Lalbagh flower show attracts over 32,500 visitors

Bengaluru: Thousands of Bengalureans gathered at the Lalbagh Botanical Garden on Sunday to witness the floral depiction of the history of 12th-century Vachana poet Basavanna. According to officials, the show attracted over 32,500 visitors and collected up to Rs 29 lakh 22 thousand on Sunday alone.

Between 4 pm and 6 pm, lengthy queues inched towards the Glass House, with visitors closely examining the intricacies of floral arrangements. Loud announcements from the crowd management team were heard in the background, directing the crowd towards the most attractive and breathtaking formation of the Anubhava Mantapa.

The biggest challenge of conducting large-scale festivals has been waste management, considering the rampant usage of plastic and non-reusable items in daily life. With the help of private groups such as Beautiful Bharat, Sahas, Hasiru Dala, and The Solid Waste Management Round Table (SWMRT), the Lalbagh staff had brought down litter to a great extent.

Plastic bottles were strictly not allowed in the garden, along with banned plastic bags and NWPP bags.

Odette Katrak, the co-founder of Beautiful Bharat, said that they had significantly reduced litter with the ban on plastic bottles and banned plastic bags inside the garden.

“This time, the gate checks were very strict in terms of not allowing plastic bottles inside the garden. However, it was quite a challenging task to convince the visitors that NWPP bags are also equally damaging to the environment as banned plastic bags,” she said.

She claimed that the ban was enforced only on visitors, not on vendors who had received permission from the Lalbagh administration to set up their stalls inside the garden. She mentioned that up to 30 kg of banned plastic items were seized from vendors inside the garden. Despite the relentless efforts of pourakarmikas and volunteers, litter and paper were still scattered amidst the green cover.

Despite the boisterous crowd, the background melodies of Basavanna and other Kannada songs were a bonus, making the Basavanna experience feel more authentic. Volunteers were also distributing booklets of Basavanna’s Vachanas in Kannada, primarily to Kannada readers.

Moreover, visually impaired singers performed karaoke of retro Kannada songs, enhancing the Lalbagh evening experience.

M Jagadeesh, Joint Director of Lalbagh Botanical Garden, said that the Basavanna theme was well-received and appreciated while also being of historical importance.