How tulips that grow only in spring were made available for Ram Mandir ceremony in January?

“Tulip does not bloom in this season. It grows only in J&K and a few other Himalayan regions, that too only in the spring," said union minister Jitendra Singh.

A special kind of tulipr was sent for the Ram Mandir consecration ceremony, which blooms not only in spring but year-round, union minister Jitendra Singh said.

Representative Image: Tulips in bloom inside a tulip growth cum storage chamber ((PTI Photo/Kamal Kishore))

The science & technology minister said in a release on Sunday that tulips specially grown by the CSIR-Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (IHBT) in Palampur have been sent to the Ram Mandir consecration ceremony.

Explaining the uniqueness, Singh said that tulips typically bloom only in the spring season in specific regions, but the recently developed indigenous technology has enabled the flower to remain available year-round, breaking away from its seasonal limitations.

“Tulip does not bloom in this season. It grows only in Jammu & Kashmir and a few other higher Himalayan regions and that too only in the spring season. The CSIR-IHBT has recently developed an indigenous technology through which tulip could be made available throughout the year, without waiting for its season,” he said.

Singh lauded the impact of CSIR technologies in everyday life, saying that the institute's labs across the country are modern monuments of New India. He further highlighted the roles played by the Indian Institute of Integrative Medicines (IIIM) in Jammu in the Aroma Mission and Purple Revolution. Through these initiatives, the government aims to promote the indigenous aromatic crop-based agro-economy.

Namoh 108 lotus - lotus that blooms from March to December

Additionally, Singh said that the National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI) in Lucknow has achieved a milestone by developing a new lotus variety named ‘NBRI Namoh 108’.

This lotus variety blooms from March to December and is not only visually appealing but also rich in nutrients. It holds the distinction of being the first lotus variety whose genome is fully sequenced for its unique characteristics, he added.