30 lakh blooms to grace Lalbagh this I-Day

In a floral tribute to Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar, exotic flowers from far away lands and imported fruits will give a facelift to Lalbagh during the Independence Day Flower Show set to be held from August 9 to 18.

Horticulture Department Director Dr Venkatesh M V said 5.5 lakh roses will turn into Wadiyar’s throne, musical instruments and the howdah elephant.

He said necessary arrangements were being made for the 10-day affair during which the city’s prime lung space is expected to welcome six lakh people. “Entry tickets will be available at the four gates. To prevent rush, we have made arrangements for online ticket booking. People can buy tickets on bookmyshow and PayTM,” he said.

Lalbagh Garden Horticulture Department joint director M Jagadeesh said 12.5 lakh cut flowers, 9.5 lakh potted flowers and 7 lakh ground flowers will be on display. “The estimated expenditure for the event may touch Rs 2 crore but the department expects a revenue of Rs 2.5 crore by the end of 10 days,” he said.

The Glass House and its surroundings will be covered with carpet to prevent the visitors from kicking up dust. The department has been using Israeli technology in the last four flower shows to pump mist inside the Glass House to check the dry soil condition.

Solid Waste Management Round Table convener Ramakanth appealed to the police to help BBMP officials in ensuring segregation of food waste. He said steel plates should be made mandatory and no single-use plates, even those made of areca leaf, should be allowed.

The department has planned 100 CCTV cameras and requested the police department to deploy 350 personnel as part of the security arrangement.

Officials have finalised 750 applications for the horticulture competition, 450 for the floral competition besides the 550 applications for the main exhibition in the Glass House.