Three-day annual boat race begins in Ooty

Nilgiris District Collector inaugurates Ooty Boat Race, open to all till June 2, part of annual summer festival.

Nilgiris District Collector, M. Aruna, inaugurated the Ooty Boat Race at the Ooty Lake and Boat House on Friday.

The event, which is being held till June 2, 2024, is open to all participants, including tourists and local residents. The Nilgiris district administration said that the boat race was held under different categories — men’s and women’s doubles, for rowers, media personnel, couples and government staff.

Ms. Aruna distributed prizes to the winners of each category.

The boat race was preceded by cultural events that enthralled visitors to the boat house. The boat race is being organised jointly by the Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation (TTDC) and the Nilgiris district administration. The event is being held as part of the Nilgiris’ annual summer festival, which earlier featured the annual Rose Show, Fruit Show and the Flower Show.

Present at the inauguration of the boat race was Nilgiris District Superintendent of Police, P. Sundaravadivel, District Revenue Officer, Keerthi Priyadarshini, the Manager of TTDC (Udhagamandalam), Gunasekaran, and other officials.

The Nilgiris district administration stated that a total of 14.07 lakh people have visited the Nilgiris during the annual summer festival this year, starting from May 7. They expect tourist footfall to remain high till the schools reopen in June.