Amritsar bans Chinese kite-string after death, injuries

AMRITSAR - Authorities in Amritsar have banned the sale and use of a Chinese kite-string after it left one person dead and nearly half a dozen injured.

While Amritsar police have banned the sale and use of the kite-string in the city, the administration has banned its sale throughout the Amritsar district following the incidents.

School teacher Kewal Singh became the first victim to lose his life after the kite-string cut his neck while he was going on his motorcycle in a residential area of the city, about 250 km from Chandigarh. The incident took place Thursday.

“The cut was so severe and deep that doctors said it looked as if his neck had been slit by a kirpan (small dagger). There was so much bleeding from the neck. Though we rushed him to the hospital immediately, he died within five minutes,” a relative of the victim said.

With kite-flying being a popular activity in Amritsar, especially in the walled old city area, the Chinese kite-string, which is made from plastic material and is much stronger than the traditional thread string used for kite-flying, has been sold in good numbers.

Police officials, who checked the Chinese kite-string, said that on being stretched, the string gets razor-sharp edges and that has led to six to seven incidents of people being seriously injured by it.

“We have banned the sale and use of the dor (string). If anyone sells it now, action will be taken,” Amritsar’s Deputy Commissioner of Police Amar Singh Chahal said here.

Jaideep Singh, 10, who was going on a scooter with his parents and was standing on the front of the vehicle was also seriously injured by the kite string. He had to be operated upon by doctors at a local hospital for over six hours to save his life.

The string cut the neck and both hands of the child. His neck and hands are heavily bandaged now.

Another victim, Praveen, almost lost his eyes last week when his face came in contact with a similar Chinese kite-string.

A young woman from here, who is studying in New Zealand and had come here recently for holidays, too landed up in hospital Saturday after a kite-string caused a deep cut on her upper arm, leading to a lot of blood loss.

Amritsar’s Deputy Commissioner K.S. Pannu said the sale and use of the kite-string has been imposed in the entire district.