Tourism Minister of Goa, Dilip Parulekar, today announced the dates for this year’s Goa Carnival – a much-awaited event that draws tourists from all over India and abroad. It will kick-start on February 8 and conclude on February 12, 2013.
“We are aiming at least 1 million tourists to visit Goa during the forthcoming three-day Goa Carnival. We expect over two lakh tourists per day to visit the state during this period,” said, Goa Principal Secretary, Tourism, R K Verma.
For the first time, the carnival will include food and cultural festival, which would start on February 8 and continue for the next five days, he added.
“Attracting tourists to Goa is important as tourism contributes 30-35 per cent to state domestic product,” Verma said.
This year, Shri Parulekar said, the grand festival will be on an even bigger scale and more colourful. On the occasion, he said, “The Goa Carnaval is one of our biggest events of the year. I hope that this event becomes the second-most popular event of the world after the Brazilian Carnival. We have added more attractions this year including the food festival where we have involved 15 other states as well. We urge everyone to join us in the festivities.”
As a new initiative this year, Bollywood actors like Neha Dhupia, Sayali Bhagat and others have been roped in for the float parade in Panaji.
The festival as usual will feature four float parades in four cities, Panaji, Margao, Vasco and Mapusa, Goa tourism said.
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