Visitors throng 'UWTC Dashain Festival Maha Shopping Mela'
KATHMANDU, Sept 17:
As Dashain festival approaches nearer, a large number of visitors are thronging the ‘UWTC Dashain Festival Maha Shopping Mela’ which is being organized at the United World Trade Center (UWTC) in Tripureshwar since Friday.
The event has provided an opportunity for people to buy clothing, footwear, kitchenware and groceries, among others, for the Dashain festival in a single venue.
Niranjan Basnet and his wife, who originally hail from Surkhet, are among hundreds of shoppers who visited the Mela on Wednesday. “We have already bought bus ticket for our home to celebrate Dashain festival. However, shopping for the festival was still due,” Basnet, who was seen carrying two plastic bags full of necessary stuffs, told Republica. “I was looking for something to buy as gifts for my mother, father and my siblings. I found them here at relatively cheaper price compared to other shops.” Basnet’s wife, meanwhile, was busy selecting Kurta at another stall at the Mela.
Direction Exhibition and Convention Center (DECC) Nepal is the organizer of the event, while Republica’s sister publication Shukrabar weekly is the sponsor.
‘Jumla Special’, a stall at the entrance of the Mela, has been drawing a large number of visitors daily. “Apple, apple brandy, herbal products, tea and Marsi rice brought from Jumla have become the favorite choice of visitors coming to our stall,” Sushil Bhandari, an attendant at the stall, told Republica.
Rabindra Shrestha of DECC Nepal told Republica that the Mela features 80 stalls dealing on products ranging from apparel and accessories, furniture products, decoration items, food commodities to home appliances.
Dashain Special Food Court, jewelry exhibition and free face painting are the other attractions of the fair.
Shrestha said that the Mela is organized at the UWTC every year on the eve of the Dashain festival.
A stall of locally made wines, which offers visitors to taste wines for free, has become another attraction of the Mela. Thapa Wine Suppliers have put on display Empire, Wintercold, Valentiono and Moondance brand of red and white wines at the stall. These wines are produced by Durga Wine Udhyog.
“This wine tastes good. I am buying four bottles of red and white wines for this Dashain,” Ramesh Maharjan, a youngster, told Republica. “The price is also reasonable.”
Karan Asharpati, an attendant at the wine stall, said price of these wines ranges from Rs 280 to Rs 550 per bottle. “Our wine produced in Dhading district is getting good response at the Mela.”
Sushma Sharma of DECC said the festival has become a boon for those people who want various types of stuffs for Dashain under same roof.
The organizers are expecting 30,000 visitors in the Mela that will run till Saturday.
Source: Republica
