‘BE CAREFUL’

6 Killed, 176 Injured by Glass-Sharpened Kite Strings at Indian Festival: Report

The fighter kites, which have strings coated with a mixture of glue and powdered glass, are used to cut down other competitors’ kites.

Six people, including three children, were reported killed and scores more injured in the wake of Gujarat’s International Kite Festival, Indian media reported this weekend. The festival, known as Uttarayan, is marked by the use of fighter kites, or patangs, with lines coated with a mixture of glue and powdered glass sharp enough to slash through other lines—or human skin. Gujarat officials reported that 176 people were wounded during the festivities, having sustained cuts or injuries relating to falling, according to the Press Trust of India. Two girls, aged 2 and 3 years old, and one 7-year-old boy were killed after the sharpened strings sliced into their necks, causing them to bleed out, police said. Three adult men also died under similar circumstances while riding motorbikes in Vadodara, Kutch, and Gandhinagar, authorities in each of the districts reported. A day before the festival began, Gujarat police urged revelers to “be careful while flying kites and don’t put your life or others’ at risk,” according to a translated tweet.