Water sports: Khanpur festival draws to a close

Varying estimates put the number of attendees between 50,000 to 150,000.

HARIPUR: The three-day long Khanpur water sports festival ended amid colourful fireworks and mesmerising performances by folk artists here on Sunday.

The Tourism Corporation Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (TCKP) arranged the regatta at the famous Khanpur Lake and entertained a sizeable crowd of tourists from across Pakistan, and abroad as well.

“We have successfully attracted 150,000 visitors during the three days,” claimed the event manager, Rameez Ali while speaking to the media. He added that such festivals were essential to promote the diverse culture and customs of K-P.

However, Naseer, a local contractor who offered his plot as a parking lot, contested the official claim, saying the crowd was not beyond 50,000.

He said the reason was the rain and chilly weather, but added that a comparatively larger audience showed up on Sunday.

Munir Hazara, Khadija Haider, Rizwan Khan, Hamayoon Khan, Mustafa and Maira, Bakhtiyar Khatak and singer Fakhir were the artists who enthralled the audience with their songs during the event.

K-P Minister for Tourism Mehmood Khan, Secretary Tourism Hassan Khan, TCKP Managing Director Mushtaq Ahmad Khan and General Manager Muhammed Ali Syed were among the government officials who visited Khanpur.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 24^th, 2014.