Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], October 25 : Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Saturday inaugurated the Bagh-e-Gul Dawood, a chrysanthemum garden in Srinagar, marking a significant initiative to promote tourism and bolster the region's floriculture industry.
Addressing reporters at the inauguration, CM Abdullah congratulated the gardeners and officials of the Floriculture Department for their dedication and hard work in developing the garden. He also announced plans to expand the garden every season, increasing the number of blooms and gradually turning it into a major tourist attraction in the region.
"People had a misconception that flowers don't bloom after the summer season in Kashmir. After meeting with officials of the Floriculture Department, we concluded that if we can begin the tourist season early by opening the Tulip Garden, we can extend the season with the Gul-e-Dawood garden. I extend my congratulations to all the gardeners and officials of the Floriculture Department. We will continue to expand this chrysanthemum garden every season," CM Abdullah said.
CM Abdullah stated that the Gul-e-Dawood garden is being developed using local resources, eliminating the need to import plants. This achievement is expected to boost the local economy and promote Kashmir's floriculture industry. He further added that, like the Tulip Garden, once a modest initiative that has now become Asia's largest tulip garden, the Gul-e-Dawood garden is expected to follow a similar trajectory.
"Just as the tulip garden began modestly and was gradually expanded, and today it stands as Asia's largest tulip garden, in the same way, the Gul-e-Dawood (chrysanthemum) garden has been inaugurated today. With every season, it will be expanded further, the blooms will increase, and the most remarkable thing will be that, unlike the tulip garden, for which we had to import plants from abroad, for this chrysanthemum garden, we won't need to bring anything from outside. Everything will be grown locally. We hope that people from all over the country will come to enjoy the beauty of this garden," CM Abdullah added.