NAROWAL: The Pakistan Army team beat Wapda by one point in the slapping kabbadi match at Darianwala village near Narowal.

The competitors slapped each other during the scorching heat and the spectators applauded them for employing tricks. The fans also showered currency notes. The match continued for quite some time and the army team eventually was declared winner by scoring 31 points.

The management gave a cash prize of Rs300,000 to the winning team and Rs200,000 to the losing team.

Muhammad Anwar, a 90-year-old citizen, said he was very happy to see the traditional game of kabaddi. He said that before Pakistan came into being he used to go to the festival with his father and grandfather to watch kabaddi matches.

“There is a huge difference between past and present kabaddi,” he said. Earlier, the competitors used to play kabaddi with force but now they slap each other.

Other sport lovers said the young generation had lost touch with the traditional events and remained glued to mobile phones which was not a healthy sign. They demanded that the Punjab government should allocate funds for promotion of traditional sports and form clubs.

Published in Dawn, July 2nd, 2021