Preparations are going ahead full steam for the Vodafone Ba Riverside Carnival scheduled for next month.

As a first step, the carnival committee introduced nine Queen contestants to members of the public at the Ba Museum on Thursday night.

Ba Town Council Chief Executive Officer Dip Narayan confirmed there would be no king contestants this year, but there will be six Princess contestants.

Chairperson of the Queens’ Committee Dr Maria Doton said the queens were undergoing daily rehearsals for their group dance, poses, walks, public speaking and talent presentation.

“We have to ensure that the queens are well prepared because Ba is the first town to hold their carnival this year,” Dr Doton said.

“The queens are doing very well so far as they are catching up fast on what has been taught to them.”

The queens will be assigned with their sponsors on Monday which will give them ample time to know their sponsors before the event.

With Vodafone Fiji on board as the carnival’s major sponsor, the funds raised from the event will be used to develop Ba Town.

Mr Narayan said, “We are very happy to have Vodafone Fiji on board and we are looking forward to this big event in our town.

“The preparations are going very well and we hope to see some business committees come and sponsor the carnival and give it a boost.

“We would like to invite the people of Ba to turn up in numbers and support the carnival while enjoying the week-long activities,” Mr Narayan said.

The event is organised with fun filled rides, food stalls and shows for the whole family to come and enjoy.

The carnival which will be held from July 8–11 and has the theme “Together Building a Better Nation”.

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