Bengaluru Awareness Program Urges Switch to Fresh Flowers over Synthetics

Bengaluru: While synthetic flowers have been gaining popularity, especially among middle-class people, an awareness programme was organised in front of Bonsai Park, Lalbagh, in Bengaluru city on Sunday to make them switch to fresh flowers.

To promote the use of fresh flowers, morning walkers to Lalbagh were given a rose with the tagline “Say No To Synthetic Flower”, and an estimated 5,000 walkers were given a rose on behalf of farmers to spread awareness on the use of fresh flowers. Walkers accepted the rose offered to them gleefully.

International Flower Auction, Bangalore, Assistant General Manager Veena told Deccan Chronicle that farmers will benefit if people use fresh flowers.

“There will be freshness by using natural flowers while artificial flowers are not environment friendly and health hazardous too,” she said. Though synthetic flowers are a one-time investment by customers, synthetic flowers are unsafe for the environment and would not degrade fast.

By conducting awareness programme, she said, “We intended to send a message to the people to prefer the use of natural flowers on special occasions, if possible daily.

Veena said that the awareness programme was the first of its kind to promote natural flowers in Bengaluru city, and the programme received an encouraging response from the people who received a rose.

At the function, Additional Chief Secretary Shalini Rajnish said that Bengaluru city is the hub of fresh flowers in the entire country. By buying fresh flowers, we should support our farmers. She said there are about 38,000 farmers growing flowers in Karnataka, and we are the biggest exporters of flowers as well.

The awareness programme was held in association with the Department of Horticulture, International Flower Auction Bangalore, Grower Flower Council of India and Agri Plast.