Custom Search

Picture of the Day: Donkey up!

Posted on July 27, 2006
Filed Under >Bilal Zuberi, Photo of the Day, Society, Sports
22 Comments
Total Views: 71226

Share

By Bilal Zuberi

Karachiites know donkey cart races well.

I have myself witnessed them on many different streets in the city, from Sharah-e-Faisal to the main Univeristy Road. Amin Gulgee has even erected a monument to celebrate the city’s interesting pastime.

Donkey carts, with their single riders guiding them masterfully on Karachi streets and making noise from pebble-filled cans, may be deemed dangerous by some residents of the city, but they are a unique Karachi thing and demonstrate the vibrancy present in the local communities (in this case it is the coastal Makrani community who are typically given the credit for inventing donkey cart racing in Karachi).

Believe me, if you haven’t seen them before, you are missing a stirring sight. Even our President Musharraf has remarked in the past that "Donkey cart race reminded me of Ben Hur movie".

The following news item in The News caught my attention. Its great to see some attention being given to our local sports and customs. (Nice headline too: ">"Braying for the Chief Secretary Cup"):

The city’s top donkey cart riders can once again be seen battling for the honour of the Chief Secretary Cup and a prize of Rs. 15,000 as they participate in a thrilling donkey cart race today… The organizers have also involved the local association of the donkey carts and it has sent its seasoned riders to make sure that there should be a tough contest. Standards have been defined for the racing carts and violating them will lead to disqualification from the race. Referees will closely check to see if any of the riders are found involved in pushing or hindering others. Such activity will lead to immediate disqualification.

Only the city’s best kept donkey carts would be allowed to participate in the race. Those with worn out tyres or unfit carts would not be allowed. The participants of the race will be accompanied by police mobiles and traffic police motorcycles to clear any kind of obstructions. These mobiles will also carry referees and judges who will decide the winner of the contest.

The winner will get Rs. 15,000, runner up Rs. 10,000 and third position will get a reward of Rs. 5000, said one organizer who added that there will be about 50 to 60 participants in the race and each will get Rs500 for their participation. Governor Sindh Dr. Ishrat-ul-Ebad and the Chief Secretary Sindh Fazal-ur-Rehman will be the guests of honour and will also address the participants after distributing the award money.

Talking to The News, Zohaib Hasan, Advisor to Governor Sindh, said, “The President gave a directive to the Sindh Government to promote activities that represent the vibrancy of Sindh.� He added: “The government wants to re-establish the tradition of donkey cart race as people are preferring foreign sports over their own and this race is one of the identities of the province and city and the public should be involved in it.�

According to the organizers, the government is trying to make it a routine event of the city and the idea was to launch three or four small cups and then invite the winners to big contests like the one due today. After the Chief Secretary Cup, the participants will be invited to the Governor Cup which is one of the main events of the Sindh Sea Festival to be held in November.

Dr. Bilal Zuberi is Vice President of Product Development at GEO2 Technologies in Boston (MA), USA. See more at Bilal’s blog: BZNotes.

HOW TO PAINT OVER ALUMINUM SIDING.(AT HOME)

Albany Times Union (Albany, NY) August 27, 2000 Byline: Gene Austin Knight Ridder Q: Our house has aluminum siding that is about 16 years old. The siding is dull, and the paint is powdering. Several of my friends say the siding can’t be painted. Is that right?

A: Aluminum siding can definitely be painted. The main problem is the “chalk” that generally forms on old aluminum siding. It can cause poor adhesion of the new paint. Chalk, which is deteriorated paint that forms a fine powder, can be detected by wiping a hand over the surface. If there is chalk, some of it will rub off on your hand.

The usual way to prepare for painting aluminum siding is to remove the chalk. The simplest way to do this is to pressure-wash the surface. Many house painters offer pressure-washing service, or a pressure washer can be rented at most tool-rental agencies for $50 to $75 a day. A pressure washer also can be bought at most home centers, but expect to pay $300 or more.

Pressure washers can be tricky for unskilled people. Siding is difficult to clean safely, so it pays to have the washing done by an expert. website how to paint

The siding also can be cleaned by hand-washing with a solution of trisodium phosphate, sold at most paint stores. TSP is a strong cleaner, so wear goggles and rubber gloves and rinse thoroughly before painting.

Any mildew, which usually shows up as black stains on the siding, should be eliminated by washing with a solution of one part household bleach in three parts of water. web site how to paint

If any bare metal is exposed on the siding, it should be primed with a metal primer.

When repainting, use a high-quality acrylic-latex paint.

Q: Can a squeaky floor be repaired from the basement below it? The floor is carpeted and would be hard to fix from above.

A: If the joists and subfloor are visible in the basement, there are a number of ways to stop squeaking. Have a helper walk over the floor while you check from the basement and pinpoint the squeaking areas. Squeaking is sometimes caused by movement of floorboards resulting from gaps between the subfloor and joists. These gaps can be closed by filling them with wedges cut from cedar shingles or shims bought at a home center. Coat the wedges with glue to hold them tightly in place. A long gap can be closed by screwing a length of 2-by-4 or 2-by-6 to the joist.

Squeaking sometimes results because floor boards have buckled or pulled away from the subfloor. These boards can be pulled back into place by inserting screws from below. Drill pilot holes in the subfloor for the screws, and make certain the screws are not long enough to penetrate the floor.

Special brackets also are available to tighten flooring from below. Floor brackets are sold at some home centers and hardware stores or can be ordered from Improvements, (800) 642-2112 or Four brackets with screws (item 105064) cost about $15. Readers’ questions and comments are welcome and should be sent to Gene Austin, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Box 861, Blue Bell, PA 19422. Questions cannot be answered personally.

Related Posts with Thumbnails

22 comments posted

Comment Pages: [3] 2 1 » Show All

  1. Owais Mughal says:
    June 4th, 2007 10:48 pm

    photo of sprinting donkeys in a donkey cart race:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/zahidpix/529742829/

  2. Saad says:
    April 8th, 2007 3:10 pm

    It is interesting that this is really a Karachi thing. I dont think it is anywhere else. NOt in Punjab or even Balochistan.
    It’s actually quite a routine in Southern Punjab (Multan and adjoining areas).

  3. obaida says:
    April 8th, 2007 2:59 pm

    please let me know… ur seggestion are very important to me….

    i m waiting..

    thanx

  4. obaida says:
    April 8th, 2007 2:57 pm

    salam….

    i m a student of 4th yr architecture… my assignment is to design a sustainable architectute in coastal area…. community can be my choice… i hav chosen the makrani community…..where i m planning to make a ground for these ppl to celebrate their donkey cart races… which increases their tradition… and tourism also…. b/c in off season of fishing they can arrang these races and generate theire economy
    what u ppl think about it….
    and y u ppl think its gud idea

  5. Owais Mughal says:
    April 4th, 2007 6:02 pm

    Mian Nasir Saheb. We do try to portray all regions of Pakistan and we make a conscious effort towards that goal. Regionalism is the last thing you should expect from this site. If you look at the two columns to the right, you can see posts portraying whole of Pakistan.

  6. Mian Nasir Ahmad says:
    April 4th, 2007 12:29 pm

    very fine work, but one thing is missing you should potrate 4 provinves of pakistan but still a great job
    keep it up
    while i am searching

Comment Pages: [3] 2 1 » Show All



Have Your Say (Bol, magar piyar say)

Please respect the ATP Comment Policy.

Keep comments on topic; no personal attacks; don't submit indecent, inflammatory, slanderous, uncivil or irrelevant comments; flamers and trolls are not welcome; inappropriate comments will be removed or edited.

If you won't say it to someone's face, then don't say it here!

Readers who want to use a URL should please use the TINY URL program.

Thanks, and keep the comments coming!