Pathanamthitta, Friday 31 July 2009: Vallasadya, feast served to snake-boat crew at Sree Parthasarathy Temple, Aranmula, on the banks of the Pampa, will begin today.

At a press conference, K.V. Sambadevan, president of the Palliyoda Seva Sanghom, and Ratheesh R. Mohan, secretary, said the two-month event would begin after Utchapuja on Friday.

The sanghom, along with the Travancore Devaswom Board, organises the feast. The snake boats participate in the Uthrittathi Vallamkali (regatta) on the Pampa.

K.C. Rajagopalan, MLA, will inaugurate the feast, serving the dishes and rice on a plantain leaf in front of the temple mast. K. Sivadasan Nair, MLA, will inaugurate the sale of regatta passes.

Mr. Sambadevan said the Pampa was cleared of mud banks by the Water Resources Department for allowing snake boats on the river. Forty-one of them would participate in the regatta to be held in the Aranmula water stadium on the Pampa on September 6.

Water Resources Minister N.K. Premachandran would convene a meting of people’s representatives, district-level heads of various departments, Devaswom officials and sanghom authorities at Aranmula on August 7 to review the arrangements for the regatta.

Defence Minister A.K. Antony; Union Minister of State for Tourism Kumari Selja; Tourism Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan; Devaswom Minister G. Sudhakaran; Water Resources Minister N.K. Premachandran; Law Minister M. Vijakumar; district panchayat president Appinazhakathu Santhakumari; P.K. Narayana Panicker, and Bharatiya Vichara Kendram director P. Parameswaran will attend the inaugural function of the regatta.