Dhule (August 25-27), Kas Pathar festival (September 2-3) and Ganesh festival (September 18-28).

The latter part of the year will see Mumbai international festival (November 2023), a tribal festival in Toranmal (November 18-19), Nagpur festival (December 23-25), Guru Mahotsav in Nanded (December 25-26), Ellora festival (Jan 2024), Hindavi Swarajya Mahotsav (Feb 18-20, 2024) and Grapes festival in Nashik (February 24-25, 2024), it was stated.