March 1, 2003	Saturday	Zul Hijjah 27, 1423

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RAWALPINDI, Feb 28: The residents of Rawalpindi on Friday enthusiastically celebrated the officially-banned and rain- affected Basant festival, in which about 60 people, mostly children, were injured.

The condition of at least three patients — one in Rawalpindi General Hospital and two in Holy Family Hospital — was stated to be serious by the doctors. Most of the injured came to the hospitals with head injuries, cuts and fractures.

The district government, earlier last month, had put a ban on celebrating Basant, saying it was un-Islamic.

Despite the ban, there wasn’t any check on the sale of kites or strings (Dor). The prices of kites ranged from Rs2 to Rs30 and Rs40, depending on the size. Though a large number of string makers had been preparing for the event well in advance, the more enthusiastic kite flyers bought their kites and Dor from Lahore.

The Basant enthusiasts restarted their day early Friday morning after whole-heartedly enjoying kite flying the previous night. The government ban on display of arms and use of explosives was violated with impunity as police watched as silent spectators. People benefited from every possible opportunity available to them as rain continued intermittently throughout the day.

Aerial firing was witnessed in invariably all parts of the city, but the areas where its intensity was much higher were Satellite Town, Banni, Purana Qilla, Gawalmandi and adjoining areas. The merry-makers used crackers and played high-pitched music, besides honking horns. Most parts of the city bathed in flood-light late Thursday night, presenting a festive atmosphere.

As the celebrations resumed on Friday morning, the cloudy skies dotted with colourful kites gave a pleasant look.

The day, celebrated to welcome the arrival of spring and bid farewell to the winter, must have been a memorable for many. While many had fun flying kites, street children, who spent the whole day running after the stray kites with bamboo sticks in their hands, enjoyed it no less.

These enthusiastic kite collectors were seen endangering their lives while crossing busy roads with eyes focussed on approaching kites, climbing trees, scaling walls and jumping from roof-tops.

This act of collecting stray kites, locally known as “Guddi Lootna”, does not end with bagging the kite, but the string attached is also untangled and wound into ball. These collectors of stray kites are a serious problem for the motorists, as they start running on the roads, least concerned about the traffic. During the day, several scuffles between the kite flyers and kite collectors were also witnessed.

People had invited their close relatives and friends to their homes to share the joyous moments of the occasion, and entertained them with traditional cuisines.

Basant celebrations were initially confined to Lahore and its surroundings, but over the years, the event has become popular in other areas as well.