Over two lakh more people visited the public parks and gardens in the valley during the four days of the Eid-ul-Adha festival, particularly in Srinagar.

During the Eid festival, the valley’s parks and gardens saw a rush of 2.18 lakh people, which is ten times higher than the typical footfall, according to a senior official at the Floriculture Department. “During the Eid festival, especially Eid-ul-Adha, people visiting parks and gardens is normal, but this year, the footfall is much higher,” the man remarked.

The paid parks and gardens in south Kashmir saw nearly 94,000 visitors during the Eid days, compared to about 74,000 the year before, according to department officials.

Of the approximate footfall of visitors in south Kashmir, 85,000 were locals while over 9,600 were from other states of the country, an official said. “In South Kashmir, Kokernag recorded a footfall of around 16,000 followed by 15,000 visitors at nine parks and gardens of Pahalgam. Achabal and Verinag recorded over 9,000 and 8,000 respectively.”

As per the officials, Srinagar’s paid parks and gardens recorded a footfall of over 1.20 lakh people, including both locals and tourists. They said 30,000 people visited Nishat, Shalimar, Harwan, Chesmashahi, and Pari Mahal on Sunday.

Among the paid gardens and parks in Srinagar, Nishat recorded around 39,000 visitors during the Eid holidays, the highest number among all the gardens in Srinagar, with 13,000 people visiting the park on Sunday.

According to the officials, the popular Badamwari garden in the centre of Srinagar’s downtown area saw over 8,000 visitors, the most of whom were from the valley. Iqbal Park and Children’s Park also saw a considerable influx of locals on the occasion of Eid ul-Adha.

The administrators claimed that they had made all necessary arrangements for guests, including restrooms, drinking fountains, trash cans, wheelchairs for the disabled, etc.

The valley is home to a number of parks and gardens that are managed by the Floriculture Department and are open to the public for free.