The banned kite manjha that are made in China, have traces of metals which damages the UPMRC's OHE system, causing disruption in services.
As many as 508 such cases came to notice in the past three years against people flying kites near the metro tracks using Chinese manjha. (image: UPMRC Twitter handle)
Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation is facing a big challenge in Lucknow because of Chinese manjha, which is used by kite enthusiasts with more than 500 disruptions recorded in three years due to the banned strings. The banned kite manjha that are made in China, have traces of metals which damages the UPMRC’s OHE system, causing disruption in services, according to a PTI report. A senior UPMRC officer was quoted in the report saying that despite the corporation’s stringent appeals to people not to fly kites near the metro corridor, incidents of damaging of overhead wire from the Chinese manjha have been recorded, due to which metro services were disrupted.
According to the officer, the OHE line near the Lucknow University metro station, on Monday, tripped because of Chinese manjha around 8:30 PM. Due to this, services were briefly interrupted. The restoration of metro services was done by diverting the metro to the second line, he said. At the Mahanagar police station, an FIR has been lodged, the UPMRC officer further said. As many as 508 such cases came to notice in the past three years against people flying kites near the metro tracks using Chinese manjha.
The UPMRC officer said there is a provision of 10 years’ imprisonment under the Metro Railway Act, 2002 for damage to metro property and that too without a warrant. Also, it is important for people to understand that even when the metro trains are not running on the corridor or when the passenger services are stopped (between 10:00 PM and 6:00 AM), the overhead wires are charged and electric current is present, the officer said.
According to the officer, due to the use of metal, Chinese manjha is a conductor of electricity. For kite flying, some also use copper and barbed metal wires. He further added that these kite-flying methods can cause severe injury to the eyes and throats of passersby as well as affect the lives of birds and animals. The metro OHE line supplies electric current to 25 KV or 25,000 volts of voltage, which can fatally electrocute a kite-flyer.
As many as 508 such cases came to notice in the past three years against people flying kites near the metro tracks using Chinese manjha. (image: UPMRC Twitter handle)
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