Bengalureans kept their bi-annual date with the city’s floral extravaganza, as thousands thronged the Lalbagh Botanical Garden during the weekend to witness the flower show organised ahead of Independence Day.
On Sunday, a total of 67,549 people visited the show, drumming up a revenue of ₹47 lakh for the organising Horticulture Department.
This year’s flower show is a tribute to former Chief Minister Kengal Hanumanthaiya. A 18-feet floral replica of the Vidhana Soudha, a 14-feet statue of Hanuamanthaiya, a replica of the Shivapura Satyagraha Soudha in and around the Glass House are among the popular attractions.
No visitors were allowed to the show on Friday after it was inaugurated by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. However, on Saturday, around 25,000 people visited the show, and the ticket revenue was around ₹18.5 lakh, officials of the Horticulture Department revealed.
On Sunday, 55,204 adults, 2,500 pass-holders, 9,345 children, and 500 schoolchildren were in attendance.
“The response has been very good. We were expecting around 60,000 people on Sunday, but the numbers exceeded our expectations slightly,” said M. Jagadeesh, Joint Director (Parks and Gardens), Horticulture Department.
“The visitors are enjoying the entire atmosphere at Lalbagh as attractions are scattered everywhere. The weather has also been very good. The visitors are spending more time at the replicas of the Vidhana Soudha and Shivapura Satyagraha Soudha and also looking at historical pictures of Kengal Hanumanthaiya,” he told The Hindu.
The officials are expecting the footfall to go up further in the days leading up to August 15. The department has made use of over 20 lakh flowers for this show.
