RAWALPINDI: As many as 65 people were injured in incidents related to kite flying and firing in the air as residents of the garrison city celebrated Basant despite a ban imposed by police on the activity.

A six-year-old boy lost his life after falling from a rooftop, allegedly while flying a kite in Dhoke Kala Khan. However, the police claim that the boy’s death was not related to kite flying. The child was identified as Saqib and as per the police, he died after accidentally falling from the roof. They also released a video statement of the boy’s uncle confirming their claim.

Eight of the injured people, including children aged eight and 12, sustained bullet injuries caused by stray bullets.

Even though, all possible measures had been taken to prevent people from flying kites and firing in the air, citizens were seen flouting the ban. As many as 16 injured persons were shifted to District Headquarters (DHQ) Hospital.

Buzdar seeks report from commissioner, RPO; several people suffer bullet wounds; police register 210 FIRs against violators

Anum Adeel, 12, and Ali Khan, 8, suffered bullet injuries, however, their condition was stated to be stable. The remaining injured persons received multiple cuts and wounds either by falling or from kite string.

Nisa Fatima, 34, a resident of Lalazar, was travelling on a motorcycle with her husband when she suffered a deep cut on her left foot due to a kite string on Adiala Road. She was provided first aid by Rescue 1122 staff.

Nasir Qureshi, 25, resident of Adiala Road, sustained a cut on his neck and was shifted to Benazir Bhutto Hospital (BBH) where he was stated to be in stable condition.

On the other hand, Chief Traffic Officer Naveed Irshad visited police pickets set up on different roads and overhead bridges. The district police have been taking action against kite flyers through digital monitoring while the purpose of installing pickets at overhead bridges and other places by the traffic police is to speed up this process.

“I urge parents to show responsibility and keep a close eye on their children and avoid bloody games like kite flying,” he said.

In order to avoid any injury from kite string, those travelling on motorcycles can use safety wire, he said.

“It looked like there was no police in the city today because we have not heard so many gunshots in the past,” citizen Mohammad Azhar said.

Nazir Ahmed, a resident of Arya Mohallah, said people were flying kites without any fear of police.

According to City Police Officer (CPO) Omer Saeed Malik police registered 210 first information reports (FIRs) against kite flyers on Friday.

He further revealed that 849 FIRs had been registered so far this year compared to 346 in 2021.

The sky was dotted with kites while youngsters could be seen on rooftops and many children running on roads and streets with bamboo sticks to catch stray kites. Traffic jams were also witnessed in some areas of the city.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has expressed indignation over various incidents related to kite flying and firing in the air in Rawalpindi.

He took notice of the situation and sought a report from the commissioner and RPO.

Mr Buzdar said police and the administration should have taken preemptive measures to cope with such incidents. The best medical facilities must be provided to the injured, he said, adding that such violations of law would not be tolerated.

He directed police and administration to ensure the strict implementation of the ban on kite flying and added that indiscriminate action should be taken against those who were involved in such activities.— Aamir Yasin also contributed to the story

Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2022