The garden has 15 lakh tulips of various colours and hues
The Indira Gandhi Tulip Garden, Asia's largest tulip garden in Jammu and Kashmir opened to the public on March 19, Sunday. Located between Dal Lake and the Zabarwan hills in Srinagar, the garden has over 15 lakh tulips of various colours and hues. On Monday, Indian Administrative Service officer Saloni Rai took to Twitter to share some mesmerising pictures of the garden.
She posted a bunch of pictures and wrote, ''Tulip Garden in Srinagar is now open for tourists and is absolutely a treat to the eyes!
See the pictures here:
The pictures have gone viral, attracting a variety of comments. One user wrote, ''And the best pictures were always taken by our eyes and instantly delivered the peace, joy, happiness, refreshment and hope to our heart when we visit such places and see them.'' A second person said, ''That garden is so mesmerizing to watch.''
Besides tulips, the garden, also known as Siraj Bagh, has other spring flowers, such as hyacinths, daffodils, muscari and cyclamens, on display, said Inam-ul-Rehman, in-charge of the garden.
"Every year we expand this garden and new varieties are displayed here. This year, we have extended the fountain channel," he told PTI.
The Floriculture department plants the tulip bulbs in a phased manner so that the flowers remain in the garden for a month or more.
At the opening ceremony, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said that the garden witnessed 3.60 lakh visitors last year, which is the highest since it was opened. Expressing a hope that this year's visitor footfall surpasses last year's numbers, Mr Sinha said a new tulip garden will be opened in April in the Sanasar area of the Jammu region in which 2.75 lakh tulips of 25 varieties will bloom.
As per the Srinagar tourist website, the garden was opened in 2007 with the aim of boosting floriculture and tourism in the Kashmir Valley.