A day before Diwali, the Old Delhi Road flower market, opposite the police lines, turned into a vibrant sea of colour, fragrance, and festive chaos. From the crack of dawn, hundreds of shoppers thronged the roadside stalls to buy marigolds, roses, lotuses, and garlands for puja, decoration, and gifting, while traders rejoiced over what they called their best business day of the year.
By 4am, the market was already in full bloom. Trucks from Delhi, Jaipur, and Bengaluru arrived in quick succession, unloading mountains of flowers as vendors scrambled to sort and sell. The air grew thick with the scent of blossoms and the chatter of buyers bargaining, while garland makers strung together Ashoka leaves and bright yellow-orange marigolds with practised hands.
“On Friday, marigold was ₹100 a kilogram. “On Sunday it’s ₹200, and on Monday it might go up to ₹300,” said Raju Verma, a wholesale trader at the market. “There’s no dedicated flower mandi in Gurugram, so we sell here outside the police lines. The demand is huge, especially for marigolds, roses, lotuses, and garlands made from Ashoka leaves. People are buying in bulk.”
According to traders, around 20 to 25 varieties of flowers and garlands are sold every morning during the festive season. By 7 am, the narrow stretch was overflowing with residents, temple priests, hotel decorators, and housing society organisers, all competing for the freshest stock before it vanished.
“This is the only wholesale point in Old Gurugram. We start setting up by 3 am. Every year, there’s a rush before Diwali, but this time, sales have nearly doubled. Even the small garland makers have no time to rest,” said Mukesh Yadav, who has been selling flowers here for more than ten years.
The surge in demand has led to a sharp spike in prices. Bulk orders from societies, temples, and offices have left smaller customers paying higher rates in the open market. “I came early to avoid the rush, but by 6 am, prices had already shot up. Last year, I got two kilos of marigold for ₹150. This year, I paid ₹400. Still, we can’t imagine Diwali without these flowers… they bring a sense of joy and warmth that nothing else can,” said Seema Sharma, a Sector 15 resident.
Despite the cheerful rush, space and infrastructure constraints remain a major issue. The roadside stretch outside the police lines witnessed minor traffic congestion as cars and two-wheelers squeezed in to load flower baskets. Traders continue to operate informally from the same spot every year, with no official mandi space or parking zone.
“We have been asking for a proper flower mandi for years. Every festival, the crowd keeps growing, but the facilities don’t. Still, we make it work — somehow, the festival spirit keeps us going,” said Sanjay Rana, another shopkeeper.
In a move set to boost Haryana’s floriculture economy, the state government has approved the development of the region’s biggest wholesale flower market in Sector 109, Pawala Khusrupur village, Gurugram. Spread across 10 acres near the Dwarka Expressway, the NCR’s largest flower mandi will serve farmers, traders, retailers, and consumers. First proposed in 2019 and later stalled, the project was revived after Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini announced its inclusion in the 2025 state budget. It will be jointly executed by HSAMB and GMDA, officials said, adding that land identified by HSVP awaits final approval from MCG headquarters.
As the morning sun filtered through strings of marigold and lotus garlands, the market shimmered like a festival of its own — a fleeting, fragrant reflection of Diwali’s enduring joy. Amid the laughter, chaos, and devotion, one garland maker summed it up perfectly: “By night, these flowers will fade—but for now, they carry the scent of happiness across the city.”