8-year-old Among 3 Dead After Kite Strings Slit Throats in Gujarat During Uttarayan Festivities

Ahmedabad: Three persons, including a child, were killed after their throats got slit by kite strings during Uttarayan festivities in Gujarat, police said Monday.

Several others were injured in separate incidents across the state after falling off rooftops while flying kites, an official added.

A Mehsana police official said eight-year-old Tehjeeb Khan died at the local civil hospital after suffering a severe neck injury due to a kite string. "Tehjeeb was riding a bicycle when a kite string slit his throat," he said.

Ashok Panchal (45), who was riding a motorcycle, was similarly killed instantly near Dholka in Ahmedabad district, an official said. Virendrasinh Garasiya, who had sustained kite-string injuries to his neck on Saturday, died in a hospital near Kathana village in Anand district on Sunday, an official said.

GVK-EMRI, a 108 ambulance service provider in the state, in a statement, said 59 people were injured by kite strings in Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot and Vadodara till Sunday evening.

As many as 117 persons were injured after falling from rooftops while flying kites in these four districts till Sunday evening.

Kite flying is a major component of Uttarayan celebrations in Gujarat.