CPO orders to accelerate crackdown against kite flyers, sellers; 69 arrested

RAWALPINDI, Feb 23 (APP): Rawalpindi district police have accelerated their ongoing crackdown against kite flyers and sellers and managed to net over 69 kite flying ban violators on Thursday night on recovery 3700 kites, 70 string rolls, said a police spokesman here on Friday.
He informed that City Police Officer (CPO) Rawalpindi had directed police officers to accelerate crackdown against kite flyers and sellers.
Rawalpindi district police had arrested over 450 kite flyers and sellers during this season and recovered over 56,000 kites, over 900 kite flying string rolls, weapons, sound systems, liquor and other items from their possession, he said.
Police had made it clear that kite flying was banned and strict action would be taken against the violators, the spokesman added.
Rawalpindi police, on the orders of the CPO, were making all-out efforts to stop kite flying and control aerial firing.
The spokesman said all police stations had been directed to speed up the ongoing operations against kite-flying ban violators while special teams under the supervision of senior police officers were also conducting raids in different areas.
Superintendent of Police, Rawal said that all available resources were being utilized to deal with kite flying ban violators.
He said Police under the supervision of Senior Superintendent of Police, Operation, were making efforts to control kite flying, aerial firing and violation of the ban.
The spokesman further said that Rawalpindi district police had devised a plan to foil plans to celebrate the banned festival of Basant.
More than 1500 police personnel were deployed on large rooftops in densely populated areas to check kite flying on Thursday night and Friday, where they were equipped with binoculars as well as other resources to apprehend those violating the law by flying kites.
Drone cameras were also being used to track those involved in aerial firing, he said.
“Keeping in mind the need to protect the citizens from any untoward incidents, more than 1500 police officials were deployed to thwart any plans for Basant and drone operators are being used to monitor kite-flying,” he said.
Police officials have reiterated time and again that flying kites is a potentially dangerous sport that can lead to the loss of life, and those found disregarding its cost to human lives will be prosecuted according to law.
The parents, teachers, scholars and civil society were also taken into confidence to play their role in preventing the celebration of Basant.
The Rawalpindi police had also launched an awareness campaign about the hazards of the risky sport with the help of religious scholars, who were asked to make announcements on their respective mosques’ sound systems about the demerits of kite-flying.
The police had finalized arrangements for live monitoring of all densely populated areas, while all Station House Officers (SHOs) had been directed to ensure strict surveillance of kite sellers in their areas.
The police teams were trying to trace and arrest culprits involved in buying and selling killer strings and kites through social media, he said adding, that monitoring of courier services and passenger vehicles coming from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa was also being tightened, so that any kites and chemical strings being brought to the city for Basant could be seized.
SSP Operations, Rawalpindi, Hafiz Kamran Asghar said that no one would be allowed to violate the ban and strict action in accordance with the law would be taken against kite flyers and sellers.