Kozhikode gears up for Onam celebrations

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Kozhikode North MLA K. Jayanth, Kozhikode South MLA Fyzal Babu, District Collector M.S. Madhavikutty, and district panchayat president Milli Mohan launching the Onam celebrations website at the Kozhikode collectorate on August 20. | Photo Credit: K. Ragesh

Kozhikode district is preparing for a grand array of celebrations for Onam this year, with events scheduled to take place across various locations from August 22 to 30.

​The festivities will officially kick off on August 22 with an Onam Pookkalam (floral carpet) competition, organised by the Onam celebrations committee led by K. Jayanth, MLA, as chairman, and District Collector M.S. Madhavikutty as general convener. Ahead of the main events, a heraldic parade will be held at 3 p.m. on August 23, marching from Kozhikode South Beach to Freedom Square.

​A major highlight of this year’s festival is the ‘Local Body Pookkalam Competition 2026’, jointly organised by the Tourism department, District Tourism Promotion Council, Kozhikode, and the district administration. Ninety-one local self-government institutions across 11 clusters, including grama panchayats, block panchayats, municipalities, and the Kozhikode Corporation, will compete simultaneously by creating floral carpets at their respective headquarters.

​To ensure complete transparency, judging will rely on live video monitoring, geo-tagged photos, video scanning, and physical inspections. The competition will strictly enforce eco-friendly guidelines, banning all plastics, synthetic materials, and artificial dyes in favour of 100% natural materials.

The winning teams will receive substantial prizes, including ₹1,00,000 and a trophy for first place, ₹50,000 for second, and ₹25,000 for third, along with special category awards.

Registration for teams of three to five members will be open at the office of the Joint Director, Local Self-Government department, till August 21, with the main contest taking place on August 22 between 9 a.m. and 12 p.m.

​The formal inauguration of the overall Onam celebrations will be held at 6 p.m. on August 24 at the Kozhikode main beach, led by Minister for Industries and Information Technology P.K. Kunhalikutty with Minister for Agriculture T. Siddique attending as guests of honour.

​Cultural programmes and regional events are scheduled throughout the week across multiple venues.