Basant in Pakistan: Kills Twenty with over 500 Injured
By Omair Rasheed - Pakistan Times Staff Correspondent / PT Staffers

LAHORE: As the joyful people of the Punjab metropolis celebrated the festival of Basant, the herald of Spring in Pakistan with traditional extravagance on Sunday, shocks jolted multiple dwellers who lost their loved ones in tragic episodes.

Reports filed by ‘Pakistan Times’ staffers till mid-night speak of awful incidents during the past 24 hours wherein almost 20 people lost their lives with over 500 injured—some of them are reported to be in critical condition in sickbays.

The overall number of causalities could increase, as there could still be similar occurrences, which remain unreported from within the jurisdiction of Lahore as well as from elsewhere, explicitly from the remote areas in Pakistan.

Sorry to say that most of the victims were kids, who succumbed to the wounds, inflicted by lethal strings alike sharp wires which are used for Kite-Flying.

Though the use of such filament as thread to fly the kites was banned by authorities, the affluent, born with a silver spoon in mouth did not care and clutched their delight to their fullest satisfaction—least bothered about the catastrophes the elfin class could face.

Stray Kites

Seven persons were crushed to death while trying to catch stray kites, six others died after falling from rooftop of their houses, two teenaged boys died after being hit by stray bullets in two different incidents in Gowalmandi, while a 7-years old boy was electrocuted and a four years-old girl was killed when a stray string slit open her throat.

At least 500 persons were injured due to similar causes, though a large number of those on the injury list were in fact hit by stray bullets. At least 54 of the 180 injured treated at the Mayo Hospital emergency ward, were hit by stray bullets, which exposed the tall claims of the city police of having kept a strict check on aerial firing.

“We have received at least 180 injured people at the Emergency Department since 3.00 am Sunday,” a Senior Medical Officer (SMO) at the Mayo Hospital said, adding that 54 of them were brought with bullet injuries.

Aerial Firing and Other Incidents

Throughout the day, the city remained echoing with aerial firing and fireworks, and peaked at the sun set. Some police officials, however, had a different story to narrate. “We could not control aerial firing due to the official duties,” a senior police officer said. He claimed that heavy police contingents were deployed on protocol and VVIP duties.

While the use of metal twine led to power breakdowns all day long, it also proved fatal in some cases. Two minors were electrocuted when metal twine came in contact with power cables.

Rescue (1122) officials said they picked up at least 24 patients whose throats were cut by twine at different roads, and shifted them to hospitals. “Majority of them were on motorcycles when they came in contact with twines,” an official said.

Seven people with severe head injuries died in the Lahore General Hospital (LGH), officials said. “At least 156 people majority of children and teenagers, have been admitted to the Neuro-surgery and Orthopedic Departments of the LGH,” on-duty doctors said Sunday evening.

They said that most of such cases include people with broken bones and head injuries.

The emergency wards of Services Hospital, Children’s Hospital and Institute of Child Health (CH&ICH), Sir Ganga Ram Hospital were also packed to their capacity, according to the Emergency Departments management of the said hospitals.

“We are providing free of cost medical treatment to these patients at the Emergency Units and are shifting them to other wards after initial medical treatment,” they added.

The Victims

Police said Miran Shah (16) of Nisbat road Gowalmandi was flying kite when a stray bullet hit him. As a result he received serious head injuries and was rushed to the General Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

In the second incident, Noman (13) of Temple road Mozang also received stray bullet in head and he was shifted to General Hospital where he died.

Throat Slit

In another incident, twine of a stray kite slit the throat of a four years old girl Kashafa of Peco Road Liaquatabad when she was going alongwith her father on a motorbike. She was taken to General Hospital in precarious condition where she expired.

In the fourth incident, Amjad Ali (7) was crushed to death when he was trying to loot a stray kite at Hanjarwal area.

Aurang Zeb (12) of Dharampura, Muhammad Awais (20) of Sanda, Muhammad Ashraf of Nishtar Colony, Muhammad Awais (20) of Kot Lakhpat, Bilal Abubakr of Gulberg and Muhammad Aslam(18) of Rang Mahal were flying kites on the roof top of their houses when they fell on the ground and died.

Muhammad Riaz (20) resident of Sanda died after taking poisonous liquor.

Metallic Wire

Metallic wire slit the throat of Mahmood Ali of Sialkot when he was going to somewhere by a motorbike.

Two unknown persons were crushed to death by rashly driven vehicles while looting stray kites at Lower Mall and Sanda areas.

Over 300 Injured

More than 300 people were injured in kite flying related incidents. The majority of them cosisted of children and teenagers. The injured were rushed to the local hospitals for first aid.

Ali Haider (8) of Model Town, Nasir Ali (30) of Kot Lakhpat and Yasin (24) s/o Arif Hussain of Faisalabad, received head injuries and were rushed to the General Hospital where their condition was stated to be
critical.

Extra-bonanza Basant

The extra-bonanza Basant festival, heralding culmination of winter was celebrated in the Punjab capital Sunday with traditional enthusiasm and fervour.

Provincial capital echoed with "Bo-Kata" [Hacked] punctuated by trumpet-blowing from flash lights-fitted roof tops while young and children made desperate attempts to loot floating kites.

The festival picked up last evening, was marred by light drizzling at night that failed to dampen kite-flying spirt of youngsters who re-surfaced after a brief lull, blowing hand-made bugles with cheer and joy.

Residents said public parks and rooftops of all big buildings, shopping plazas and hotels were crowded with revellers celebrating the annual festival.

The celebrations include music concerts and dinner parties being organized privately or as public events Saturday night.

Pakistan Railways ran special trains this year to carry thousands of people from other parts of the country to the city to celebrate Basant with their relatives and friends.

The festivities will continue late into Sunday night amid chanting over the cutting of the strings of rival kites and celebrations of victory with drumbeats and the bursting of firecrackers.

Special Bar-B-Q

At some places special Bar-B-Q was arranged to entertain guests both from within and outside the country.

Prominent Lolly and Bollywood actors also celebrated Basant with great enthusiasm and fervour. A large number of Indian movie stars are either staying in five-star hotels or with their hosts at different places, majority of them in Defence Housing Society.

Officials said more than 50,000 people from across the country had arrived in Lahore along with 10,000 other Pakistanis residing in the Middle East, Europe and the United States to celebrate the occasion.

Taking advantage of the situation some hotels enhanced room charges on the occasion.

Walled City: Focal Point

As usual, walled city remained focal point of Basant celebrations where historic "haveli" of Mian Salahuddin attracted some of Islamabad and Lahore-based diplomats and elite of the town.

Certain multi-national firms also sponsored Basant by hiring roof-tops of five-star hotels and some skyscraper buildings in city.

Hundreds of shops and stalls across the city were selling kites while many multinational companies distributed free kites carrying their insignia as part of publicity campaigns.

Hotels and restaurants cooked traditional Pakistani food as men and women attired in glamorous yellow dress thronged the streets.

Basant also coincides with the blossoming of mustard flowers in the fields of Punjab. Kites worth millions of rupees are sold during the two-day festivities.

Repeated appeals from the Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) to avoid using of metallic wire by the kite-fliers, went unheeded that resulted in frequent power breakdown in the city, forcing cable operators to switch off the system in some localities.

Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) has suffered a loss of Rs 60 million caused by 2,400 minor and 90 major power losses and fluctuations that hit the city s electricity transmission system on Saturday night following Sunday Basant celebrations.

Sunday’s killing of 17 persons took the death toll to 20 the number of persons killed in the night-and-day festival this year. Last year too, as many as 20 persons were killed in the city of Lahore while celebrating Basant festival.●