Varanasi: A day after a 55-year-old biker died when a Chinese kite string slit his throat on Kajjakpura flyover, a citywide crackdown on the stocking and sale of banned Chinese manjha gathered momentum on Monday, with nine people arrested and over 137 kg of the dangerous kite string seized from shops, warehouses and other storage points.The administration also began installing steel wires and other safety measures at strategic heights along flyovers and railway overbridges (ROBs) to prevent manjha-related accidents.Acting on the directions of police commissioner Mohit Agrawal to launch a mega drive against the stocking and sale of kite strings, whether imported from China or manufactured elsewhere in the country, teams across the Varanasi Commissionerate launched an intensive combing operation. The operation covered shops, warehouses and suspected storage points to curb the sale, storage and use of the banned synthetic thread.During the drive, eight cases were registered. Police recovered 37.873 kg of manjha in Kotwali, 56 kg in Dashashwamedh, 10 kg in Bhelupur, 2 kg in Manduadih, 3.865 kg in Sarnath, 0.5 kg in Lohta and 6.5 kg in Lalpur-Pandeypur. In Ramnagar, police recovered another 20 kg of abandoned manjha near a ghat, taking the total seizure to 137.448 kg.Two accused were arrested in Kotwali, one each in Dashashwamedh, Bhelupur, Manduadih, Lohta and Lalpur-Pandeypur, and two in Sarnath. The police commissioner directed all station in-charges to continue surveillance and checks against the prohibited manjha. He warned that any negligence would invite accountability and that anyone found selling, stocking or using the banned string would face strict legal action.Meanwhile, the district administration has begun implementing safety measures on bridges and flyovers to prevent further throat-cutting injuries to two-wheeler riders and pedestrians during the kite-flying season.District magistrate Satyendra Kumar said on Tuesday that work had begun on safety measures, particularly at flyovers and ROBs, where the maximum number of manjha-related accidents were occurring. In the initial phase, steel wires were being installed at a height intended to prevent manjha from falling onto commuters, he said, adding that further safety measures would also be introduced.
