World’s rarest flower Neelakurinji form a blue carpet on Idukki hills in Kerala after 12 years

Idduki: Blue Neelakurinji flowers bloomed over Idduki’s Shalom Hills at Kerela after 12 years. According to officials this rare flower has blanketed over more than 10 acres of land on Shalomkunnu this time.

This flower is called Neelakurinji or Kurinji in Malayalam and Tamil, also known as Strobilanthes Kunthiana world wide is a shrub that grows in the Shola forests of the Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu and Kerela. It is a rare species of flora than blooms once in every 12 years.

The Nilgiris Hills, which translates to Blue Mountains, got its name from these Neelakurinji flowers.

Isolated flowering of Neelakurinji was witnessed on Kizhakkethil and Puttady hills last month and on Pushpakandam Anakkara Mettu hills of the Western Ghats, last year. Experts say that isolated flowering of this flower does take place in various parts of the Western Ghats during different seasons.

As per the records, there are around 46 species of Neelakurinji available in India, and these flowers are a native to around 30 spots of Western Ghats. The spot that witnessed this splendid scene this year was last in its full glory 12 years ago. The next bloom is expected by 2033.