Cooling rains put a spring in Eid celebrations

LAHORE: Eidul-Fitr celebrations in the city were at their peak on Wednesday as rain brought a much needed reprieve from two days of hot and humid weather.

A large number of locals came out with their families and thronged public parks, play lands, the zoo and other recreational facilities.

Fun seekers, especially children, had a great time at Lahore Zoo, Safari Park, the Greater Iqbal Park, Bagh-e-Jinnah, Jillani Park, Jallo Park, Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, Nawaz Sharif Park, Model Town Park, Sozo Water Parks and other spots.

Muhammad Karim, who was enjoying the pleasant weather with family members at Jillani Park, pointed out that the harsh and humid summer had almost roasted Lahorites on the first two days of Eid. “The whole city has been washed and now wears a greener look. You can see that everywhere in the city, people are enjoying Eid and the associated cuisines, apart from spending quality time with families,” he said.



A visitor to the Lahore Fort, Naeem Khan, said his family planned to spend the whole day at different recreation sites thanks to the weather. “Now, after visiting Greater Iqbal Park, we are heading towards Badshahi Mosque. Later, we will have dinner at a Pakistani restaurant in the nearby Fort Road Food Street. Today is the last holiday and the weather is really pleasant,” he said with a smile.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Wakeel Ahmed, a security official at the Greater Iqbal Park, said he witnessed a huge rush over the last three days. “I believe over 50,000 people have visited the park. Even the rain cannot deter visitors and the park administration is expecting more by evening,” he maintained.

As always, Lahore Zoo remained the favourite recreation spot for young children during Eid holidays. The administration estimated that around 250,000 people, including families, had spent their holidays in the zoo. However, there was a little drop in the number of visitors due to the rain, an official said.

Despite the rain and mud in some public parks, people mostly enjoyed the weather. However, a few complained about water accumulated in the lawns. Some stressed that park administrations should use pumps to get rid of the water and make all facilities functional.



Recently, a new trend of big shopping malls has flourished in the city. These state-of-the-art centres have huge areas and food courts which remained the focus of families. However, several people complained that the city traffic police failed to prevent jams at these malls. They added people suffered for hours in traffic jams in front of these malls.

Security

City police also devised a comprehensive security plan to control the law and order situation. The police department deployed over 7,000 officials in the provincial metropolis to perform various patrolling and security duties.

Special police contingents were deployed at public parks and important building in the city. Police officials were also seen checking vehicles at entry points of the city. City Traffic Police had also deployed extra warden at rushy places, especially near big shopping malls and public parks, and lifted wrongly parked vehicles and removed encroachments for smooth flow of traffic.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 29^th, 2017.

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