Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has announced a hike in the financial grants for Bargarh Dhanu Jatra, considered as the largest open-air theatre in the world.

The state government has decided to raise the financial grants for the Dhanu Jatra at Bargarh town to Rs 1 crore from the existing Rs 10 lakh, said the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) in a social media post.

The government will provide an honorarium of Rs 10,000 each to as many as 170 prominent artistes associated with the Dhanu Jatra, added the CMO.

“The state government has allocated funds for the promotion and live telecast of the festival. An expert committee will be constituted to pitch for UNESCO recognition to Bargarh Dhanu Jatra. LED screens will be installed at several places across the state for live telecast of the annual festival,” said the CMO.

Bargarh Dhanu Jatra is scheduled to begin on January 3 next year. It will continue for 11 days and conclude on January 13.    

The festival is celebrated across 8-km radius at Bargarh municiplaity and its nearby areas. It is enacted on the theme of ‘Mathura Vijay’, which depicts the victory of Lord Krishna against his uncle and demon king Kansa.

The entire Bargarh town is decked up as Mathura while nearby Ambapali village turns into mythological Gopapura for the drama-based open-air theatrical performance.

The Jeera river, located close to Bargarh, is considered as Yamuna during Dhanu Jatra. Each and every resident of Bargarh consider themselves as the subjects of demon king Kansa during the festival. Several episodes related to the childhood of Lord Krishna and Lord Balaram are enacted during the 11-day festival.

The people of Bargarh have been organising the festival since 1947. According to locals, Dhanu Jatra was first organised at Bargarh in 1947 to celebrate the independence of India from the British rule.