Neelakurinji or just kurinji as it is known as spread its carpet in the shola forests of the Western Ghats in South India. Strobilanthes kunthianus is the scientific name of the blue or purple coloured flowers that bloom only once every 12 years. So finally the wait is over and the hills will once again adorn its beautiful dress making it a picturesque location. Eravikulam National Park in Kerala's Munnar gets visitors from different countries to see this beauty.
Ahead of the flowering season, the national park has started accepting online ticket booking. About 75 per cent of the total tickets are available online and remaining 25 percent will be sold to visitors from counters at Marayoor Wildlife Complex and Old Munnar.
Every 12 years, the hills of Munnar, Kerala burst into a sea of blue. Tiny blue flowers called Neelakurinji carpet the hills providing a beautiful spectacle. Why go for cherry blossom to Japan when you can see this lovely sight in India between July to October ‘18 ? pic.twitter.com/LSGijttv1v
— Harsh Goenka (@hvgoenka) June 29, 2018
The counters at the park will be non-functional at the time. Visitors who book the tickets online will be able to visit the park on August 1. The number of visitors will be limited to 3,500 per day. You can visit www.munnarwildlife.com or www.eravikulamnationalpark.com to make the bookings. You can read more about the flowers here.
Watch the video here:
The cost per ticket will be Rs 120 per for adults and Rs 90 for children. For using a camera inside the park, Rs 40 will be charged. However, the tickets will cost Rs 400 for tourists from outside the country. Neelakurinji bloomed last at the Eravikulam National Park in 2006. According to the park's website, they received as many as three lakh tourists during that time. This time the officers are expecting around five lakh tourists this time.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 30, 2018 09:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).