Karnataka celebrates its formation day or Rajyotsava today. On this day in 1956, Mysore state, comprising most of the area of the erstwhile princely state of Mysore, was merged with the Kannada speaking areas of the Bombay and Madras presidencies to create Karnataka state. AIR Correspondent reports, the Rajyotsava day is celebrated today to commemorate the birthday of Karnataka with great joy and vigor all over the state. The state government confers Rajyotsava awards to people responsible for making unique contributions in the development of Karnataka. Commonwealth Games medal winners, industry captains and a record number of 15 journalists are among the 162 people who have been accorded with the Rajyotsava Award for the year 2010. The noted among the winners include Commonwealth Games gold winners A Ashwini, Ashwini Ponnappa and Vikas Gowda, silver medalist in discus throw. Industry captains Infosys CEO and Managing Director Kris Gopalakrishnan and CII Karnataka chapter chairman Aroon Raman have also been conferred with the award. The entire state wears a festive look on this day as Kannada Flags are hoisted at different strategic locations across the state. Various cultural programmes and events attended by Kannada literary personalities mark the occasion.