Mysore : Shaking off the long shadow cast by the Cauvery agitation, Mysore is decked out for the nine-day Dasara festivities starting on Tuesday.

A melange of events will unfold in the next nine days, showcasing the city’s cultural heft of over 400 years. The event starts atop the Chamundi Hills on Tuesday morning.

In the tradition set by B S Yeddyurappa as chief minister, the incumbent, Jagadish Shettar, will take part in the inaugural at the hill shrine where Bijapur’s Gnanayogashrama seer Siddeshwara Swami will launch the festivities at 10.42am. Later, the CM will inaugurate Dasara events, which includes the mouth-watering food mela.

The nature has been favourable to the Dasara with heavy rain lashing the region for the past 3-4 days. The preparations are far from perfect, and the surroundings of Mysore Palace are a case in point, something which district minister S A Ramdas admitted. The minister said the rain should ease the water crisis to a great extent, he added. Mysore MP Adagooru H Vishwanath urged the CM to make a plea in the top court to put off the hearing till October 24.-Times of India