Half-holiday at govt offices for AAC opening ceremony

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government on Saturday declared half-day holiday at all offices in the state capital on July 5 in view of the inaugural ceremony of the 22nd Asian Athletics Championships (AAC) at Kalinga Stadium.
According to a notification issued by the revenue and disaster management department, the government offices coming under Bhubaneswar jurisdiction will be closed by 1:30 pm. The offices will remain closed so that commuters along the route are not put to inconvenience due to movement of police escort, buses and vehicles of athletes and delegates, it added.
The athletics championship is being organised from July 6 to 9. More than 700 athletes from around 45 countries will participate in 42 events.
The state government will hold several cultural programmes at the opening ceremony.
To popularise Odisha’s rich culture and handloom, the women athletes will wear Sambalpuri sarees during the inaugural ceremony of the international athletic event.