Joyrides on the Bali yatra ground. Picture by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack, Nov. 13: A footfall of over five lakh visitors brought smiles on the traders’ face on the concluding day of the weeklong Bali yatra.

The yatra recorded a business of over Rs 80 crore, which is nearly 20 per cent more than last year, said sources.

So far, the special pavilion of the Pallishree mela has already recorded the highest turnover of nearly Rs 8 crore. However, the number is likely to cross Rs 10 crore by the end of the fair tonight. Over 310 kiosks selling rural and ethnic products from various parts of the state and country have come up at the mela hosted by the state panchayati raj department’s Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society.

“We are expecting a business of around Rs 1.5 crore by tonight, which will take the total sales figure to Rs 10 crore. Besides, the traders will keep on selling their products till the pavilion is dismantled in the next couple of days,” said chief executive officer of the society’s Cuttack chapter Bipin Rout.

Rout said many kiosks, including those selling organic products from Kandhamal, wooden crafts from Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, set up by various self-help groups, had received overwhelming response.

Moreover, the overall business at the Gandhi Shilpa Bazaar was also encouraging with the total sales hovering around Rs 60 lakh by last night.

Around 150 kiosks from 15 states, including Assam, Jharkhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha, had come up at the Gandhi Shilpa Bazaar.

The development commissioner (handicrafts) under the Union textile ministry sponsored the national-level handicrafts exhibition.

“Bali yatra has turned out to be a major source of entertainment for people. The traders also got a platform to do some business,” said Biswajit Sahu, a visitor.

The district administration, Cuttack Municipal Corporation and police had done a good job in ensuring the visitors’ safety, said Sahu.

Over 40 platoons of police worked overnight to ensure peace at the festival that saw a turnout of over 30 lakh people this year. “Closed-circuit television cameras were installed at various points, and adequate measures were taken for the people’s safety. No major untoward incidents were reported,” said deputy commissioner of police Sanjeev Arora.

The health wing of the municipal corporation had also taken special measures to maintain hygiene at the fair.