Panaji: Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant on Monday said that the preparations for the upcoming International Film Festival of India (IFFI) are in the final stage and are expected to be completed by November 15.
As an added attraction, the state government will hold a special float parade on November 22, showcasing the best of Shigmo and Carnival, prominent festivals in the coastal state. The float parade will start from Kala Academy and will take the route alongside the River Mandovi.
The Chief Minister stated that the Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG) is the nodal agency hosting IFFI in association with the Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry. Sawant mentioned that preparations for the festival are nearly complete. “We will be ready to host the festival by November 15. I will be chairing a meeting on November 18 to review the preparations,” he said.
To date, 3,659 people have registered online as delegates for the festival. “The number of registrations will increase during the last 10 days. Annually, there are 8,000 delegates who register online for this festival,” Sawant added. While the detailed program of the festival will be unveiled later, he mentioned that there will be open-air screenings of movies at Miramar Beach (near Panaji), Ravindra Bhavan in Margao (South Goa), and at Aguada Helipad (North Goa).
The estimated spending on the festival will be Rs 26 crore, considering the escalations in the market.
