PESHAWAR: The four-day Qaqlasht Festival, a mix of sports, tourism and cultural activities that is described locally as paradise, concluded on Sunday in Chitral, the largest district in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Commissioner Malakand Zaheerul Islam was chief quest, while deputy commissioners of several districts, along with tourism corporation and police officials, were also present.
This year, for the first time, floodlights had also been arranged to ensure that sporting events could take place at night, said Qazi Jalal, a private consultant and one of the organizers of the event. “About 10,000 people visited the festival,” he added.
Hassina Shaukat, of the Tourism Corp. of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said her department had given 1.7 million Pakistani rupees ($14,706) to Chitral’s district administration to organize the festival.
She said that sporting events at the festival included “polo, tug of war, skeet shooting, paragliding, zip lining, marathon racing, volleyball, cricket and football,” adding that there was also a cultural night with local singers that was followed by fireworks on Saturday.
The first day started with football matches in which 24 teams participated. Out of these, two reached the final on Sunday. On the second day, there was skeet shooting in which players use a traditional and centuries-old rifle called “Siyah Kaman” (or “black bow”).
On Saturday night, the participants enjoyed a cultural night that included a music program and fireworks.
“Qaqlasht is locally described as paradise,” Chitral Deputy Commissioner Irshad Sodhar told Arab News.
A resident of Ayun valley in Chitral, Mohkam-ud-Din, told Arab News that he and his friends had reached Qaqlasht on the first morning of the event to enjoy the festival.
“When we were young, we remember that there were no specific days for the festival that was held in spring. However, the government has now fixed specific days for it in the month of April,” recalled Mohkam-ud-Din, 54.
Muhammad Pervez Lal, convener of the Jashan-e-Qaqlasht Committee, told Arab News that the committee comprised 50 members.
He added that tourists from different parts of the country had reached the festival and many had spent the night in tents there.
“The festival is about 1,000 years old, and it used to be a regular feature when Chitral was a princely state,” Lal added.
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