More than 1.5 lakh people visited the 125 th Annual Flower Show here this year, said State Tourism Minister K. Ramachandran at the valedictory of the flower show held at the Government Botanical Garden here on Tuesday.
At the event, Mr. Ramachandran said the government continued to undertake efforts to improve tourism in the State, focusing on upgrading and building new facilities in all districts across Tamil Nadu to draw more tourists.
He said that in Udhagamandalam, a new multi-level parking facility was to be set up, while work was under way to set up an adventure sports facility at ₹5 crore at the Ooty Lake and Boat House.
The Minister said the government was pushing for the setting up of a rope car from Doddabetta to Manthada Junction, while the road to Doddabetta could also be expanded to handle more vehicle traffic.
The Minister also distributed prizes to private gardens, government gardens and home gardens that had entered the competition held during the flower show to judge the best gardens in Udhagamandalam. The Defence Services Staff College in Wellington, Coonoor, was awarded “The most prestigious honourable Chief Minister’s rolling cup for The Garden of the Year,” while the rolling gold cup for the “Bloom of the Show” was awarded to Jansi Kishore. The Nilgiris Collector S.P. Amrith was present.