Daily Times

SHANDUR: Reigning champion Chitral lifted the Shandur Polo trophy for the second consecutive year by outclassing Gilgit in the final match of Shandur Polo Festival 2017 on Monday.

Chitral defeated the archrival by 13-7 in the final that attracted more than 15,000 spectators from across Pakistan.

Peshawar Corps Commander Nazir Butt, chief guest of the event, announced Rs 50,000 for each player of the winning team.

The tournament restarted last year after two years boycott by Gilgit’s team over an ongoing dispute over administrative ownership of the green pastures of Shandur in the Laspur area of Chitral District.

The opening night of the tournament in the picturesque Shandur valley, located at more than 12,500 feet above the sea level; was lit-up with amazing display of fireworks and attractive cultural events of Chitral.

Similarly, the night before the final match was energised by display of cultural attractions of Gilgit Baltistan.

The three-day tournament that opened on Saturday attracted many tourists, most of them riding motorcycles who braved the nerve-wrecking journey to watch the tournament in a pleasant weather.

Shandur is located at an estimated 50 kilometres from Mastuj Tehsil of Chitral. However, the 150 km journey between Chitral and the festival site takes nearly nine hours as the road is virtually non-existent and very narrow at many points where vehicles often have to reverse many metres to accommodate commuters coming from the opposite direction.

Each year, Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (TCKP) arranges the Shandur Festival to promote tourism in the region by attracting local and international tourists.

This year too, a number of tourists from Japan, China, Australia and a number of European countries travelled to Shandur.

However, the inadequate and ill-planned arrangements for tourists take off the shine from the show that could attract many more tourists that could help in boasting economy of the area.

Published in Daily Times, August 1^st , 2017.