Campaign against kite flying with metallic wire fails

The City government, Wapda and Lahore police joint campaign against the kite flying with metallic wire has proven a complete failure as the electricity tripping has become the order of the day, causing serious damage to Wapda installations and creating problems for domestic and commercial consumers.
The Lahore police have been making a few raids here and there apprehending youth flying kites with metallic wires, however, this exercise has yielded no results as the practice is continuing unabated in almost all parts of the city.
The number of casualties occurring due to kite flying is increasing by the day. Already, the death toll stands over a dozen since the government had allowed kite flying on January 20, after a ban of 11 months.
The number of injured in kite flying related incidents is even higher as hospitals in the city are receiving new cases every day.
The victims are mostly children and youth that have been electrocuted when the metallic wires at the front end of string touches the main power cables.
Such incidents result in power failure which not only cause damage to Wapda installations, but also damage the home appliances and commercial machinery and equipment.
It is worth mentioning that the government had put a complete ban over kite flying for 11 months and this ban was lifted by the orders of Lahore High Court which set aside the government decision of banning sale of kites and strings in the city.
The anti-kite flying lobbies have been protesting for months now, demanding of the government to at least ban the sale of nylon strings which are used for industrial sewing.
This nylon string is a perfect conductor for the electricity and in most of fatal kite flying incidents in the city, use of the nylon string coupled with metallic wire has been the main reason.
Wapda authorities at some of the grid stations has erected protective nets, however, there is now way, Wapda could secure the main transmission lines.
Wapda officials along with the anti kite flying associations have been pressing the government not to lift the ban, however, the Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Ellahi has lifted the ban only for one month on account of Spring Festival in the city.
Already the consequences of lifting the ban are becoming visible with loss of life and damage to equipment, appliances and power installations.
Shabab-e-Milli, Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) and other religious parties along with various social organisations are bringing these points to government attention by holding anti-kite flying demonstrations almost everyday in the city, however, their protests have not been heeded by the decision makers.
One major reason is that the kite making has become a very strong cottage industry which has an annual turn over of billions of rupees.
Basant is an annual festival which generates huge economic activity in the city as hundreds of functions are organised to mark the event which now couples with spring festival in Lahore.
The government earns millions in sponsorships from multi-nationals and local companies.
The sale of kites and string itself is a huge business and the government is reluctant to completely ban kite flying in the city.
The basant which had been a trade mark of Lahore has now been celebrated in almost all the major cities of Punjab and Islamabad. All the cities at government level hold kite flying competitions and hold various functions to mark the event.
Popularity of basant province wide has made it even more difficult for the government to take extreme decisions against kite flying as this kite making cottage industry is also establishing its roots in cities like, Sialkot, Kasur, Faisalabad, Sheikhupura, Gujrat Gujranwala, Rawalpindi etc.