Independence Day flower show to celebrate Rani Chennamma, Rayanna at Lalbagh Botanical Garden
Bengaluru: The Horticulture Department has commenced preparations for the annual Independence Day Flower Show at Lalbagh Botanical Garden, with notable efforts underway, including freshly painted walkways and well-maintained hedges, signalling the onset of the much-anticipated event.
This year’s flower show will be themed around “Kittur Rani Chennamma and Sangolli Rayanna,” as reported by Deccan Herald.
The 218th edition of the flower show will be held over 12 days, from August 7 to 18. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is scheduled to inaugurate the event on August 7. As part of the festivities, an Ikebana workshop for women and children will be conducted on August 9 at 1:00 PM, featuring sessions on floral arrangements and vegetable carving.
Entry tickets are priced at Rs 80 for adults on weekdays and Rs 100 on weekends. Students above the age of 12 will be charged Rs 30, while uniformed school students will be granted free entry on working days.
“New staff, vehicles, home guards, and volunteers will be deployed to maintain cleanliness throughout the show,” DH quoted M. Jagdeesh, Joint Director of the Horticulture Department, as saying. He added that the flower show will remain eco-friendly with no-plastic zones and enhanced cleaning measures in place, despite an anticipated footfall of 9 to 10 lakh visitors.
Police personnel will be deployed for security, and parking facilities will be arranged. However, only school buses and emergency vehicles will be permitted entry into the park premises.
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VHP slams Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge for 'money laundering' comment on RSS
Nagpur (PTI): The Vishva Hindu Parishad on Monday slammed Karnataka Congress minister Priyank Kharge for linking the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh to money laundering and asserted such statements were part of a strategy to insult patriotic organisations and defame patriots.
Kharge, while speaking at an event in Bengaluru on Sunday, cited the RSS' "network of more than 2,500 organisations, they are from America, England" to allege "these people are into money laundering".
Addressing a press conference here, VHP national organisational secretary Milind Parande said such statements will reduce the acceptance in society of those making them.
"They are trying to increase their credibility and trying to indulge in appeasement (with such remarks), both of which will not succeed. There are many forces and persons in India who have a problem with the awakening of Hindutva. They are coming up with such nonsense. Using such words and insulting patriotic organisations shows their intellectual bankruptcy," he said.
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"It will reduce their acceptance in society. What he (Kharge) said is absolutely false and even they know it. But they do it as a strategy to defame patriots. The people of Karnataka must think whether such people should be brought back to power. Hence, the VHP always asserts those who believe in the interests of Hindus must be in power at the Centre and in the states," Parande added.
Asked about the BNP winning polls in Bangladesh and whether it will improve the conditions of the Hindus there, Parande said it is expected that the community is protected irrespective of who is in power. So far, people there have been incapable of protecting Hindus, he said in reference to attacks on the community since the Sheikh Hasina government fell following an uprising in August 2024.
Asserting that most of the violence has been sponsored by political parties, Parande said, "The Hindu community is in a very dangerous situation in Bangladesh."
He also refused to comment on the face-off between the Uttar Pradesh government and Swami Avimukteshwaranand during Magh Mela festivities in Prayagraj. A controversy erupted on Mauni Amavasya morning at the Sangam Nose when police, citing heavy crowd pressure, allegedly stopped the seer from proceeding to the Sangam in a palanquin along with a large number of supporters.
The VHP as a practice does not give a statement on disputes between saints as it would not be appropriate, Parande said.
Without taking the name of Maharashtra Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal, the VHP leader said it was surprising anyone from the state can make such a remark about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The Congress leader has courted controversy by equating 18th Mysuru ruler Tipu Sultan with the founder of the Maratha Empire.
On some persons sprinkling cow urine to purify a temple in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar following the visit of Muslim Shiv Sena MLA Abdul Sattar in Sillod on Mahashivratri on Sunday, Parande said places of worship must be visited by those who have faith.
Without genuine sentiment, it becomes a mere political stunt, he said.
"Religion should never be exploited for political gain, as that insults faith," Parande said while not commenting on the 'purification' episode linked to the incident.
