Pune: The 36th edition of the 'Pune Festival' is set to begin on Friday (September 13) at 4:30 PM at Shri Ganesh Kala Krida Rangmanch, Swargate, Pune.
The festival will be inaugurated by Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Ajit Pawar. The event will also be attended by MP Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, who will preside over the ceremony.
Maharashtra's Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil, Union Minister of State Murlidhar Mohol, Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar, Congress Leader in the Legislative Council Satej Patil, MP Medha Kulkarni, MP Sunetra Pawar, and MP Imran Pratapgarhi will be attending the inaugural session.
Additionally, Dr. B.N. Patil, Director of the Tourism Directorate Maharashtra, will attend as a special invitee. The details were announced by Krishnakumar Goyal, Vice President, and Adv. Abhay Chhajed, Chief Coordinator of the Pune Festival, at a press conference.
Jointly organized by the Pune Festival Committee, local citizens, the Directorate of Tourism Maharashtra, and the Government of India Tourism Department, all events at the Pune Festival are free to the public.
The inauguration will begin with the installation of the Ganesh idol on Saturday, September 7, 2024, at 10:00 AM at Hotel Saras, Nehru Stadium, Pune, officiated by Pune Municipal Commissioner Dr. Rajendra Bhosle and Mrs. Deepali Bhosle, with Vedamurty Pt. Dhananjay Ghate conducting the ceremony.
The festival will honor distinguished individuals with the 'Lifetime Achievement Award' and 'Pune Festival Award.' This year, the awards will be conferred upon senior cartoonist S.D. Phadnis and Dr. P.D. Patil, Chancellor of Padmashree Dr. D.Y. Patil University.
The 'Pune Festival Award' will be presented to IT expert Dr. Deepak Shikarpur, Sanjay Nahar, founder of the 'Sarhad' organization, and Devram Gorde of Jai Malhar Agro Tourism Centre at Morachi Chincholi.
The 'Jai Ganesh Award,' in memory of the late Prataprao alias Tatya Godse, will be presented to Pune mandals celebrating the centenary of the Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav, with this year’s award going to the Ganesh Peth Pangul Ali Sarvajanik Ganpati Trust.