Dia Mirza: On Makar Sankranti people still use Chinese manja and it kills birds, injures other beings

Makar Sankranti is here and it marks end of the

winter harvest

and the arrival of a new one. It’s also about fun,

kite flying

and eating

traditional foods

. Dia Mirza recalls her find childhood memories of this day. She shares: “All of my childhood I loved Makar Sankranti! It was about eating till laddoos, spending hours on rooftops, music playing, friends cheering, competition running high, the sheer high of letting go of a kite and watching it rise high, high, high!”
The

Bollywood

actress, who is an ardent animal lover, also has a special message for kite-flyers on this day. She says, “The glass manja or

Chinese manja

was introduced into our festivals about 25-30 years ago and it is highly destructive. It kills birds and causes serious harm to other beings as well. As someone who has the most joyous memories of Sankranti from my childhood, I wish the joy of the festival would be restored by a collective conscience to stop using Chinese Manja. Despite the NGT banning the use of Chinese manja people continue to use it. Each year on and around Makar Sankranti 1000’s of birds across India are fatally injured by this manja.”