Manjha menace: Cops use drones to geo-tag kite-flying hotspots in Lucknow

LUCKNOW: In a decisive technology-driven push to curb the growing threat posed by deadly Chinese manjha, the Lucknow Police began deploying drones to detect, geo-tag, and monitor kite-flying hotspots across the city.

The initiative rolled out on Monday following the recent death of a pharmaceutical company sales manager and a series of incidents in which pedestrians and bikers suffered grievous injuries after coming into contact with razor-sharp kite strings.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (West Zone) Vishwajeet Srivastava said the West Zone was chosen for the pilot as it witnessed the highest number of kite-flying activities. “As the majority of kite flying takes place in areas under the West Zone, we decided to take the assistance of drones. We will use drones to geo-tag the locations and then physically send police teams to ground zero to check the manjha being used during kite flying. We already marked around 20 such locations and geo-tagged them,” he said.

Officials explained that drone surveillance allowed police to overcome one of the biggest challenges in enforcement—reaching rooftops and congested residential pockets where kite flying often took place. Using aerial imaging, the drones could scan rooftops, terraces, and open spaces, identify individuals flying kites, and record clear digital evidence of violations, including the use of banned synthetic or metal-coated manjha.

Drone and AI technology expert Milind Raj, who steered the Lucknow Police in its effort, told TOI that such systems were specifically designed to assist law enforcement in curbing violations that were otherwise difficult to detect from the ground. “This technology uses a combination of hybrid imaging devices and a ground control station system. It is built especially to crack down on miscreants who do not abide by the law,” he said.

According to Raj, the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) had a monitoring range exceeding 8,000 metres and could fly at altitudes of 850 metres and above. Equipped with a powerful location-tagging system and hybrid zoom cameras, the drones could precisely trace the exact position of violators and relay coordinates to ground teams in real time.

The police deployed drones in 2 different sizes. One was a larger surveillance UAV for sustained monitoring, while the second was a small, high-speed drone capable of flying at 80–100 kmph, allowing officers to reach identified hotspots within seconds.

DCP Srivastava further added that geo-tagging would also help create a permanent database of recurring kite-flying zones, enabling predictive policing, quicker raids, and sustained monitoring during festival seasons.

Police warned that the use, sale, or storage of banned manjha would invite strict legal action, reiterating that technology-backed enforcement would leave little room for offenders to escape the law.