Mysuru, Oct 19 The much-awaited victory parade took off on Friday, the final day of 10-day Dussehra in Karnataka's cultural capital Mysuru amid pomp and grandeur and lakhs of visitors from across the country.

The victory parade involves a grand procession of caparisoned elephants, horse-drawn carriages, tableaux and thousands of artistes from the Amba Vilas Palace, popularly known as Mysuru Palace, till the Bannimantap Grounds through the city's lanes.

The spectacular procession was flagged off Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, who invoked the Hindu goddess Chamundeshwari, showered flowers on her idol replica in the 750-kg golden palanquin astride caparisoned elephant Arjuna at the gates of the Palace.

The organised parade of caparisoned elephants was the cynosure of all eyes of the thousands gathered along the streets on Vijayadashami day, the finale of the 10-day festival which began on October 10.

Following the jumbos were tableaux representing the culture from various communities of the state's districts and hundreds of artistes, including folk dancers and cultural troupes who marched from the palace till the Bannimantap Grounds through the city.

The tableaux featured prominent religious places, welfare schemes undertaken by the government including the announcement of crop loan waiver for farmers and traditional practices of communities.

Owing to the death of the Palace's titular queen Pramoda Devi Wadiyar's mother Putta Chinnammani earlier in the day, the royal family's adopted scion, Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, who was to be the chief guest at the parade from the Palace gates, stayed away from the event.

Following the procession, a torch light parade at the grounds at 7 p.m. after Governor Vajubhai Vala receives the guard of honour will bring down the curtains on the celebrations.

Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara and other officials will also be a part of the final event.

Dussehra continues to be celebrated in Mysuru since 1610, the time of Vijayanagara Empire, to mark the triumph of good over evil.

Victory parade marks grand finale of Mysuru Dussehra