LAHORE, Nov 14: A committee is examining the proposals submitted by the City District Government Community Development Department for making kite flying a safe sport.

This was stated by District Nazim Mian Amer Mahmud while speaking at a seminar on Kite Flying and Responsibilities of Government and Society organized by the Anjuman-i-Shehryan-i- Lahore at the Hamdard Centre here on Friday evening.

The district Nazim said that recommendations of the committee comprising newspaper editors, Lesco chief executive and prominent citizens would be forwarded to the provincial government for legislation. He said the kite flying was no doubt a part of the culture but it had become a threat to the lives of innocent citizens.

MPA Chaudhry Shaukat said that he belonged to the opposition but supported the ban on kite flying because it was a positive step of the CDG.

Lahore’s Jamaat-i-Islami Amir Mian Maqsud Ahmed said the CDG should not put the lives of seven million Lahorites at stake for pleasing a handful of kite lovers. Anjuman-i-Shehryan President Rana Nazrul Rehman said that Lahorites had welcomed the ban on kite flying. Parents should educate their children about the dangerous effects of flying kites with wire and glass-coated thread, he said.

Shahid Bilal said the bureaucratic patronage had played a significant role in popularizing the sport. He said that those fond of flying kites should go to open spaces outside the municipal limits.

Syed Moeen Arif said the citizens of Lahore had been held hostage by a handful of kite lovers. The ban had been imposed on the sport when it became a serious threat to the lives of the people, he said.