True colours come alive

The Lalbagh Flower Show opened on Friday, offering a floral fiesta to the citizens. The show will be on for the next 10 days. The festival is based on the theme of 'Life of Bhagwan Bahubali'. A 15-ft statue of Bahubali has been placed on a replica of Indragiri Hill made of flowers in the Glass House. Apart from this, the show has floral pyramids, stalls selling plants, vegetable and mini-landscape demonstration and many more attractions.

The show, organised by Horticulture Department and Mysore Horticulture Society, is a delight for all plant lovers as there are many nurseries to shop from. Venkatesh Y from Mallika Nursery has brought in varieties of Orchid, Anthurium and Mandevilla creeper among others. "We have a lot of indoor plants for people who want to beautify their homes. Bengalureans love orchids as it suits the climate here," he says.

For artificial plants, one can shop at Girish N's stall called 'UR Dream Garden', which has versions of rose, bonsai and dahlia that vary from six inches to three feet in height. "We also have fruit plants," he says. Visitors and stall owners are excited to be at the show and say that they are abiding by the strict instructions given to them to maintain cleanliness.

Padma Hemachandra, kindergarten teacher with St Paul's English School says, "We instruct our students to carry food waste or plastic waste back with them. It is good to see the place clean and ready. I am sure the show will be a great educative experience for everyone," she says.

Siddaraju B, who has a fruit stall called 'Naturo' there, says that the authorities are more stringent about maintaining cleanliness this year. "The staff are keeping a watch on what is being brought in, how we serve things and how garbage is being managed. Cargo vehicles are only allowed inside before 8.30 am or after 6.30 pm," he says.

Anjana Parak, a jewellery stall owner, is excited that the show will prove to be a good example to Bengalureans. "We are also telling our customers to keep the area clean," she adds.

More than 25 unique varieties of plants like Cymbidium Orchids, Poinsettias, Lilium and Hydrancia will impress visitors, says Chandrashekar M R, deputy director (Lalbagh), Horticulture Department.

To make the show more attractive and cleaner, the Horticulture Department has collaborated with 'Beautiful Bengaluru'. "We have hired 50 waste pickers to be on the move and 15 security personnel to keep a watch on everyone. Fifty extra waste bins and pushcarts have also been added," he adds. Chellama Prabhu, one of the cleaners at the garden, has been instructed to be constantly on the move during her shift hours. "We have been told to keep a watch on the litter around. I am excited to see that people are also being more sensitive," she adds.

Big events like these always raise security concerns and ML Krishnamurthy, police inspector with the Bangalore City Police (South division) assures that there are enough security forces assigned. "The number of police officers on duty will change according to the footfall at the show. We have 200 police officers assigned on day shift and a skeletal staff of around 25 officers assigned on night shift. There will be more than 400 officers assigned from January 26 to 28," he says.

More than 50 policemen in 'mufti' have been hired to keep a watch on the public. "Lalbagh already has 100 CCTV cameras installed and an additional 80 have been brought in for the show," he says. Chandrappa, sub-inspector, Bengaluru Traffic Police (Central division) says, "Vehicles can be parked at the BBMP complex near Minerva Circle and at the multi-storey car parking area at Shanthinagar BMTC Depot. Two-wheelers can be parked at Al-Ameen College Grounds."