Bali Yatra festival

Bali Yatra festival

Bali Yatra festival is being celebrated in Cuttack, Odisha. The festival is organised every year in the memory of the rich maritime history of the state.

Key Points:

• The festival is being organised at the bank of Mahanadi River every year to mark the day when ancient mariners from the state would set sail to the distant land of Bali, Sumatra, Java (Jawa) in Indonesia, Borneo and Sri Lanka, for the expansion of trade and Culture.
• The Odisha Assembly Speaker SN Patro inaugurated the festival.
• Over 1000 stalls have come up to showcase the traditional items, food items, art, household craft from the state and outside the state to celebrate the eight-day festival.
• For the first time in history, the Bali Yatra festival has a maritime corner that exhibits the model of the maritime voyage of ancient sea traders, who were travelling to the different parts of South-East Asia for Trade and culture extension. 

Highlights of the Festival:

• It is one of the biggest festivals in Odisha, Bali Jatra receives nearly three lakh tourists every year.
• This festival also includes a national-level Pallishree Mela that houses traditional goods from 24 states of India.