PESHAWAR: A two-day colourful Orakzai sports and cultural festival concluded amid great fun and thrilling events at Kalaya in Orakzai tribal district.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Culture and Tourism Authority (KPCTA), Sports Department, district administration and Orakzai Scouts had jointly organised the festival.
Member Provincial Assembly, Ghazi Ghazan Jamal and Commandant Orakzai Scouts Roy Kashif Amin were the chief guests at the concluding ceremony.
Besides a large number of elders, spectators, players, Deputy Commissioner Asif Rahim, KPCTA Director Yousaf Ali, project director for tourism for merged districts Ishtiaq Khan, Manager Information and Culture Humayun Khan and others were also present on the occasion.
Besides traditional games and music, the festival also showcased volleyball, kabbadi, gymnastics, archery, paragliding, tug-of-war competitions and other colourful activities.
Shahid Khan Shinwari, music artist and rabab mestro Irfan Khan and Shahid Malang entertained the audience with parodies and melodious voices, respectively.
In volleyball matches, Ferozkhel Zalmai clinched first position while Manikhel Tigers stood second. Similarly, Orakzai Tigers and Orakzai Defenders grabbed first and second position in kabbadi competitions, respectively.
In archery competitions, Kalaya Bazaar Group-I stood first while Kalaya Bazaar Group-II clinched second position.
Stalls of traditional foods, handicrafts, fine arts, hujra set-up, traditional rabab music and others were also part of the sports and cultural gala.
Speaking on the occasion, Ghazi Golab Jamal, Ishtiaq Khan and DC Asif Rahim said that the event was aimed at promoting tourism and sports activities and luring the tourists to the scenic sites in the merged districts.
They said that more tourism, sports and cultural programmes and festivals would be organised in all the merged tribal districts.
The officials praised the spirit of youths exhibited during the sports activities and cultural traditional games.
