BENGALURU: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah inaugurated the 218th Annual Fruit and Flower Show at Lalbagh Botanical Gardens on Thursday. The show, organised as part of Independence Day, is themed around historical figures Kittur Rani Chennamma and Sangolli Rayanna. The CM said the state government has set aside 110 acres of land, where Rayanna was hanged by the British during the freedom struggle, to set up a memorial.
Addressing media after the inauguration, the CM said, “Rani Chennamma fought two wars against the British. She won the first and was captured by the British in the second. People belonging to all caste segments were in her army, and Rayanna was her close confidante. He was very brave and was hanged by the British in 1831. The state government is allocating 110 acres of land to develop a memorial where he was hanged by the British.”
The CM was joined by Deputy Chief Minister and Bengaluru Development Minister DK Shivakumar, Horticulture Minister SS Mallikarjun, Transport Minister R Ramalinga Reddy and others. Meanwhile, the Lalbagh authorities have made an elaborate plan for the flower show, with replicas of Kittur Fort, Rani Chennamma Memorial, and Rayanna on horseback, apart from an eye-catching vertical garden. The authorities invested Rs 3 crore for the 12-day event.