Shandur Polo Festival: PIA Operates Special Flights For Tourists

News Desk

Chitral: As part of efforts to promote tourism in northern regions, two special planes of the Pakistan International Airline (PIA) are to facilitate tourists, especially foreign tourists.

The special flights are operating to and from Chitral, especially for the foreign tourists expected to visit the festival. In this regard, facilitation desks have been set up at the Chitral, Peshawar and Islamabad airports.  It is pertinent to mention here that the Shandur Polo Festival, at the world rooftop, got underway in a colourful opening ceremony with hundreds and thousands of vociferous spectators with their cheering hands and shouting.

The World’s Highest Polo Ground

The world’s highest polo ground is in the small village of Shandur, located at an altitude of 12,000 feet above sea level. The ground sits in the shadow of the towering Hindu Kush mountain range. The unique location of the polo ground makes it a popular destination for adventure seekers and polo enthusiasts. Polo at the world’s ‘rooftop’ readies for the polo festival, wherein teams of Chiral and arch-rival GB looked enthusiastic, stamping their superiorities on each other when they will be in the field free for all rules. Foolproof security arrangements have also been made to make the event a success. A special village has been set up for the festivities and to accommodate the large number of visitors. The Shandur ground lies midway between Chitral and Gilgit.

The pitch was first used when the reigning royals decided to have a polo match in the 1920s. It is often called the ‘Rooftop of the World’. The top is flat, a plateau, and can be crossed between late April and early November. The annual traditional sporting event has become a global attraction and brings in a large number of tourists as well as revenue for the provincial government of KP and the Chitral district administration.

The Traditional Rivalry

Chitral teams are always challenged by the neighbouring Gilgit teams and the traditional rivalry spices up the matches during the tournament. This version of the game played at Shandur-Top has attained legendary status and is of great interest to international and domestic adventure tourists alike. There are no umpires, and there are no holds barred.

The festival is being played between the teams of Chitral and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) under freestyle rules. Polo in Shandur has been played between Chitral and Gilgit since the 1930s, but at the government level, it was first organised in 1982. Since then, the event has been organised by the district administrations of Upper Chitral and Lower Chitral, and is financed by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government. Polo is played at Shandur Top which is the world’s highest polo ground at an altitude of 3,700 meters.The festival also includes folk music, dancing and a camping village set up. The polo tournament is featured in the first episode of Himalaya with Michael Plain.

 

Since 1982, the Polo has been won 13 times by GB and 16 times by Chitral. Shahzada Sikandar ul Mulk (Captain of the Chitral Polo team) has won a staggering 13 times while leading as captain of his team. He is thus the most successful captain ever, followed by Raji Rehmat of Gilgit, who has won it seven times for his team.

Music & Arts

Local cultures, such as music and performing arts from Chitral and GB, will be on display, apart from stalls selling traditional goods and a tent village for providing boarding and lodging facilities to both foreign and domestic tourists.

Rafting in Shandur Lake, paragliding, archery, fireworks, and kite flying would be other features of the event that would attract domestic and foreign tourists in great numbers. Chitral is the most peaceful region, and it attracts thousands of domestic and international tourists annually, especially during the Shandur and Kalash festivals.The KPCTA has made all arrangements to hold the festival in a befitting manner to attract domestic and foreign tourists to the scenic region and traditional games in large numbers. Stalls have been established to highlight and promote the artworks of Chitral and Gilgit local artists and skilled people.

Malakand Division Commissioner Shahidullah Khan was the chief guest at the opening ceremony, who threw in the ball, and a match was played between Sarlaspur Upper and Sarlaspur Lower, wherein Sarlaspur Upper won it by 5-1.

Shahidullah Khan said that preparations for the Shandur Polo Festival started six months ago. “I pay tribute to the organisers for the successful organisation of the festival,” he added. Khan further stated that a request has been made to the government to build Mashtoj Road.

Emergency Arrangements

Rescue 1122 will provide services to tourists attending the Shandur festival in the Upper Chitral district by sending its teams of specially trained medical practitioners. According to Rescue sources, it will set up camps in the Polo Ground of Shandur to provide all kinds of emergency services to locals and visitors during polo matches.

In all, a total of 22 staffers from Rescue 1122, two ambulances, and a fire vehicle will take part in the operation. The organisation has also set up points at different locations on the way to Shandur for the facilitation of visiting tourists from across the country.

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