Queen’s baton to arrive in DK on September 5

DHNS

• ‘The 6-km relay in Mangalore will have 20 points of change over’

Mangalore, 03 September 2010: The Queen’s Baton Relay Team for XIX Commonwealth Games will arrive in Dakshina Kannada on September 5. 

 
Informing the same to media persons here on Thursday, Deputy Commissioner V Ponnuraj said the 98-member relay team will be received by District-in-Charge Minister Krishna J Palemar, former international athletes Sanjeeva Puttur and Pushparaj Hegde among others at the district border in Gundya at 12.30 pm.

The team would arrive at Kadri Park at 5 pm where Mayor Rajani Dugganna, athletes Vandana Rao, Vandana Shanbagh and Shoba Narayan will receive the baton.

Relay route

The 6-km relay will start at Kadri Park at 5.30 pm. It will pass through Circuit House, Batra Gudde, Bejai Junction, Reliance Footwear, KSRTC bus stand, Mangalore City Corporation, Hero Honda Circle, Besant, PVS Junction, St Aloysius Primary School, Karangalpady, Bunts Hostel, Jyothi Circle, Don Bosco Hall, Hampankatta Junction and University College before entering Town Hall.

“The baton will change at 20 points in the 6-km relay and the points have already been identified,” said Ponnuraj and added that Arjuna and Ekalavya awardees, medal winners in Olympics, Commonwealth, Asian Games and other international, national and State games will carry the baton in the relay. Ponnuraj called upon the members of the public to take part in the relay. Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh said that traffic may be disrupted for some time on the relay route.

Civic reception

A grand civic reception has been organised in Town Hall wherein cultural programmes depicting the rich culture and tradition of the district will be showcased. The relay team would leave the district for Karwar on September 6 at 9 am.

Additional DC Prabhakar Sharma, MCC Commissioner Dr K N Vijay Prakash and Assistant Commissioner Prabhulinga Kavalikatti among others were present.

100-day journey in India

The relay commenced from Buckingham Palace, London, on October 29, 2009. The Baton will visit all 28 States and seven Union Territories of India including 200 cities and thousands of villages. More than 5,000 sports persons, stars, politicians and common men will carry the Baton by using all modes of transport over land, sea and air.

After the relay throughout the country, the 100-day journey will finish when the Baton-bearers enter the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi during the opening Ceremony of the XIX Commonwealth Games.

On October 3, 2010, Queen Elizabeth-II’s message will be removed from the Baton and read at the Games’ Opening Ceremony.

What is inside Baton?

The multi-layered Baton has a precious jewellery box holding the Queen’s message on gold leaf. It is a fusion made with great skill and elements interplayed with a precision-engineered body and decked with complex hand layered soil pattern. Inside the casing is coated with soil which is collected from all regions of India.

It has an inbuilt camera, a sound recorder and LED display. The design is shaped by using a triangular section of aluminum twisted into helix. It has a polycarbonate cap to protect the Queen’s message from the elements. The Baton is light weight and designed to be easy and comfortable to hold.