Shillong looks all pink and white these days as tourists are greeted with blossoming cherry trees all the way up from the Umiam lake.
Over 2,000 cherry trees have unfolded their pink and white charm along the roads under a project sponsored by the Meghalaya government and the National Institute of Bio-Resources and Sustainable Development.
Thousands of cherry blossom trees were planted in the month of May with Chief Minister Mukul Sangma ceremonially planting a sapling in the Ward’s lake, the director of the institute, Dinabandhu Sahoo, said.
The move was assisted by the Japanese Cherry Blossom Association, a six-member team of which had visited the picturesque city in September, last year, Sahoo said.
“However, the white-and-pink riot of colours is very short-lived as in less than two weeks the big trees will shed their leaves,” he said.
Though the cherry blossom tree is of Himalayan origin, Japan has taken the lead in cultivating it in a big way, even taking up an initiative “Cherry Blossom Initiative” in countries like the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil and Nepal, Sahoo said.