A three-day Shandur Polo Festival, organized by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Tourism Corporation (TCKP) will start from today (Friday) in Chitral. The festival is celebrated every year in the month of July; but, due to holy month of Ramazan, it will be held from June 20 to June 22 in Chitral, which will formally be inaugurated by Chief Minister's Advisor on Tourism, Sports and Archaeology, Amjad Khan Afridi in a ceremony to be organised on Friday in district Chitral, according to a press release issued by TCKP here on Thursday.
Acting Secretary Tourism Hamayun Khan along with Managing Director Tourism Corporation Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa will also accompany the Advisor of Chief Minister during opening ceremony of the mega Shandur Festival. According to the sports activities' schedule, the release said a match will be played around 11:00am of Laspur versus Chitral. Laspur is a village near Shandur, district Chitral. Each team has six members with a 2-4 reserve players in case of injury, etc. The match is divided into two halves with a ten-minute interval. During the interval the locals enthral the audience with traditional and cultural performances. The game is won by the team scoring a total of nine goals.
Other activities planned for the opening day are Paragliding, Mushaira, Tug of War, Football match by Chitral Football Club Vs Mastuj Football Club and Cultural show at amphitheatre, the release said. Speaking to journalists at Chitral the Advisor to CM stated: "Shandur Polo is one of our cultural heritages. It is the oldest form of games and it is our duty to preserve its uniqueness."
The Managing Director TCKP also shared his views in this regard "Passion for Polo is at its highest on the world's highest Polo ground. Every year the tournament is held at Shandur Pass. Visitors are invited to experience a traditional polo tournament between the teams of Chitral. The festival also includes folk music, traditional dancing, a camping village set-up at the Pass and numerous other activities to enjoy such as fishing, horseback riding, mountaineering, hiking and exploring."
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