Sonam explains her noble act
To explain her absence at the event of distributing kites in her school in Juhu, Sonam said, "Although I would have loved to be there to deliver them personally, I am out of town. As a star, I feel we have a certain responsibility towards creating awareness towards the plight of animals.

"As a child, while flying a kite with my friends, I injured myself with the maanja quite seriously. So last year, when PeTA approached me with this cause, I immediately empathised with the plight of these birds."

PeTA speaks on the same issue
Sonam stated in a letter to the Principal of the school that she's doing this as a part of the PeTA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) initiative.

A PeTa spokesperson said, “Kids love animals and would never knowingly harm birds. By using cotton string to fly kites, students can help urge others to stay away from glass-coated maanja, that is harmful to children who handle it.”

PeTA representatives are demanding a nationwide ban on the usage of glass-coated kite strings. They promote the use of cotton strings for kite-flying. They also work in tandem with other animal welfare organizations to treat birds which have suffered injuries due to glass-coated strings.

Ill effects of glass-coated kite strings
The sharpness of the strings work well for cutting the opponent’s kite strings, but can be harmful to birds and even human beings.

The strings used in kite-flying events are coated with crushed glass which can be injurious to birds when they get in the way of these strings.

People on open vehicles such as bicycles and bikes are also at risk of being injured by glass-coated kite strings. Apart from the health impacts, glass coated threads are much more expensive than the cotton ones.