Mishal Queenie D’Costa, UPSC rank holder from DK district felicitated
Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network-Mangaluru (JS)
Mangaluru, May 13: "The department of tourism Karnataka will hold 'All Cargo Indian Open of Surfing’ from May 27 to May 29 at Sasihithlu beach in city. Preparations are in full swing for the first international level surfing festival being organised in the state." said deputy commissioner (DC) A B Ibrahim.
Addressing a press meet here at DC office on May 13, Ibrahim said "The event will be a 3- day national surfing and stand up paddling championships attracting surfers from all over India to Mangaluru. The idea behind the event is to promote and showcase beaches of Karnataka as popular surfing and adventure destinations. The event is recognized by international surfing association and surfing federation of India. The event is being organized by Mantra surf club in association with Kanara surfing and water sports promotion council."
"Under the national surfing championships, there will be a number of categories: Groms - Under 16, Junior Boys 17-22, Seniors Men 22-28, Masters Men 28 and above and Women Category. There will be an open Men's category for international surfers. The event is going to be officiated by Steve Robertson, general manager for world surf league, Tim Hain, general manager, Asian surfing championships. A panel of international judges will be headed by Made Sachang from Bali, Indonesia. There is a total cash prize of Rs 6 lac for all the winning participants from across all categories."
The organisers from Mantra surfing club said "About 50 surfers have registered online already and the number should reach over 100 before May 24. Top surfers from around India are excited and are looking forward to competing in Karnataka for the first time ever. The forecast for the event is looking very promising with 5ft - 8ft waves hitting the coast which will be a challenge for surfers. Top seeded girls in the country, Aneesha Nayak and Sinchana Gowda from Mangaluru are going to be the favourites in the women category. Deekshith Suvarna and Kiran Kumar from Mulky are top-seeded from Karnataka."
"The district administration has fully extended their support and is striving hard to make this a huge successful event. A new road leading to the venue is in fast progress, beach clean ups and other facilities is all being taken care by the district administration. Other highlights include various entertainment, live music, food festival and other activities during the surfing festival, The main objectives of organising this surfing festival is to promote beach tourism, adventure sports and to create a sustainable revenue generating model for local communities, tourism department and other stakeholders."
Mishal Queenie D’Costa from Dakshina Kannada district who secured 387th rank in the UPSC examination 2015 was felicitated by the deputy commissioner in the presence of Mangaluru police commissioner Chandrasekhar and ZP CEO Shrividya on behalf of district administration.