100,000 bulbs up for sale to the public as tulip festival returns to the Capital

NDMC launched its third annual tulip festival, planting 350,000 bulbs, mainly from the Netherlands, to celebrate Indo-Dutch friendship, running until Feb 23.

The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) on Tuesday kicked off the third edition of the annual tulip festival, planting 350,000 bulbs in multiple locations, majorly at Shanti Path in Chanakyapuri.

The festival was inaugurated by LG VK Saxena and Dutch ambassador Marisa Gerards at Shanti Path. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

The festival was inaugurated on Tuesday by lieutenant governor VK Saxena and Dutch ambassador Marisa Gerards at Shanti Path.

Of the tulips planted this year, 325,000 were imported from The Netherlands. “Among the planted tulips, about 15,000 have been produced in Himachal Pradesh’s Palampur. Our aim is to minimise the dependence on imports in the next four years. Each tulip plant is named ‘maitri’ due to the bond that has been formed with The Netherlands with this cooperation,” an NDMC official said.

The festival will end on February 23, officials said.

Visitors also stopped by the Shanti Path to take a tour of the vibrant blooms and take pictures of the neatly lined red, yellow, white, purple and orange bulbs.

Among the imported tulips, NDMC planted 225,000 in open spaces, while 146,000 were planted at Shanti Path. Some tulips have also been planted in 20 Delhi Development Authority (DDA) parks, Central Park at Connaught Place, the NDMC Convention Centre lawn, Lodhi Garden, Talkatora Garden, Sardar Patel Marg, Mandi House, Windsor Place, Sher Shah Suri Marg, and at numerous roundabouts, an NDMC official said.

The tulips produced in India went through a process of storage and multiplication, facilitated by the Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology- Council of Scientific and Industrial research.

To recall, NDMC began planting tulips in 2017-18 as a trial to assess the seasonal suitability.

This is also is the first time that NDMC has put up about a 100,000 potted tulips for sale to the general public, where visitors can buy one potted tulip flower for ₹89 and three flowers in one pot for ₹217.

Moreover, an exhibition has been organised with boards displaying the history of tulips and the variety of the flower along with history of monuments around Shanti Path.

Speaking on the occasion, ambassador Gerards said, “We are planting the tulips to celebrate the friendship between our two countries. We could see that the city of Delhi was doing so well in growing the tulips. We collaborate in many important sectors, such as agriculture, health, water management, and innovation.”