Agartala: The birth anniversary of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore was marred this morning at the central programme in Agartala, when a stage collapsed and left three artists injured seriously.
Police said two of them were shifted to the Agartala Government Medical College (AGMC) and another was released after first aid in the Indira Gandhi Memorial (IGM) Hospital.
The makeshift stage was built in front of Rabindra Shatabarshiki Bhawan in the heart of the city to inaugurate the newly re-built Rabindra Bhawan and launching of fortnight-long celebration of the Nobel laureate’s birth anniversary.
The incident occurred in presence of Cultural Affairs Minister Bhanu Lal Saha and a few minutes before the arrival of Chief Minister Manik Sarkar.
The inaugural programme has been cut short following the accident.
However, Sarkar formally opened the Rabindra Bhawan built at a cost of Rs 32 crore sanctioned by the Union Ministry for Development of Northeast Region under Non-lapsable central pool of resources with two larger seating capacity auditorium, state-of-the-art facilities and all other modern arrangements.
Besides, both Sarkar and Saha paid floral tributes to the statues of Rabindranath Tagore and music maestro Sachin Debbarman in Rabindra Bhawan campus.
Addressing the gathering, Sarkar focused on Tripura’s rich cultural heritage and efforts being made by the state government in preserving and protecting the state’s indigenous and folk culture. (UNI)