In a bid to revive Kashmir’s tourism sector, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today inaugurated Bagh-e-Gul-e-Dawood, the Valley’s first-ever Chrysanthemum Garden. The new attraction adds a vibrant burst of colour to Kashmir’s fading autumn landscape, offering a fresh draw for visitors ahead of winter.
Spread across 100 kanals and developed at a cost of Rs 1.869 crore, the garden showcases more than 50 varieties of chrysanthemums in vivid shades of yellow, red, pink, and purple. Designed to extend the tourism season beyond autumn, the new theme garden is expected to draw visitors well into early winter.
After inauguration, Omar Abdullah toured the garden and interacted with floriculturists, gardeners, and visitors. He commended the Department of Floriculture, Parks and Gardens for “creating a new reason for tourists to visit Kashmir in the autumn months.”
Omar Abdullah noted that he had laid the foundation stone of Bagh-e-Gul-e-Dawood in November last year. He said the garden was modeled on the success of the Tulip Garden, which had become a global attraction for spring tourism. “The Chrysanthemum Garden will do for autumn what the Tulip Garden did for spring,” he said.
An exhibition of ornamental plants, lavender, and seasonal blooms cultivated by local growers was also inaugurated on the occasion. The Chief Minister appreciated the craftsmanship of local floriculturists whose efforts, he said, reflected the growing professionalism in Kashmir’s horticultural sector.
The inauguration was attended by MLA Zadibal Tanveer Sadiq, Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister Dheeraj Gupta, Commissioner Secretary Floriculture Zubair Ahmed, Secretary Culture, Director Floriculture Kashmir, and other senior officials.
To mark the launch, a parallel floral show was organised at Lal Chowk, where hundreds of potted chrysanthemums lined the city center, drawing curious onlookers and tourists. The display aimed to bring a glimpse of the new garden to the heart of Srinagar and promote local flower growers supported by the Floriculture Department.
The garden’s establishment has been supported by the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Kashmir (SKUAST-K), whose floriculture experts provided technical guidance and plant material. SKUAST-K, the region’s premier agricultural institution, has played a key role in developing Kashmir’s floriculture sector through research on high-altitude flower cultivation and training programs for local growers.
With the opening of Bagh-e-Gul-e-Dawood, Kashmir adds a new attraction to its tourism calendar, blending natural beauty with scientific expertise to enrich the Valley’s autumn landscape.
