Team Mangalore' to represent India in 17th international kite festival in France

September 2, 2012

Mangalore, September 2: 'Team Mangalore', the city based hobby group of kite flyers have been officially invited by Sebastian Jumail, Mayor of Dieppe, France to represent India at the 17th International Kite Festival at Dieppe, France.

The team with its versatile kite collection and its mission to spread culture through kites is all set to take off to France.

The Team Mangalore is the only team representing India in this International Kite Festival being held at Dieppe, France from September 8 to 17 2012, a 10 days festival involving participation from over 42 countries across the globe.

The 5 member team consisting of Sarvesh Rao, Dinesh Holla, Sathish Rao, Shashank Shetty and Pran Hegde will participate in this event. Dinesh Holla, artist of the team Mangalore will be exhibiting over 35 Art work related to kites during the festival at the special exhibition stands and this is a great honour to Team Mangalore.

This time the theme of the festival is 'Five Elements'. The theme kite competition will be held during the festival and the team is all set to compete with rest of the world with its new creation 'Pancha Bhootha', This kite is made up of rip stop nylon fabric in Rokaku (hexagon) shaped measuring 5 Feet by 4 feet.

In addition, the team has created a new kite 'Pakshiraja Garuda', an appliqué work kite with wing spread of 18 feet and height of 9 feet. This is an art kite designed especially for the event. The team would fly their special kites such as Yakshagana, Kathakalli, Gajaraja, Charlie Chaplin, Avatar Bird, Bharathnatya, Pushpaka Vimana, etc. along with their other wide variety of kites, showcasing the cultural diversity of India in general and coastal Karnataka in specific.

It may be recollected that the team had earlier been to France, England and Canada, winning 'Best International Kite' award for its fabulous kite collections. The 'Kathakkali' kite of Team Mangalore has found its place as the 'Largest Kite in India' in the Limca Book of Records. Recently, during April 2012, the team participated in the Italy and South Korea International kite festival.

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Major facelift for Mangaluru's sporting heart: Mangala Stadium set for 2-month closure to upgrade synthetic track

News Network

December 15,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 15: Educational institutions in Mangaluru that rely on the popular Mangala Stadium for their annual sports events are bracing for an inconvenience as the city's key sporting venue is set to close its gates for a significant upgrade. The stadium is expected to be unavailable for approximately two months starting from January 15, 2026.

The closure is necessitated by a proposed overhaul of the stadium's facilities, with a special focus on upgrading the synthetic track. Pradeep Dsouza, Assistant Director of the District of Youth Empowerment and Sports (DYES), Dakshina Kannada, confirmed the development.

"Experts have visited the stadium, conducted a thorough inspection, and have given the go-ahead for a complete makeover," Dsouza stated. "Funds have been allocated for the project, and we are currently awaiting the final green signal from state officials to commence the work. We anticipate that the work will likely begin in the second week of January. Consequently, we have stopped renting out the stadium to colleges and other organizations in preparation for the upgrade."

The timing presents a logistical challenge for colleges, as many schools have already concluded their sports meets.

"Colleges will now be organizing their events and will need to find alternative locations to host their sports meets," Dsouza added. He suggested a few potential venues, including the Dakshina Kannada police ground, University College grounds, Panambur grounds, Swaraj Maidan in Moodbidri, and the Mangalore University sports grounds in Konaje.

However, many institutions note that finding a comparable venue will be difficult. While the DK police ground and University College grounds are closer to the city center, they do not possess the extensive facilities and infrastructure offered by Mangala Stadium.

Dr. P Dayananda Pai - P Satisha Govt First Grade College, Carstreet, is one such institution dependent on the stadium. Principal Jayakar Bhandary expressed hope for a swift completion of the work. "We expect the work to be completed at the earliest. If not, we will be forced to look for other venues to host the sports day for our students," Bhandary said, highlighting the pressing need for the city's main sporting facility.

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