Pokhara, December 28

The 20th edition of the annual Street Festival in Pokhara started today.

Gandaki Province Chief Minister Prithvi Subba Gurung inaugurated the annual event in Komagane Park on the banks of Fewa Lake.

Prior to the inauguration, a cultural procession started from the local Khahare Chowk and converged at the park. The festival organised by Restaurant and Bar Association Nepal (REBAN) Pokhara chapter is expected to draw some 500,000 visitors during the five-day festival.

“With this annual event during the New Year, we expect to promote Pokhara as a popular New Year celebration destination,” said REBAN Pokhara chairperson and the festival coordinator Budharaj Bhujel.

Speaking during the inauguration, CM Gurung called the festival a unique event and pledged the provincial government’s help to promote the festival. “There are various things we could do to promote tourism in Pokhara, such as upgradation of the Prithvi and Siddhartha highways, and the provincial government is serious in this regard,” he said.

REBAN Pokhara former chair Surya Bhujel and Pokhara Tourism Council chairperson Chirinjivi Pokharel had also spoken on the occasion.