Tulip garden

In Srinagar Asia’s biggest tourist garden on the banks of the famed Dal Lake in Indian Kashmir will serve as an enticing invitation for tourism in the state.Here 60 varieties of tulips at Sirajbagh, a vast fertile stretch of land situated at the foothills of the Zabarwan Mountains on the banks of the Dal Lake in Srinagar. The authorities have managed to grow as many as sixty varieties of the flower imported from Holland.



An explosion of colour in Asia's largest recreational tulip garden has emerged after 60 varieties were imported from Netherlands and planted in the Siraj Bagh Tulip Garden only a few months ago.



"There are 12 lakh tulips. People from all over country, all over India should come and see themselves. Now they don't need to go to Holland and they can have view of tulips. People from film Industry and tourists should come here,"



The tulip bloom coincides with the almond bloom in Kashmir. And by constructing tulip and almond gardens on the bank of Dal Lake government is using flower power to attract tourists to Kashmir.

Hari Parbat Fort

On the banks of the Dal Lake of Srinagar, the Mughal fort is situated, it is positioned on top of the Sharika Hill. It has a Parvati temple on the western slope and the Muslim shrines of Khwaja Makhdoom Sahib and Akhund Mullah Shah on the southern one. On the southern side of the outer wall there is a Guru Dwara, which commemorates the visit of Guru Hargobind Singh.



Originally, it was built during the reign of Akbar but its present structure owes itself to the Afghan governor of Kashmir in the 18th century. Presently the fort is under army occupation.
According to the local legend, this hill was once a lake as large as a sea and was inhabited by the abominable demon known as Jalobhava. The inhabitants called on Goddess Sati, spouse of Lord Shiva for her help. She took the form of a bird and dropped a pebble on the demon's head, which kept on increasing in size until the demon was crushed by it. Hari Parbat is revered as that pebble and it is said to have become the home for all 33 crore gods of the Hindu pantheon.

Another version of the myth that involves the hill, says that two demons, Tsand and Mond occupied the fair valley. Tsand conceded himself in water near the present location of Hari Parbat and Mond somewhere above the present Dal Gate. They were a menace to the people of the valley, which could not be inhabited owing to their dreaded presence. Thus, the gods invoked Goddess Parvati who assumed the form of a Hor (myna) and flew to Sumer from where she got a pebble in her beak and threw it on the demon Tsand to crush him. The pebble grew into a mountain. She is worshipped as Sharika in Shri Tsakra (an emblem of cosmic energy pervading the universe) occupying the middle part of the western slope of the hill. The hill is also called Predemna Peet or Kohi Maran.