Basant, the wildly popular kite-flying festival, is set to return to Lahore at some stage in the near future, signalling the end of an eight-year ban.

Kites fly over the Walled City of Lahore as part of Basant in a year gone by (Image: Pakistan Today)

Member of National Assembly Hamza Shahbaz Sharif announced the return of the festival at a press conference today. The son of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif mentioned the much-loved festival as part of the launch of the Punjab Youth Festival 2014, according to The Express Tribune.

(Image: Punjab Provincial Government)

However the revived Basant is not expected to take the same form as the original festival, with designated areas mentioned as possible kite-flying locations. The Express Tribune article mentioned Jallo Park on the eastern fringe of Lahore as a possible venue, a far cry from the pre-2005 Basant where kites would be flown from countless rooftops across the city.

The celebration of Basant, which has its roots in pre-Islamic local culture, was banned indefinitely in 2005 after several motorcyclists sustained injuries from kite strings draped across city streets. Some victims were received cuts to their necks after encountering strings dipped in glass-shavings, designed to cut the strings of other kites.

Hamza Shahbaz Sharif (Image: The Nation)

The exact dates of the renewed Basant festival are unclear. According to The Nation, sports minister Rana Mashood has confirmed a seven-day Basant festival to start from tomorrow (23rd December) in Changa Manga. However there was no word on the date of a Lahore city Basant festival, either in Jallo Park or elsewhere. Traditionally, the festival would be held in March at the start of the spring.