Ask the Authorities for Relief for Birds
The manja used in kite-flying competitions is often gummed and coated with powdered and finely crushed glass. While this makes the manja extremely effective at cutting an opponent's kite line, it also makes it deadly for thousands of pigeons, crows, owls and other birds who get slashed, wounded and killed when they become entangled in the manja.
Not only is glass-coated manja hazardous for birds, it is also responsible for numerous human injuries and deaths every year, including the deaths of passers-by travelling on open conveyances such as bicycles, motorcycles or scooters. In one incident in Mumbai, a stray glass-coated manja nearly cut a young person's throat. The manja sliced the larynx (the uppermost part of the voice box) and the surrounding muscles, which are 3 to 4 centimetres in thickness, according to a news report. Ten people were killed in Ahmedabad on Makar Sankranthi: three were decapitated by manja, and seven were killed after falling off terraces or being run over by vehicles while chasing stray kites.
You Can Help
Glass-coated manja should be banned altogether. Please join PETA in asking the Animal Welfare Board of India to ban glass-coated manja, which causes thousands of birds to die.
