The Valley of Flowers, Uttakhand

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This is a collection of articles archived for the excellence of their content.

Brahmkamal

The Times of India, Aug 17 2015

The Valley of Flowers; Graphic courtesy: The Times of India, Aug 17 2015

Seema Sharma

Brahmkamal, the state flower of Uttarakhand, blooms in its alpine pastures between July and August each year. In 2015, however, the growth of Brahmkamal as well as other flowering species is poor in high-altitude forest divisions like the Valley of Flowers National Park, Badrinath Forest Division, Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary, and Rudraprayag Roopkund.Worried that climate change may be affecting flowering, the forest department has proposed a study of the phenomenon.Akash Verma, who served as forest officer of the Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary until recently, said, “Brahmkamal, which used to spread across the Valley of Flowers like a carpet, has been reduced to just a few flowers here and there. Certain species have not bloomed at all.“ He blames it on climate change. “In lower areas like Gopeshwar, it snowed six to seven inches in December after 22 years. Plants have not received enough sunlight owing to the snowfall pattern and heavy rain in 2015.“