LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz stated that Lahore’s Basant festival revival has revitalized Punjab’s cultural heritage.
Speaking at the event, she highlighted Basant’s cultural significance and credited public participation for its success, noting their responsibility in making it possible. She commended the health, transport, and information departments for their coordination, as well as media outlets for promoting a positive image of Punjab.
She mentioned visitors from across the country, including Karachi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Azad Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan, celebrating in Lahore. The festival, she said, temporarily united people by helping them forget their differences and sorrows.
Addressing a PTI protest call, she remarked that public disregard for the strike reflected a choice for peace over chaos. She acknowledged minor safety incidents but emphasized the absence of deaths due to kite strings, noting the festival’s transformation from “bloody Basant” to a safer celebration.
Maryam Nawaz added that the festival stimulated significant business activity and continued late into the night by public demand, proving that culture fosters unity where politics creates divides.
