Pindi dons red on Valentine's Day

Gift shops, parks packed as flower sales surge across the city

RAWALPINDI:

Valentine's Day, celebrated on Saturday, was marked with enthusiasm by young revellers across the city, with heavy crowds reported at recreational parks and gift shops.

From early evening, popular outlets ran out of Valentine-themed gifts as shoppers snapped up gift hampers in large numbers.

Shops were attractively decorated for the occasion with colourful bunting, electric lights, red-themed gifts and flowers, drawing crowds from Friday night onwards.

The flower markets in Raja Bazaar, Saddar and Banni witnessed a surge in footfall, with vendors displaying elaborate arrangements of red roses and rose petals, alongside fresh and artificial red flowers.

Prices varied widely: rose petals sold for around Rs600 per kilogramme; a single fresh red rose for Rs150; bouquets for about Rs700; small artificial red flowers for Rs100; a single artificial stem for Rs200; red decorative cushions for Rs500; heart-shaped décor items between Rs500 and Rs1,000; red-coloured sweets at around Rs1,800 per kilogramme; a decorated red ladies' muffler for Rs750; and red ladies' suits priced between Rs5,000 and Rs15,000.

Temporary stalls selling fresh red flowers and gifts were set up at recreational spots including Ayub Park, Jinnah Park, Romi Park, Ladies Park, Allama Iqbal Park and Shakarparian. Working women and young girls were also seen selling fresh red flowers at leisure venues and major intersections.

Meanwhile, some families observed the day as Youm-e-Haya (Day of Modesty), offering special prayers and distributing pamphlets discouraging what they termed the excesses associated with Valentine's Day. Families and parents exchanged gifts with children, while brothers presented gifts to sisters.

The police had put in place special security arrangements at recreational sites for the day, with additional deployments of police officers and private security guards to maintain order.