Uttarayan Festivities End in Tragedy Across Gujarat Cities
Uttarayan celebrations turned into a nightmare for many families in Gujarat. The joyous kite flying festival brought immense grief instead of happiness. Several people lost their lives, including young children, during the two-day festivities on January 14 and 15.
Deadly Manja Thread Claims Multiple Victims
The killer manja, or kite thread, emerged as the main culprit in most fatal incidents. Paramedics from the 108 emergency services remained extremely busy throughout both days. They responded to numerous distress calls from different parts of the state.
Tragic incidents were reported from Surat, Vadodara, Bharuch, Aravalli, and Anand districts. The sharp kite strings proved fatal for people of various ages, from young children to working adults.
Heartbreaking Incidents in Surat District
Surat witnessed at least three deaths, including two minors. On Thursday, eight-year-old Riyansh Borse was cycling with a friend in Anand Villa Society, Jahangirpura. A dangling kite thread suddenly cut through his throat. People rushed him to a private hospital in Rander, but he succumbed to excessive blood loss during the journey. His father works for a private company in Hazira.
In another incident, 23-year-old Prince Batham died on Wednesday. The manja sliced his throat while he was passing near Shyam Mandir in Althan. Batham worked as a sales executive for a leading beverage company. He was posted at a mall in Vesu and lived with his family in Sachin. The young man was going to meet a friend when the tragedy occurred. He was the youngest among three brothers and originally hailed from Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh.
A 14-year-old girl named Mantu died in Sachin's Jay Radhe Society on Thursday. She fell from the terrace while flying kites. Her father works as a textile laborer in a Sachin textile unit.
Fatalities Spread Across Other Districts
In Bharuch district's Pilundra village, 35-year-old Rahul Parmar died on Wednesday. A kite string slit his throat while he was riding a motorcycle.
An eight-year-old boy lost his life in Anand district. He suffered critical neck injuries from a kite string. The child was travelling on a motorcycle with his father at the time. They were going from Badalpur to Ralaj, with the boy sitting on the fuel tank.
Aravalli district witnessed the death of 17-year-old Tirth Patel on Wednesday. His neck suffered severe injuries from a kite string, and he died on the spot.
Additional Tragedies in Vadodara Region
Vadodara saw a different kind of tragedy. Thirty-three-year-old Shankar Rathwa got electrocuted when he tried to retrieve his kite. The kite had become entangled in an overhead power cable.
In Karjan town, ten-year-old Himanshu Kashyap died after a car hit him. The accident occurred while he was chasing a kite on the road. He suffered severe injuries in the collision.
These incidents have cast a dark shadow over what should have been a festive period. Families across Gujarat are mourning their loved ones lost during Uttarayan celebrations.
