The Punjab government buckled under pressure from religious parties on Thursday and imposed an immediate ban on kite flying in the province, effectively cancelling the Basant festival. The prohibition order means that festive Basant activities planned for the weekend will no longer be held. Officials of the Punjab government told Daily Times that all the district governments and relevant law enforcement agencies have been directed to ensure the implementation of the ban. Violators of the ban can be punished for up to three years’ imprisonment or a fine of Rs 40,000, or both.The MMA had planned a protest rally against the Basant festival today (Friday) after the Friday prayers, while a faction of the Jamiat Ulema Pakistan (JUP) had announced a shutter-down strike on Saturday. The provincial government was concerned that protests on the two days that Basant festivities would be at their peak were likely to turn violent, sources said. They said that the government has imposed the ban to avoid a “law and order situation”. A provincial government official said that the decision to ban kite flying immediately was taken in a meeting chaired by Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi late on Thursday night. The meeting was also attended by Punjab Law Minister Muhammad Basharat Raja and Chief Secretary Salman Sadiq. The official said that the government took the decision to prevent more casualties in kite flying accidents. At least 10 people have died in the last 12 days while flying kites in Lahore alone. Four children were injured in the latest kite flying accident on Wednesday.