Six Children Among 6 Dead in India After Neck Severed by Kite String...

Applying Glass Powder to Kite Strings for Kite Fighting Victory
Serious Annual Human Casualties Occur

In a tragic incident at a kite-flying festival in India, six people, including three children, lost their lives.

According to the Indian Express and the British Guardian on the 19th (local time), six people died and 176 were injured during the Uttarayan festival held in Gujarat, western India, on the 14th and 15th. Half of the deceased were reported to be children under the age of eight.

[Image source=Pixabay]

At the time, hundreds of citizens participated in the festival's "kite fighting" held over the weekend, the media reported. The goal of this competition is to cut other kites' strings in the air, and every year, serious casualties occur due to kites coated with glass powder and other materials used to win the "kite fighting."

According to local police, a 2-year-old girl who died was riding a scooter with her father when the kite string got caught around her neck. A 7-year-old boy also died after his neck was cut by a string while riding a scooter with his parents.

The remaining 3-year-old girl was injured in the neck by a string while returning home with her parents and was transported to the hospital but died. In addition to the children, three adults were also reported to have died after being hit by kite strings.

The injured were hurt either by falling while flying kites from high places, being cut by strings, or by falling down. Not only people but also animals such as birds were caught in the kite strings and many were injured or died.

A man is dyeing a string to participate in the Uttarayan festival held in Gujarat, India.
[Image source=AFP Yonhap News]

The Guardian analyzed that the use of kite strings made of nylon instead of cotton by festival participants was also a cause of the injuries. The Guardian reported, "Nylon strings do not break as easily as strings made of cotton."

Indian authorities have banned the distribution of kite strings coated with glass powder following repeated accidents. However, kite strings coated with glass powder are still secretly being used.

The police said, "A moment of fun cutting another kite can take someone's life," and urged, "Do not use deadly kite strings."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.