Serbia's Tsaribrod Municipality Marks Holiday with Formal Municipal Council Meeting, Exhibition

Diana Dukovska, BTA special correspondent Sofia Angelova

A Municipal Council meeting held for the holiday of Serbia's Tsaribrod (Dimitrovgrad) Municipality with a predominantly ethnic Bulgarian population, September 21, 2024 (BTA Photo/Minko Chernev)

Tsaribrod (Dimitrovgrad), Serbia,

21.09.2024 20:46

(BTA)

Serbia's Tsaribrod (Dimitrovgrad) Municipality, which has a predominantly ethnic Bulgarian population, Saturday marked its holiday.

The Municipal Council held a formal meeting opened by its President, Zoran Djurov. He took stock of the important events for the municipality and stressed the need for another border checkpoint between Bulgaria and Serbia so as to make easier the lives of local people who cross the border on a daily basis.

Bulgaria's Ambassador in Belgrade, Petko Doykov, said he was proud of the efforts of Tsaribrod residents to preserve their Bulgarian roots and highlighted the opportunities Sofia offers for education, business, medical and other services.

Tsaribrod Municipal Mayor Vladica Dimitrov thanked firefighters, volunteers, local people and doctors who took part in the firefighting efforts this year and saved lives.

Yasho Minkov, Deputy Mayor of the southern Bulgarian town of Dimitrovgrad, said that Tsaribrod "has the spirit, the strength, the energy of the wonderful people who live here," adding that they have friends in Dimitrovgrad they can rely on.

A film about Tsaribrod's tourism potential was screened at the event. The winners of municipal awards - students and professionals who have contributed to the prestige of the municipality - were announced. The meeting ended with a concert.

The formal event was attended by many members of the public and officials. The Municipal Council meeting was the central event for Tsaribrod Municipality on its holiday, marked on the Day of the Nativity of the Theotokos, September 21.

Attending were Dimitar Tsanev, the Bulgarian Consul General in Nis, Rayna Mandzhukova, Executive Director of the Executive Agency for Bulgarians Abroad, Bulgarian and Serbian municipal mayors and deputy mayors and Serbian government representatives. Also attending were Bulgarian News Agency Director General Kiril Valchev and Bulgarian National Radio Director General Milen Mitev.

An exhibition of works by Metodi Meta Petrov (1920-1995), born in Zeljusa, near Tsaribrod, opened in the town's art gallery. He published Bulgaria's first comics in the Vecher newspaper of Sofia in 1942, the organizers said. He illustrated more than 80 books and textbooks in Bulgarian. In 2009, the art gallery in Tsaribrod was named after him.

The main street of the town was transformed into a marketplace where local producers offered their products.

/DD/