Lohri celebrated all around with kite flying, holy bonfire

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, January 12

Rotary Club, Amritsar Central, under the chairmanship of Col Kanwaljeet Singh Aneja and Parveen Mehra (sectretary) celebrated the Lohri festival at Ibadat School, a well-known institute for special children in the city.

Mohit Kapoor, director of Ibadat, and Principal Shilpi Ganguly along with 58 special students of the school participated in kite flying and lighting the holy bonfire. Renowned child specialist Dr Naresh Grover, who organised the event, stressed on how important it is to engage the specially abled in society. “These children are very special part of our society and if they are motivated and nurtured in an appropriate environment, their hidden skills can be explored to boost their confidence.” Dr Grover along with his team examined these special children and provided them with free medicines and promised to do the same in future as well.

All the Rotary Club members distributed Lohri sweets to the special children. Sri Guru Teg Bahadur Public School, Khankot, also celebrated the festival with cultural programmes. The Health and Wellness Club of the Springdales Senior Secondary School, issued an appeal to the masses to shun the use of the lethal twine, the Chinese string, and celebrate a safe Lohri. A poster-making activity, highlighting the importance of maintaining high standards of health and hygiene and an appeal to the masses to shun the use of Chinese kite strings, was held on this occasion.

“The participants sat in the formation of kites to stress the association of the kite-flying activity with Lohri to urge the masses to use only the locally manufactured kite string to prevent untoward incidents from spoiling the exuberant joy that marks the festival,” he said.

Wishing the staff, students and the families associated with the school on the occasion of Lohri, Dr Kirat Sandhu Cheema, Director, Spring Dale Senior School, and Sahiljit Singh Sandhu, Managing Trustee, Spring Dale Educational Society, said the festival is one of the most important among those celebrated in Punjab hence every measure should be taken to ensure that it is observed with the least shadow of misfortune. “The school is committed to regularly organising such activities to spread awareness against the use of the ‘dragon string’ and to urge the masses to stay happy and healthy by observing the highest standards of health and hygiene,” they said.

Virsa Vihar too celebrated the festival as artistes and writers gathered to sing traditional folk songs associated with Lohri. They also released a special calendar, highlighting the importance of environment and climate change.