Chennai turns colourful for Kalaignar's jubilee fete

Chennai, May 11 (UNI) The city wore a festive look today with festoons and party flags fluttering at every nook and corner of the streets to commemorate Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK President M Karunanidhi's completion of 50 years as a legislator in the state Assembly.

Divisional level DMK functionaries put up banners and posters of their leader in almost all the Corporation divisons besides colourful illumination.

A massive stage was set up at the Island grounds, where a glittering public felicitation to felicitate the octogenarian patriach was held today with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi felicitating him along with former Prime Minister V P Singh and I K Gujral and senior Union Ministers Sharad Pawar and Laloo Yadav, besides the leaders of the two Left Parties A B Bardhan of CPI and Sitaram Yechuri of CPI(M).

DMK party sources said about 10,000 DMK volunteers wearing party uniform arrived from all the districts to organise and participate in the Golden jubilee fete of Mr Karunanidhi.

The functionaries put up banners and serial lights all along the arterial strech from Guindy junction to the state Secretariat, and Poonamalee High road and Arcot road.

North Chennai DMK district secretary N Balaraman, who is in-charge of the function has made seating arrangements for about two lakh people for the felicitation function on the Island grounds.

Meanwhile, the police have made massive security arrangements at the venue due to the presence of VVIPs'.

According to city police Commissioner, Letika Saran, about 10,000 police personnel were deployed for security at the function.

Apart from the city police, personnel from special protection group have also been deployed to supervise the arrangemnts for the VVIPs.

UNI