TOBA TEK SINGH: A number of farmers enjoyed a unique bull race at Pirmahal’s Nasir Nagar village on Sunday.

The sport highlighting a local tradition has been a regular feature for many decades and under rules, each bull pair runs around in a circle for two minutes and its rounds are counted.

A farmer, Asad Hafeez, told this correspondent that the bull pair of Mehr Talib Tharaj won the race by running in circle 60 times in two minutes, which is a record. He said the bulls of Mazhar Murali remained runner-up by completing 54 circles in two minutes.

Hafeez and Mehr Talib Hiraj said the race was a regular feature being arranged in Pirmahal for the last several decades.

They said it was a pity that the Punjab government had not included this unique sport in any of its festivals, and demanded that Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif recognise it by including it in next festival to encourage the farmers who spend a lot on care of their bulls.

MOURNING: The Christian community will observe a three-day mourning over the killing of 15 people in a suicide attack on two churches in Lahore on Sunday.

Announcing the decision in a condolence meeting held at the Catholic Church, Fr Yaqub Yousaf urged the Christian community to remain peaceful.

He demanded of the government to take immediate steps to protect the churches in the country.

Fr Zafar Iqbal, district PML-N’s minority wing president Rasheed Jalal, former district council member Ayub Anjum and other Christian leaders also spoke.

In Kamalia, former minority councillor Ashraf John Sindhu addressed a gathering of protesting Christians in a local Church and condemned the attack.

Published in Dawn, March 16th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play