(below) Vice-chairman of Bhubaneswar Development Authority Vishal Dev inaugurates the 7th edition of Design Carnival and speakers at the event in Bhubaneswar. Telegraph pictures

Bhubaneswar, Jan. 5: The 7th edition of Design Carnival, an annual event organised by the Indian Institute of Architects, Odisha Chapter, concluded today at a city hotel here.

Vice-chairman of Bhubaneswar Development Authority Vishal Dev inaugurated the four-day event aimed to enrich the profession of architecture. Professional architects and students from schools of architecture came in great numbers to attend the event.

The carnival was based on the theme “Eco Architecture” and had several competitions, seminars and panel discussions, where students and young professionals presented their work and ideas on eco-friendly architectural practices.

Three state-level architects’ awards — Otto Koenigsberger Lifetime Achievement Award, Srikant Paikray Award for Architect of the Year, Saurastra Das Award for Young Architect of the Year — were presented on this occasion.

Chairman of Indian Institute of Architects, Odisha Chapter, Sanjeeb Kumar Guru stated that for the past several years the Design Carnival had been providing a platform for exchanging, discussing and debating not only on new paradigms of architecture and planning but also on the trend, evolution and on emerging ideas and technologies. It brought together professional architects, environmentalists, planners, decision makers, academics and students under one roof to deliberate and interact with each other.

“The carnival brings representation not just from Odisha, but also from across the country which is enlightening for young architects of the state,” he said.

Organisers informed that the event had not only technical but also friendly programmes. Some of them were cricket match between professional architects and students of architecture, design idea competitions for students, presentations by renowned architects from Ahmedabad and Pondicherry, and panel discussions, where professionals from related fields debated and discussed on various issues of eco-architecture.