Folk artistes perform during the Heritage Walk on the occasion of World Heritage Day in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, April 18: Old Town woke up today to find curious schoolchildren, college-goers and even senior citizens pointing this way and that discussing a feature of the heritage area that had captured their imagination.

It was World Heritage Day, a special day for one of the richest heritage sites in the state. Youngsters and senior citizens alike had turned up in large numbers to take part in the special Heritage Walk organised by the state culture department.

Schoolchildren and college youths carrying banners and paintings joined a large procession that began from Rajarani Temple at six in the morning. The youngsters first took a round of the artistically carved temple and its lush gardens.

From there, they walked to Mukteswar, Parasurameswara, Swarnajaleswar, Kotitirtheswar, Ananta Basudev, Lingaraja temple, Papanasini temple, Ekamra Van and Vaital temple. Not surprisingly, the procession caused traffic congestion all along the route.

But the young walkers braved the traffic and humidity to visit the heritage spots.

“It is a special feeling to discover and explore the rich sculptural history of Bhubaneswar. We are excited about the Heritage Walk and are enjoying every moment of it,” said Mrunmayee Das, a Class X student.

The senior citizens present, however, had a few complaints.

“The Heritage Walk was supposed to be a regular affair and could have actually done wonders to popularise and protect the heritage sites in the city. But it has not been a consistent effort by the authorities,” said Padmanabh Mohapatra, a senior citizen.

The officials said that though a regular trail had been planned for tourists through this route last year, the Heritage Walk had not been able to attract too many tourists.

The highlight of the celebrations was artistes from different parts of the state who joined the walk in colourful attire performing folk arts on the way. There were the Sahi Jata artistes from Puri dressed up as mythological characters such as Parashuram and various goddesses. The famous conch blowers from Ganjam were also present to inaugurate the walk by playing the conch shells.

“We are glad to be a part of this special celebration for World Heritage Day. The performing folk arts are also a part of our heritage. We appeal to the government authorities to consider promoting these art forms,” said an artiste who was performing on the occasion.

Culture secretary Ashok Tripathy said the state culture department had come up with new plans to preserve both the “tangible and intangible” heritage of the state.