Family Festival Continues In Full Swing

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Dec, 2022 ) :The winter annual family festival 2022, first of its kind was being celebrated enthusiastically at Jilani Park, organized by the Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) which also attracted a large number of people as various recreational facilities were ensured during the festival.

These views were expressed by the PHA Chairman Yasir Gillani while talking to APP here on Monday. He said that family festival 2022, was first of its kind as in 2007, the same festival was arranged but not at a large level compare to this one, adding that such festivals could provide relieve to the people from various hardships including stress and mental strains.

The chairman said that family festival consisted of a month, would end on December 17, adding that people had shown keen interest pertaining to the festival as footfalls had jumped to 100,000 people on weekends which was a great number.

He said that senior minister Mian Aslam Iqbal had inaugurated the festival while Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi had also visited to review the arrangements to facilitate the people.

Yasir Gillani said that various stalls highlighting Punjab village culture were set up in which practical demos of making jaggery (Gurr), 'khadi' Fabric, ceramic crockery and extraction of mustard oil were shown for the cultural knowledge purpose. "We are trying to aware the coming generation about civilization and culture of our villages through the winter family festival", he expressed.

About various traits of the festival, the chairman said that cultural participation of all cities through its famous products like cutlery of Wazirabad, Kashmiri 'Shawls', and Gujranwala's wood models made the festival more attractive for the visitors.

The annual Chrysanthemum (Gul-e-Daudi) exhibition was included in the festival from December 3 for three weeks in which more than 200 varieties of chrysanthemums were put on display, he said and added that the flower exhibition truly represented the provincial capital as city of gardens and flowers.

The chairman said that competitions among flower enthusiasts were being arranged under the auspices of Horticulture Society of Pakistan in which public and private educational institutions and various companies participated.

He said that all out efforts were being made to bring back the glory of the lush green city of Lahore as fresh and green environment had always reflected through human behaviors.

Regarding PHA's plantation activities, Yasir Gillani said that a family park, consisting of 70 kanals of land was set up at Shahdra area in which mass plantation was being carried out, adding that before 2018, the plantation target was set at around 25,000 saplings per annum, which has now been fixed to 500,000 saplings per annum, enhancing the target twenty times more than the past.