New Delhi, Nov 24: The Jammu and Kashmir Day celebrations at IITF- 09 began amidst great fanfare with the inauguration of the J&K Pavilion, ‘Exports of Services” by the Minister for Industries and Commerce, S. S. Salathia at Lal Chowk Theatre in Pragati Maidan, here today.
 Minister for Revenue, Raman Bhalla, Minister for Youth Services and Sports, R. S. Chib, Advisors to the Chief Minister, Mubarak Gul, and Devinder Singh Rana, Rajya Sabha Members, G N Rattanpuri and Muhammad Shafi Uri,  Principal Resident Commissioner, J&K and  officers of various departments of the State Government were present on the occasion, an official statement said.
 Based on the current year’s theme, the Pavilion showcases the prime industrial base of the State, including Tourism, Handicrafts, Floriculture, Handloom and cottage industries with exhibits of their products and services.
 Wazwan, the famous Kashmiri cuisine, as well as handwoven items that have won international acclaim for the State, were the main attraction.
 The other features of the fair were vivid display of information regarding tourist destinations of J&K by Department of Tourism, online booking for tourists interested in visiting the tourist locales of J&K by JKTDC. Stall of Kashmiri apples, dry fruits, honey, saffron etc put up by Horticulture Department and HPMC were also very popular.
 The Ministers took an exhaustive tour of all the stalls displayed at the pavilion. They were guided by Director Handicrafts Showkat Ahmad Zargar and the Director J&K Pavillion, S. Purnima.
 The Ministers evinced keen interest in the stall put up by the Information Department of the State in which the achievements of the Omar led Government were shown in an aesthetically arranged exhibition of “J&K Touching Milestones”.                     
 The stalls of Women Development Corporation, Khadi and Village Industries and J&K Handloom Corporation also left a great impact on the visitors. The ‘Artists at Work’, showing live demonstration by the artisans, put up by the Department of Handicrafts also met well with the visitors.            
 Later, a cultural show, presented by the local artists of the State reverberated the stage of Lal Chowk theatre. The rich ensemble of Dogri, Kashmiri rouf and Ladakhi folk dances were highly applauded by the audience.

Lastupdate on : Tue, 24 Nov 2009 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Tue, 24 Nov 2009 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:00:00 IST