LAHORE: The Lahore deputy commissioner (DC) on Friday gave the formal go-ahead for three-day Basant festivities in the district from March 12-14 next year, outlining guidelines, conditions and restrictions for the celebrations.

Basant returned to Lahore earlier this year after an 18-year hiatus, with the passing of the Punjab Regulation of Kite Flying Bill, 2025 by the provincial assembly on December 24, 2025. The legislation authorised deputy commissioners to grant conditional permission for kite-flying — which otherwise remains banned in Punjab — on specified days and at designated locations.

In August, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz announced that the festival would next be celebrated from March 12-14.

On Friday, the decision was formalised in notification by the Lahore DC.

The notification, a copy of which is available with Dawn, said that kite-flying would be allowed in Lahore during Basant 2027 except at designated prohibited zones and subject to certain conditions.

“Kite-flying through the use of permissible kite-flying material, as specified in Schedule-I of the Punjab Regulation of Kite Flying Rules, 2025 and Punjab Kite Flying Regulations, 2025 shall be allowed from March 12-14, 2027,” it added.

The notification said the manufacturing of permissible kite-flying material would be allowed from Sept 5, 2026 to March 14, 2027, subject to valid digital registration.

Trade, including the purchase, transportation and storage of the material, will be permitted from Feb 1, 2027 to March 14, 2027 while sales to the general public will be allowed from Feb 10, 2027 to March 14, 2027, exclusively through registered sellers.

The notification further said that no manufacturer, trader, or seller should manufacture, trade, store or sell permissible kite-flying material unless registered with the deputy commissioner through the government’s eBiz application.

“Patang (kite) shall not exceed four-and-a-half githi (span of a hand) and 35 inches in width and 30 inches in length,” it said.

“Gudda (a large kite) shall not exceed one-and-a-half tawa and 40 inches in width and 34 inches in length,” the notification added.

The kite string, known as dor, shall only be wound in the shape of pinna, it must be made of cotton with no more than nine taars (threads) and no fewer than 28 counts and shall be coated with maanjha having a minimum sheesha size of 350 mesh.

“Preparation, coating, treatment or processing of dor or maanjha shall be strictly restricted to maya (laundry starch), 350-mesh glass powder and only rice flour, and no other material, chemical, adhesive, hardener, abrasive, metallic substance or strengthening agent, including rema tip top, amri powder or any other material having similar properties or effect, whether used individually or in combination with the permitted material shall be added, mixed or applied at any stage,” the notification said.

The DC also prohibited the manufacture, trading, transportation, storage, sale, possession and use of charkhi, sharp maanjha, metallic wire, nylon (plastic) dandi, and any other thread coated with sharp maanjha or any other injurious material.

Registered manufacturers, traders and sellers will be required to “conspicuously” display their valid registration certificates at approved premises for kite-flying.

“Complete stock, sales and movement records shall be maintained and produced on demand by registered manufacturers, traders and sellers to any authorised officer of the deputy commissioner.”

The notification further said that all registered kite-flying associations should comply with the functions assigned under the Punjab Regulation of Kite Flying Rules, 2025 and remain in close coordination with the deputy commissioner and his authorised officers for smooth and safe conduct of kite-flying.

Moreover, motorcyclists in Lahore would be required to comply with all the safety measures, including the installation of safety rods, as specified in Chapter-III of the Punjab Kite Flying Regulations 2025 and guidelines issued by the Punjab government secretary and the Home Department under the kite flying law.

“All departments, attached departments, agencies and government organisations shall assist the district administration and police for strict compliance of [the] terms and conditions to ensure public safety,” the notification said.

According to the notification, kite-flying will not be permitted in the following areas of Lahore during Basant:

Aircraft approach path

• Nadirabad
• Gulshan Ali Colony
• Nishat Colony
• Bhatta Chowk
• DHA Lahore (blocks R, S, P and Q)

Aircraft take-off path

• Al-Faisal Town
• Jorraypul
• Canal Bank Road (adjacent to tajoura)
• Tajpura

Basant had been banned in 2007 because of an increasing number of deaths and serious injuries caused by sharp strings, particularly to motorcyclists and pillion riders, as well as by celebratory gunfire. It was allowed to be celebrated for the first time since then earlier this year, but only in Lahore.

The suspect accused of running over and fatally injuring a 14-year-old boy in Multan was killed in an alleged encounter with the Crime Control Department (CCD) in Bahawalpur early on Wednesday, police said.

The suspect, identified as Tauqeer, had allegedly escaped from police custody while on remand, a CCD spokesperson said.

A Multan court on Tuesday granted police three-day physical remand of the suspect. The suspect was accused of hitting the victim, who used to work for him, with his car in a private housing society. He was arrested on Monday and presented before Judicial Magistrate Saadia Aslam on Tuesday.

According to the spokesperson, the CCD personnel attempted to stop two individuals riding a motorcycle on Bahawalpur’s Northern Bypass when an exchange of fire ensued, leaving the suspect dead.

In a post on X, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said that killing of the teenager and the death in an alleged encounter raised “urgent questions about the state’s approach to treating human life and legal safeguards as expendable”.

Expressing alarm at a “disturbing pattern of the state’s failure to protect vulnerable people compounded by the erosion of due process”, the HRCP noted that extrajudicial killings violated the right to due process and “deprive victims and their families of the chance to obtain truth and justice”.

“The perception that such killings are an acceptable way of controlling crime signals that vengeance without accountability is prioritised over justice. We call for an independent, transparent investigation into this case and for an end to extrajudicial killings in all forms,” the commission said.

On Tuesday, police requested a 14-day physical remand of the suspect for investigation. However, the judicial magistrate granted the police a three-day remand.

At the time, Multan City Police Officer (CPO) Akhtar Farooq said while speaking to the media that raids were being conducted for the arrest of a second suspect.

“We all are in deep pain,” the CPO said, adding that the orphan boy had been “subjected to barbarity”.

The CCTV footage of the incident shows a boy running on the road after spotting a car. The car is seen swerving and chasing the boy, eventually hitting him. The boy, who fell, then rams into the gate of a nearby house and dies on impact.

A case was registered on the state’s behalf at Multan’s DHA police station.

The first information report (FIR) named two suspects and invoked Sections 302 (intentional murder) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

According to the FIR, the teenage boy had been working for the suspects and was being trained as an electrician. His cousin told police that the boy had reportedly faced violence and threats by the suspects, the FIR said, adding that the 14-year-old was fleeing when the suspects pursued him in a car and hit him.

Police arrested one of the suspects while the other escaped, the FIR stated. It added that their vehicle had been taken into custody.

LAHORE: A Multan court on Tuesday granted police three-day physical remand of a suspect accused of killing a 15-year-old boy in the city.

The suspect has been accused of hitting the victim, who used to work for him, with his car. The suspect was arrested yesterday and presented before Judicial Magistrate Saadia Aslam on Tuesday.

Police requested the judge for the suspect’s 14-day physical remand for investigation. However, the judicial magistrate granted them his three-day remand.

Later, Multan City Police Officer (CPO) Akhtar Farooq said while speaking to the media that raids were being conducted for the arrest of a second suspect.

“We all are in deep pain,” the CPO said, adding that the orphan boy had been “subjected to barbarity”.

The CCTV footage of the incident shows a boy running on the road after spotting a car. The car is seen swerving and chasing the boy, eventually hitting him. The boy, who fell, then rams into the gate of a nearby house and dies on impact.

A case has been registered on the state’s behalf at Multan’s DHA police station.

The first information report (FIR) names two suspects and invokes Sections 302 (intentional murder) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

According to the FIR, the teenage boy had working for the suspects and was being trained as an electrician. His cousin told police that the boy had reportedly faced violence and threats by the suspects, the FIR said, adding that the 15-year-old was fleeing when the suspects pursued him in a car and hit him.

Police arrested one of the suspects while the other escaped, the FIR stated. It added that their vehicle had been taken into custody.

A road accident on Multan’s Bosan Road claimed the lives of five men in their 20s early on Monday after their speeding Toyota Corolla hit a road divider before crashing into the wall of a nearby plot and catching fire, Rescue 1122 said.

All five occupants, who were residents of Shujaabad, died at the scene.

“As a result of the accident, five individuals traveling in the car sustained severe injuries and died on the spot,” Rescue 1122 said.

According to the police report, the accident occurred at 4am, and a passerby informed the control room about it at 4:15am.

Rescue 1122 identified three of the five victims as men aged 22, 23 and 28. The ages of the two unidentified men were estimated to be around 24 or 25 years.

All five victims had sustained head injuries, Rescue 1122 said.

The spokesperson added that firefighters had brought the fire under control following the mishap. Rescue personnel shifted the bodies to Multan’s Nishtar Hospital.

Rescue 1122 reported 43,160 road traffic crashes, resulting in 23,013 serious injuries and 434 deaths during the month of May across Punjab. The department secretary had expressed concerns at the large number of road accidents.