Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir): Asia's largest tulip garden which was opened on Thursday for tourists, witnessed large numbers of visitors on the first day amid official pomp and show.
However, those gardeners whose months of toil adorned the garden to make tulips bloom were among the backbenchers. And even officials didn't mention their names.
ETV Bharat spoke to the floriculture department workers who worked hard for 11 months to make tulips bloom, which brought smiles to the visitors.
Mohammad Shafi, a gardener, said that it took them 11 months to prepare the garden and plant tulip bulbs, exported from Holland, in this sprawling garden.
At least 150 gardeners work hard for these 11 months to plant around 15 lakh bulbs which bloom into a riot of tulips from March-end.
He said that during the harsh winters when there was snow all around the garden they had to clear the snow to plant the tulips.
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“It takes eleven months for us to prepare the garden and ideally we start the work in the garden for tulips from the November month. It is a very tough job in harsh winter, more than 150 men are involved in preparing the Garden for visitors," he said.
Fayaz Ahmad said they had to clear more than three feet of snow to make beds where they could plant tulip bulbs.
"In winter, when people were insides homes we paving the garden for planting tulip bulbs," he said.
At present, 25 per cent of tulips have fully bloomed and officials said that by next week as the weather will get warmer the garden will have full tulip bloom.
The government is planning a tulip festival next week to promote the Valley's tourism.
