THE new Mayor of Ulverston, Dr Bharath Rajan, formally took office with his inauguration and Civic Sunday procession through the town.

Cllr Rajan was accompanied by his wife Grace and family along with local dignitaries and representatives from South Lakeland District Council and Cumbria County Council and other organisations as they proceeded from the Coronation Hall to the Ulverston Parish Church Centre, led by Ulverston Town Band and a detachment from the 2223 (Ulverston) Squadron Air Training Corp and veterans.

The procession halted briefly at the War Memorial in Market Street to allow the new Mayor to lay a wreath.

During the inauguration service Cllr Rajan talked about arriving in Ulverston more than 25 years ago to work at the GlaxoSmithKline plant up until his retirement as plant engineering manager in 2008.

He also talked about the warmth and welcoming attitude of the people of Ulverston, his pride in serving as a town and SLDC councillor and the bright future for the town building on the investment by major companies such as Glaxo, Siemens, Tritech and Marl, and activities of organisations like Ulverston Community Enterprise, the Ulverston BID, and Ford Park Community Group.