Tourists enjoy traditional sports, music in Kaghlasht Festival

CHITRAL: The Kaghlasht Festival continued to draw crowds as the tourists enjoyed various games, music and paragliding on Saturday.

Organized by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Culture and Tourism Authority (KPCTA), district administration Upper Chitral and Kaghlasht Committee, the event continued to attract foreign and domestic tourists besides a large number of local residents, who enjoyed matches of various games held in the scenic meadow in Upper Chitral.

Deputy Commissioner Irfanuddin, District Police Officer Muhammad Attique Shah and Chitral Scouts’ Lt-Col Noor Illahi, Shahzada Sikandarul Mulk, the chairman of the Qaqlasht Committee, and officials of KPCTA also attended the festival.

Different sports competitions, including polo, sports for the physically challenged persons, traditional food stalls, cultural show, tug-of-war, skate shooting, marathon race, volleyball, cricket, football, archery were held. In football, Mastuj team beat the Mustajapanda team of Lower Chitral while Peshawar Browsers defeated Reshin team in thrilling matches.

In cricket, Morkoh, Jan Brothers, Raja Tigers, Snowghar Heroes and Greenlasht teams won their respective matches in the second round and qualified for the next round. Similarly, local hockey matches were held between Reshin Rezidors and Charoon teams, which were enjoyed by the tourists and local residents.

The tourists and guests also enjoyed traditional music and foods and thanked the KPCTA and others for organizing the event in a befitting manner. They said the historic festival would promote tourism in the region.

Besides players and spectators, foreign and domestic tourists have thronged the lush green venue to enjoy the festival. The organisers have established a tent village to facilitate the tourists besides setting up foods and cultural stalls for the tourists. They said that a record number of teams were participating in various games.