Puducherry, Dec 31 (PTI) Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, Chief Minister N Rangasamy and his cabinet colleagues, Speaker R Selvam, leaders of different political parties and legislators greeted the people of the Union Territory on the eve of New Year.

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In her message, Soundararajan, who is also Governor of Telangana, said she wished that the New Year brings in peace, happiness and prosperity for everyone. The Lieutenant Governor stated that when big and powerful nations were struggling to battle Covid-19, "India performed well because of down-to-earth planning and unveiling of various steps by Prime Minister Narendra Modi".

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The Lt Governor said she hoped the New Year would usher in peace and happiness in the lives of people.

Chief Minister Rangasamy, in his message, said the Union Territory was marching ahead in implementing various welfare schemes. Wishing the people a happy and prosperous New Year, the Chief Minister said his government was committed to making Puducherry a developed UT and set an example for other states.

Speaker R Selvam said he wanted to see Puducherry make stupendous progress in education and health sectors.

Puducherry Home Minister A Namassivayam, Ministers K Lakshminarayanan, Sai J Saravana Kumar, Chandra Priyanka and 'Theni' C Jaykumar, DMK opposition leader R Siva, AIADMK secretaries A Anbalagan (East) and Om Sakthi Segar (West) were among those who greeted the people on the eve of New Year.

Puducherry has been witnessing steady inflow of large number of tourists from different states to celebrate the New Year.

Police presence has been strengthened at various points to ensure that New Year celebrations go off peacefully. A big chunk of the city close to the seashore has been barricaded.

Managements of temples have announced holding of special rituals to the presiding deities in the shrines on Sunday.

Puducherry has been a favoured destination for revellers every year. Most private guest houses, tourist homes and lodges have been booked in advance by those visiting from outside Puducherry, sources said.

Special programmes and events have also been arranged at the hotels to welcome in the New Year.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)