SIALKOT: Tormented by the ongoing hot and humid spell a large number of people, including women and children, on Sunday thronged the River Chenab banks near Head Marala for picnicking, many of them risking their lives by entering the river to cool off, flouting a ban imposed by the district administration a month back.

Head Marala has become a picnic spot for the residents of nearby towns and scores of people including government officials visit the place along with their families.

Some women picnickers were of the view that in the absence of any recreational facility, the river bank was the only place where they could spend some time to avoid the oppressive weather conditions. Besides openly violating the ban on bathing in the river, the visitors were witnessed dumping trash including food wrappers, empty juice packs, shopping bags etc.

There also occurred some incidents of harassment where groups of vagabonds teased the families visiting the place.

No officials of district administration and police were on the scene to check those violating the ban on entering the river.

Boats are also back in the river as the water level was rising due to the fresh spell of heavy rains in Sialkot region and melting of snow on mountains in Jammu & Kashmir, resulting in heavier inflows from the occupied territory after a six-year long closure of Chenab waters by India since 2008.

Published in Dawn, July 14th, 2014