Kite flyers to face off police today

First day of Basant to be celebrated despite ban

RAWALPINDI:

The Rawalpindi police have decided to take action against Basant celebrators in the garrison city as special squads have been formed that will use drone cameras to detect kite flyers, a spokesperson shared on Wednesday.

Despite the government ban, the Kite Flying Association (KFA) announced to celebrate Basant to welcome spring starting from Thursday (today) in cantonment areas and on February 25 and 26 in other areas of the city.

The spokesperson informed that special squads equipped with drone cameras, binoculars, and ladders will be deployed on more than 1,000 rooftops in densely populated areas to take action against those involved in kite flying.

He added that the squads will record the violators and send their footage to field officers after which cases against them will be registered.

Meanwhile, the police were unable to track down KFA representatives as they used social media to announce the Basant celebration, keeping their identities a secret.

In the wake of the announcement, kite flying enthusiasts all around the city have become active. Heavy sound systems are being installed on the roofs while fireworks have also been arranged, the official maintained.

Saddar, Tench Bhatta, Dhoke Syedan, Dhoke Chaudhry, 22 Chungi, Harley Street, Kalma Chowk, Lalkarti, Dhari Hassanabad, Mughalabad, Misrial, Chaudhry Harpal, Allahabad, Westridge, Chaklala Scheme 3, and Gulistan Colony will be the hot spots during the festival.

It may be recalled that despite a ban last year, many people celebrated the festival by flying kites and were also involved in aerial firing resulting in more than 50 injuries by chemical strings and bullets, collectively.

The police are rigorously conducting crackdowns to dismantle the supply chain run by kite flyers, the official assured.

Meanwhile, the Rawalpindi police have arrested 15 people in a crackdown against kite sellers and recovered a large number of kites and strings from their possession. Cases have been registered against all the suspects at different police stations.

According to details, City Police Station arrested an accused Usman, recovering 250 kites from his possession while Ratta Amral Police have apprehended Muhammad Nabil and Gul Shehzad, recovering 102 kites and two strings from their possession.

Furthermore, three suspects identified as Maqbool, Sahil, and Nabil Hassan were arrested by New Town police, recovering 75 kites and two strings from their possession while Sadiqabad police arrested two suspects, Bilal and Zubair, and recovered 50 kites and six strings from their possession.