Udupi: The three-day Udupi Parba and Adventure Festival got off to a colourful start on the Malpe beach here on Friday with cultural troupes giving performances and other events.

The beach itself looked colourful with buntings, festoons, arches arches and sky lanterns.

While there was a competition of sand sculptures on one side, on the other side, there were amusement rides.

There were models of the Eiffel Tower, a Ganesh idol made of foam leaf, a model of a temple in Thailand.

There were sky lanterns made of paddy, pulses and wooden waste. The members of the Artists’ Forum also displayed their paintings.

A large number of people visited the beach to participate in the fest.

Besides local people, there were people who came from other places also at the beach. Speaking after inaugurating the event, Pramod Madhwaraj, Minister of State for Fisheries, Sports and Youth Empowerment, said that the tourist spots of Malpe beach, Padukere beach and St. Mary’s Island in Udupi district would be developed to attract tourists from other countries.

An amount of ₹22 crore had been spent on the development of roads and provision of basic facilities in all these three places. An amount of ₹12 crore had been sanctioned under Bharat Darshan for the development of these spots.

In order to promote adventure sports, the Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports, had tied up with the General Thimayya Academy of Adventure Sports.

The Department would try to promote adventure sports in all the districts. A river rafting event had been planned at Dandeli.