A new ‘Happy Diwali’ sign has been installed at the entrance to Leicester’s Golden Mile ahead of Sundays Diwali Lights switch on.
This year’s Diwali celebrations run from Sunday 1 November to Sunday 15 November, with the lights switch-on taking place on 1 November and the Diwali Day itself on 11 November.
The sign which measures ten metres in length has been suspended over the newly created footpath at the southern end of Leicester’s Belgrave Road, where the Belgrave flyover once stood.
Senior lighting technician Joe Clay said: “The expansion of the display this year will add a further 1,200 multi coloured lamps. The lamps we have used from 2014 are LED lamps, which offer a dramatic reduction in energy usage.
“On Belgrave Road there have traditionally been three different types of decoration fixed to lamp columns. For 2015 there is a fourth design incorporated for variety which has been included around Belgrave Circle.”
Once the Diwali celebrations are complete, parts of the display will be converted to display a festive message, as we take down the Diwali decorations to put up our Christmas lights.
A giant 110 foot Ferris wheel is another addition to the festivities this year. The giant, white wheel, known as The Leicester Wheel of Light, has been installed on Belgrave Road until Sunday, November 15.
Leicester’s Diwali celebrations are widely thought to be the biggest outside India, and regularly attract more than 35,000 people to the city for the switch-on of its lights, and for its Diwali Day event.
