Tourism fest back with variety

NEW DELHI: The Garden of Five Senses at Said-ul-Ajaib bore a distinct hue and vibrancy on Friday morning with chief minister Arvind Kejriwal inaugurating the 28th Garden Tourism Festival. With this year’s theme being landscaping and hanging gardens, the three-day festival, which will end on February 22, has on exhibit more than 400 varieties of flowers as well as fruits and vegetables.
Visitors were enticed by the tray gardens and floral animal and bird decorations exhibited all over the venue. Asha and GC Dhingra had come from Shalimar Bagh along with 250 senior citizens in five buses to witness the beauty of nature. A tourist from Tibet, Khenpo Kaga, said he was impressed by the way the festival had been organized. “The presentation is beautiful and eye-catching. I have already taken three rounds of the place, but I can’t seem to get enough of the beauty here,” Kaga said.
An 18-year-old student of interior design, Priya was at the festival to be inspired by natural beauty. “This year the festival is at its best in terms of variety and presentation,” said Shefali, a regular visitor from the past seven years.
Apart from the food court, stall selling artificial flowers and key chains, a large number of visitors were attracted by caricature artist Karan Chand from Khanpur who provided his services for a minimal price of Rs 150.
The garden has been divided into various sections showcasing potted plants, aromatic herbs and flower arrangements. Each section will be judged and prizes given on Sunday at the closing ceremony. Nurseries of various agencies like DDA, PWD, NDMC, south and east municipal corporations and Delhi Metro are participating in competitions being held at the festival.
The festival will also showcase on-the-spot painting competition for children, magic shows, musical nights and cultural programmes by Punjabi and Urdu academies.
Kejriwal said, “I’ve come to this beautiful place for the first time. One of the prime goals of Delhi government is to make the city a tourism hub, both nationally and internationally.” He added that facilities for tourists would be increased and tourism sector will thereby contribute in generation of employment.
Tourism minister Jitendra Singh Tomar said, “Since there is lack of space in most localities, the concept of landscaping and hanging gardens will benefit people.”
The 20 acre venue is a serene place with more than 325 species of plants like palms and cacti, herbal gardens, tree museum, topiary, Zen and aromatic gardens as well as a butterfly zone.