As many as 10 large hangers with 500 stalls of khadi products, banks, products from other parts of the country, stores of handicrafts and rural-regional artisans and others, a kids playing zone, food and entertainment stalls, cultural programmes, musical evenings, kite flying, quiz competitions and what not- the 22 day long Khadi cum Saras Mela ready to be inaugurated today by Chief Minister Raghubar Das is going to be a glittering extravaganza of full-to-shopping and entertainment carnival for citizens.
“The good thing, above all, is that the entire Mela is going to be cashless for the first time,” said Jharkhand State Khadi Board Chairman Sanjay Seth. He said that at least four card swipe PoS machines and a couple of e-wallets of public sector banks will be made available in every hanger for customers to pay cashless. In this way, the entire Mela will have at least 40 PoS machines deployed for customers coming to shop in the Mela at discounted price, which will go on till January 8.
The yearly Mela which is organised by Khadi Board will showcase products, different shades of Indian culture, host of facilities being provided by banks in changed scenario after demonetization and products from local artisans of Jharkhand.
The entry fee of `10 per adult for Mela will be compensated by giving customers at least one Khadi product of similar value for free.
Seth said that Sufi singer from Art of living Siddharth Mohan, Kavi Sammelan, Kite Flying on New Year, Musical Evening and other programmes every evening will be main attraction of the Mela in which Khadi Gramodyog National Chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena and Padmashri Ashok Bhagat will be special guests during opening ceremony on Saturday. He added that the hangers this year will be named after rivers of Jharkhand.