Tourists enjoy traditional sports, cultural shows throughout gleeful gala
Peshawar
The four-day Qaqlasht Festival concluded with much funfair and colourful activities at the tourist resort in Booni in Upper Chitral.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Deputy Speaker, Suriya Bibi, was the chief guest on the occasion.
Upper Chitral Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Irfanuddin, Lower Chitral Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Imran, District Police Officer Muhammad Attique Shah, Qaqlasht Committee chairman Shahzada Sikandarul Mulk, officials of KPCTA, foreign and domestic tourists, students and local people attended the famous spring festival in a large number.
Speaking at the concluding ceremony, Suriya Bibi said that holding the Qaqlasht Festival was made possible due to the special interest by KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, CM’s Advisor on Tourism and Culture Zahid Chanzeb, officials of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Culture and Tourism Authority (KPCTA) and district administration and Qaqlasht committee.
She said that the colourful Qaqlasht Festival had increased the beauty and grandeur of meadows in Booni and had now become one of the preferred destinations for the international and domestic tourists. The festival, the deputy speaker added, would play a vital role in promoting tourism and traditional sports and providing an opportunity of entertainment for the tourists, players and local residents in future as well. She said that the event had drawn spectators from both domestic and abroad and become the second popular festival after Shandur gala in Upper Chitral. The chief guest later gave away prizes and shields to the winners of various games.
Earlier, the festival showcased different sports competitions and cultural shows including polo, paragliding, cricket, volleyball, football, hokey, archery, tug-of-war, skate shooting, rock climbing and jeep and bike races. Traditional food stalls, cultural shows, local dances and music were the other features enjoyed by the spectators and tourists in the gala.
On the last day, the final of match football was played between the Bronners Club, Peshawar, and Booni Headquarters in which the former declared winner after beating the latter with two goals.
The Booni Headquarters Club defeated Maroi Club and won the trophy in a thrilling final match of volleyball while Charoon Oveer clinched the trophy in the final match of traditional game – Shapirkhari.
A fleet of motorcyclists from Islamabad exhibited feats of climbing the mountainous slopes and received thunderous applause from the viewers.
Held at 8000 feet high tourist resort, the visitors also enjoyed music of reed instrument and that of pure Chitrali sitar besides folk dance ‘chong righishi’ and ‘tatali wawali’, and ‘mamashish’.
The organisers had established a tent village to facilitate the tourists besides setting up foods and cultural stalls for the tourists. A record number of teams participated in various games.
The tourists thanked the KPCTA and others for organizing the event in a befitting manner. They said the historic festival would promote tourism in the region.
Jashan-e-Qaqlasht is 2,000 years old festival of the people of Chitral. The festival is organized with the objective to protect the indigenous Kho culture and to highlight and market it as tourism product so as to attract maximum national and international tourists to the region that could help reduce poverty by providing tourism-related job opportunities to the locals apart from promoting cross-cultural understanding and harmony.
