Mysuru cyclists win gold at Karnataka championship as Dasara debates heat up

Mysuru district cyclists claimed seven medals, including three gold, at the Karnataka State Cycling Championship held in Gadag on August 8 and 9. As the city prepares for Dasara, a government proposal to bring the coastal buffalo race Kambala to Mysuru has ignited a culture war, while veterinarians and heritage experts are raising alarms over loud music concerts at the illuminated Mysuru Palace disturbing elephants and the 112-year-old structure.

🎉 Palace concerts raise alarm over elephant welfare and heritage damage

With Gajapayana, the procession that brings elephants to Mysuru for Dasara, scheduled for August 26, veterinarians and animal rights advocates have raised urgent concerns about the impact of loud music concerts staged in front of the illuminated Mysuru Palace. Savitha Nagabhushan of People for Animals warned that elephants have highly sensitive hearing and that prolonged exposure to loud music, amplified sound, and heavy bass causes stress, disrupts behaviour, and disturbs their resting and sleeping patterns. Forest department staff noted that concerts running from 5 pm to 11 pm were interfering with the elephants responding to their mahouts, with animals requiring recovery through mud therapy, cold water baths, oil massages, and cooling treatments after last year's events. Staff said they had repeatedly urged officials to reduce the length or volume of concerts. Heritage expert N S Rangaraju further cautioned that the 112-year-old Mysuru Palace, constructed with lime mortar and already showing cracks, is vulnerable to structural damage from vibrations generated by amplified sound. He noted that other animals on the palace grounds, including camels and birds, are similarly affected. Critics have pointed out that performing in front of the palace was historically considered a privilege under the Wadiyar Maharajas, who patronised artists of national and international repute, and are urging authorities to regulate concert durations and volumes ahead of Dasara 2026. [2]

🪔 Kambala at Dasara: coastal buffalo race proposal ignites Karnataka culture war

A proposal by the Karnataka government to bring Kambala, the traditional coastal buffalo race run through flooded paddy fields of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts, to Mysuru for Dasara in October has ignited fierce debate across the state. Puttur MLA Ashok Kumar Rai, one of the chief proponents, told Open Magazine the event is a done deal with oral confirmation from the Chief Minister, though formal approval is still pending, at a projected cost of Rs 5 to 8 crore. Critics argue that transplanting a fertility ritual rooted in coastal agriculture to an urban setting, and staging it weeks before its traditional November season, strips the practice of its cultural meaning. Professor K Chinnappa Gowda, former Vice Chancellor of Karnataka Folklore University, noted that Kambala was historically part ritual and part recreation, tied to land fertility, Naga worship, and the second crop calendar. Competitive Kambala, he said, only began in the late 1960s, and the professional calendar now runs from November to March across 23 to 26 events. Mysuru-Kodagu MP Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar has formally objected to the proposal, and environmental groups have filed petitions. Opponents describe the plan as an expensive cultural transplant divorced from its ecological and ceremonial origins, particularly in a year when the monsoon rains have largely failed across the region. [8]

🤝 Mysuru cyclists bag seven medals at Karnataka State Cycling Championship

Cyclists from Mysuru district delivered an outstanding collective performance at the Karnataka State Cycling Championship held in Gadag on August 8 and 9, securing a total of seven medals including three gold. The championship featured competition across the Individual Time Trial and Mass Start events. Vyshakh was the standout performer for the Mysuru contingent, claiming two gold medals, one in the ITT and one in the Mass Start event. Dhananjay secured the district's third gold, winning the top position in the Mass Start category. In the silver medal count, Charith contributed two silvers, one each in the ITT and Mass Start events. Naga Siri also won a silver in the Mass Start competition. Karen rounded out the haul with a bronze in the Mass Start event. Mysuru District Cycling Association Secretary Lokesh Narasimhachar praised Vyshakh as the standout performer and credited the association's sustained support. The haul of seven medals across both cycling disciplines reflects growing depth of competitive talent in the district and reinforces Mysuru's strengthening profile on Karnataka's cycling circuit. [1]

🎬 Historical archives seen as key to unlocking Mysuru's royal and civic past

Deputy Director for Archives H L Manjunath delivered a special lecture on the importance of historical records at the Government First Grade College in Bannur town, Mysuru district, in a programme jointly organised by the IQAC Cell and the Department of History. Manjunath underscored that official records are the foundation for uncovering historical truths, noting that 25 Maharajas ruled the erstwhile Mysuru State between 1399 and 1947 and that documents from that era are indispensable for understanding their governance methods. He highlighted the establishment of the Attara Kacheri during the reign of Chikka Devaraja Wadiyar, and the sweeping reforms introduced by Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar in irrigation, agriculture, education including women's education, and people's representation in governance, with the implementation of the Miller Committee Report in 1918 as a landmark milestone. Manjunath noted that the archives preserve records of the Mysuru Chalo freedom movement through the Sadhvi newspaper, as well as Bannur-specific data including the 1945 appointment of Kenchegowda to the Mysuru Representative Assembly and the 1912 establishment of a trust for a village girls' school. He called the preservation of historical documents a shared civic responsibility, drawing parallels with monuments, inscriptions, and coins as tools for understanding the past authentically. [9]

Sources: [2] Deccan Herald · [8] Open Magazine · [1] The Hindu · [9] Deccan Herald