Even as the stage is set for the conduct of the three-day 118th Annual Floral Carnival (AFC), the feature event of the on-going summer tourist season in this hill station, a question bothering the organisers and others is, will rain play spoilsport?
The town and its surroundings have been experiencing sudden downpours, of late.
Even on Wednesday some parts of Udhagamandalam received moderate to heavy rains.
While the rains have been welcomed by all here, particularly the farming community, the weather pattern has been a source of concern to those behind the conduct of the AFC, which begins on Friday.
Though usually the show is organised during the third weekend of May, this year it was decided to put it off by a week on account of the counting of votes polled in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections on May 16.
Expressing the hope that the weather would be tourist-friendly on the show days, a horticulture official told The Hindu that no efforts would be spared in making the show, one of the most memorable ones.
The Nilgiris Collector P. Sankar said that the show would be inaugurated by Agriculture Minister Agri S.S. Krishnamoorthy.
Municipal Commissioner K. Sivakumar said that special teams have been formed to take care of basic amenities at the venue.
While about 70 conservancy staff will help in keeping the garden clean, about 20 others will ensure that the venue does not run out of water.
There will be sufficient number of municipal workers even at the other tourist spots like the Ooty Lake and the Government Rose Garden.
Pointing out that elaborate traffic arrangements have been made, police said that only ascending vehicles would be allowed on the Mettupalayam – Coonoor - Ooty road. Vehicles going towards Mettupalayam from Ooty will be diverted via Kotagiri.
The local police would be assisted by a large number of police from the plains in handling the traffic and providing security to the tourists.
Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation has made arrangements to ply special buses from Coimbatore, Erode, Tirupur, Mettupalayam and nearby places to Ooty on the show days. Steps have also been taken to press into service more circuit buses.
