Spring parade: Canal floats signal arrival of spring

Lotuses, butterflies and floats are on display in the canal.

LAHORE: A symbol of the beginning of spring, colourful floats on the Lahore Canal have been attracting a lot of attention since their opening on March 19.

Purple and yellow lotuses, colourful butterflies and floats are on display in the canal from The Mall to the Jail Road.

The show is part of the Parks and Horticulture Authority’s (PHA) Rang-i-Lahore festival. The floats include recreations of national monuments, including the Faisal Mosque, the Khyber Pass and Minar-i-Pakistan. Another depicts a scene from rural Punjab, where two women are ploughing a field.

Sami Ahmad, who had brought his six-year-old daughter to watch the floats, said that it was a beautiful sight. “My daughter had been insisting for a while to see the floats so I brought her here,” he said.

The show has attracted families, especially young children, sitting on benches in the green belt on both sides.

Sohail Bhatti, the PHA coordination director, said that Rs13.5 million had been spent on the decorations and the floats. “The primary purpose of the floats is to provide entertainment to the people. They cannot fail to attract people’s attention on this major road of the city,” he said.

“This year, we wanted to stress on the theme of peace and harmony,” Bhatti said. The floats also feature figures holding hands.

At night, the floats are illuminated with lighting. Traffic slows down as people want to take a look at the decorations.

Although most prefer to view the scene from their cars, those on motorbikes stop on the side of the road to get a closer look. The show will continue till April 5.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 22^nd, 2015.