'Rongmon' comes off the seams

Guwahati, Feb 14 (UNI) The huge crowd turnout in the main Sarusajai stadium of the 33rd National Games seems to have taken its toll on the mascot of the event.

Mascot 'Rongmon', the one-horned rhinoceros, has been a major success with the people. With no muppets of Rongmon to amuse the spectators in the stadium, an inflated huge balloon of the mascot near the entrance had been an entertaining factor.

The huge balloon of Rongmon was there to greet and wave farewell to all till last night. But visitors today saw in its place a heap of a plastic-type cloth, with a lone sewing machine and a few people gathered around it.

When asked, they informed that the stitches of the balloon had come off last night.

A man, who identified himself as the person responsible for stitching it back to form, said, ''The children had been climbing on to Rongmon, the stitches have come off in several places.'' He said all efforts to sew it back to form were in vain.

''The balloon was brought from Hyderabad. I tried hard to sew it but haven't been able to,'' he added.

The balloon of the mascot was put up by Aircel, a telecom company associated with the Games. Other such balloons of the mascot have been placed at other parts of the city and other venues also.

With Rongmon in the main stadium now reduced to a heap of clothes, the children were sure to miss out on their fun quotient.

UNI