From 11 October to 21 October 2026 the fifth Udupi-Uchchila Dasara will be celebrated at the Uchchila Mahalakshmi Temple under the aegis of the D. K. Mogaveera Mahajana Sangha, the Karnataka Kannada and Culture Department and local devotees.
The opening ceremony for the electric lighting that stretches from Padubidri to Kapu beach is scheduled for 10 October at 6:30 pm, followed by the installation of Navadurga and Sharda Mata idols on 11 October at 9 am. The installation will be overseen by temple officials Kukkikatte Raghavendra Tantri and chief priest Raghavendra Upadhyaya.
Minister K. S. Basavanta, handling portfolios of Mujara, Port, Fisheries and Inland Transport, will inaugurate the Dasara festivities at 10:30 am on 11 October. Ministers Rizwaan Arshad, Y. T. Khader and Rudrappa M. Lamani are also slated to attend.
On 12 October at 3 pm, Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar will inaugurate the women's Dasara segment and preside over a ceremony honouring the elevation of Tulu to the state's second official language.
Daily rituals will include morning and evening pujas, communal meals, devotional music, and a grand Chandi Homa on Vijayadashami. A series of competitions—state‑level dance, costume, wrestling, strength tests and arts—will run throughout the ten‑day period.
The concluding Shobhayatra is planned for 21 October at 2:30 pm. A procession will depart from the Uchchila temple, travel along National Highway 66 through Ermal‑Uchchila‑Mooluru to Kapu beach, and culminate in a waterfront spectacle featuring illuminated boats, fire‑dance, collective chants and drone‑aided flower offerings to Navadurga, Sharda Mata and the Sea King.
Organisers, including D. K. Mogaveera Mahajana Sangha president J. C. Kotyan, Udupi-Uchchila Dasara committee chair Vinay Karkera and local cultural groups, highlighted the event as a showcase of coastal Karnataka’s heritage and community spirit.
Image: varthabharati.in
📰 Source: Vartha Bharati Udupi