Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Apr 16: The authorities today decided to shut the Tulip Garden for the visitors from Monday after the committee which takes such decisions recommended the closure following the shrinking of tulips as well as the increase in the day temperature.
In this regard, Director Floriculture, Farooq Ahmad Rather told Excelsior that the decision has been taken after it was observed that the bloom of the flowers was fading even as the tulips were also seen shrinking.
“We will close the Tulip Garden from Monday (April 18) as the bloom has ended. Even as the people were telling us that the bloom has ended; keeping that in consideration, we have decided the closure after the garden remained open for over 24 days,” he said.
On the number of tourists that visited the Garden since it was thrown open, he said that over 3.5 lakh tourists visited there since 23 March and that they are expecting more people to come in the next few days until Monday.
He said that the garden was opened for the people early this year and the same is witnessing an early closure. “The ideal time is just 25 days and that is the time for which the tulips have bloomed,” Rather said.
Rather thanked people and tourists who visited the garden in large numbers even as he appealed to the visitors to also explore the beauty of other gardens in Kashmir.
He informed that this year, 1.5 million Tulips along with various other varieties of flowers were in full bloom in the garden and attracted the visitors reaching there.
It is to be noted here that this year, so far, Kashmir witnessed a record number of tourist footfall for the first time in the last 10 years as the Government stated that in March alone, over 1.5 lakh tourists visited Kashmir being termed the highest so far.
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