Annual Floral Carnival at Ooty
Will the rains play spoil sport? This question has started doing the rounds among those entrusted with the task of organising the two day Annual Floral Carnival at the Government Botanical Garden (GBG) here on May 19 and 20.Having prayed for several weeks for a respite from the prolonged dry spell, the organisers are now hoping that the weather pattern would change again.The occurrence of heavy rains almost everyday has become a source of concern to the organisers.Stating that a mixture of sunshine and rain over the next few weeks would be ideal, the Manager of the GBG N. Mani told here on Friday that if the wet conditions continued and the sky remains overcast flowers like Petunia and Inca Marigold would rot.Since there was still a month to go for the AFC the organisers were now at the mercy of the weather gods. Some parts of the garden like the Japanese section were waterlogged in the downpour on Thursday. The rains have made the underfoot conditions particularly on the sprawling main lawn (one of the most attractive features of the GBG) soggy.
With thousands of tourists walking and playing on it everyday it was losing its lustre. Consequently it has been cordoned off. Till the end of April it will remain out of bounds for the tourists.However the rains have rendered the surroundings verdant. The Comissioner, Ooty Municipality Seeni Ajmal Khan said that the rains have marginally benefited some of the reservoirs.
