Bhubaneswar: Preparations for the Bhubaneswar Art Trail (BAT) are in full swing with heritage signage ready to be placed at various locations in Old Town area.
The old heritage map near the entrance to the seventh Century Parasurameswar temple has also been revamped and a beautiful new map placed to help tourists find their location and other important monuments in the Old Town area.
Plans are afoot to include water ATMs and smart pre-fabricated stainless steel toilets for the international event, in which 24 well-known figures in contemporary art scenario are participating. The event is being curated by two well-known artists of international repute, Jagannath Panda and Premjish Achari.
According to sources, various other infrastructure-related works like road and drainage repair, solid waste, construction and demolition (C&D), waste management, parking and street lighting have also been started.
City-based agencies like Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA), Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), Bhubaneswar Urban Knowledge Centre (BUKC), Utsha Foundation and more than 100 volunteers drawn from various art institutions are joining hands to transform BAT-2018 into a memorable event.
Odisha Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC) would be the major agency, sponsoring the event.
The 1.3 km stretch of the BAT will be transformed by installing 17 free standing directional signage, two free standing old lane/locality signage, three free standing directional/ lane finding directional signage, three wall-hung signage, and two-way finding wall mounted signage, exclusively for the event.
Apart from the state government agencies, Archaeological Survey of India, local organisations and institutions like Kedarnath Gabeshana Pratisthan, Siddheswar Math, Kedar Gouri Temple Trust and Club are also helping in organising the mega event.
Nearly 30 private property owners are also a part of the event, which will be held from November 18 to December 18. The artists will start their residency from October 18 and the event will be open for public for a month.
Noted Odissi dancer and founder of Art Vision Ileana Citaristi also became a member of the BAT team and there would be two performances by her team members at Art Vision in November.
Other infrastructural and landscaping beautification near Kedar-Gouri Plaza and dedicated parking at various places near the two ends of the BAT would soon be finalised.
