Manja (or manjha) (IPA: /maːŋdʒʱaː/) is an abrasive string used to fly fighter kites, mainly in South Asian countries. Made when a cotton string is coated with powdered glass or a similar abrasive.

Composition

Traditionally, it is made on fine pure cotton thread coated with a mixture of rice glue, tree gums or similar natural ingredients and finely powdered glass, aluminum oxide or zirconia alumina for the abrasive.[1]

A relatively recent introduction, China manja, is based on non biodegradable synthetic fibers.[2]

Safety

Rooftop falling

People often fly the kites from rooftops, which poses risks to their safety.[3]

Kite runners

In some places, kite runners pursue kites to retrieve them without paying attention to the surrounding, causing accidents.[4][5]

Bystanders injury

Many reports of motorcyclists and others having their throats cut by manja - especially when driving through hanging strings.[6][7][8][9][10][11]

Threat to birds

It is also responsible for injuries to birds.[12] A pair of volunteer bird medics in New Delhi care for about 1,000 black kites each year, 90% of which are injured by manja and half of which die.[13]

At the Uttarayan festival, veterinarians had to repeatedly respond to situations where birds had been injured.[14]

Ban

India

Several attempts were initiated by government and authorities but none are seem to be successful.[15]

Pakistan

It was banned in Lahore since 2006.[16]

References

  1. ↑ Ghai, Rajat (15 December 2006). "Manja market flying low!". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 24 June 2015.
  2. ↑ Muvalia, Gaurav; Jamshed, Nayer; Sinha, Tej Prakash; Bhoi, Sanjeev (2019). "Kite-string injuries: A case series". International Journal of Critical Illness and Injury Science. 9 (3): 147–150. doi:10.4103/IJCIIS.IJCIIS_44_19. ISSN 2229-5151. PMC 6792401. PMID 31620355.
  3. ↑ "Uttarayan cuts short six lives". The Times of India. 16 January 2004.
  4. ↑ Malik, Shahid (10 June 2003). "Pakistan tackles killer kites". BBC News. Lahore.
  5. ↑ "10-year-old boy dies chasing kite". The Times of India. 14 January 2008.
  6. ↑ "Kite thread claims girl's life, 73 others injured in Jaipur on Sankranti". The Hindu. 14 January 2014.
  7. ↑ "Two Children Die After Kite String Cut Throats". Sky News. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  8. ↑ "India: Two children, man dead after sharp kite strings slit throats". CNN. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  9. ↑ "Manja kite thread slits 40-yr-old techie throat in Chennai". The New Indian Express. 8 March 2017. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
  10. ↑ "Throat slit by manja, doctor lay bleeding on Pune road for 20 minutes". Hindustan Times. 10 October 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  11. ↑ "3 Dead After Kite Strings Slit Throats In Gujarat's Uttarayan Festival". NDTV. Press Trust of India. 15 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  12. ↑ "Chinese manja injures nearly half a dozen birds since January 1". The Times of India. 6 January 2013.
  13. ↑ Whang, Oliver; Khandelwal, Saumya (7 February 2020). "Meet the Bird Medics of New Delhi". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  14. ↑ Sources:
  15. ↑ "Banned Chinese manja still on sale". The Times of India. 2010-01-06. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2023-12-07.
  16. ↑ "Pakistan cracks down on lethal 'kite duels'". The New York Times. 2006-03-12. Retrieved 2023-12-08.
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