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By Ghafar Ali
PESHAWAR, July 20, 2004: People and conservationists here have strongly resented the provincial government’s decision of demolishing the 150-year-old Mohafiz Khana (Land Record Office) on the Khyber Road here and asked the government to preserve this cultural heritage instead of ruining it.
The Muhafiz Khana houses land records and the records of courts decisions in civil and criminal cases and used stamp papers of the districts of Peshawar, Charsadda and Nowshera since 1850s. However, the record is in a very bad condition as it littered in the racks and bundles are lying on the ground with a heavy layer of dust and mud lying on it. The employees of the department have no option but to walk over these bundles in search of old records. One of the walls of the building had fallen down recently and rain water is threatening the valuable records.
The condition of the building is deplorable and since 1990, no repair work has been done and the condition of the building has gone from bad to worse. A huge Banyan tree in front of the building, which provides shade to parked cars and some makeshift businessmen, is also the target of the government officials despite the fact that no construction can possibly be made on the site of the tree.
Zahoor Durrani, Chief Executive of Sehrai Tourism Services, told Daily Times the province had only historical buildings, cultural heritage and music that could attract tourists to this part of the country. “The Turkish, Greek, Roman, Persian, Central Asian, Mughal and British cultures have left their effects on the culture of the Frontier province and it is the melting pot,” he said. He added that these sites were a living history and these sites deserved preservation.
Mr Durrani, also a member of the Sarhad Conservation Network (SCN), said they would not allow cultural heritage to be destroyed. He said the record and the building of the Muhafiz Khana both were of historical value and needed preservation. He said the record in the building was in a deplorable condition and so far the concerned department had done nothing for its proper preservation, which was a criminal act and the government should fix responsibility on someone through an inquiry and take action against him under the law. “Who spent the fund reserved for the proper safety of the record and where this fund was spent?” he asked.
Mr Durrani said not only the building and the record needed preservation but also proper medical facilities should be provided to the employees whose health had suffered from the environmental hazards in the Muhafiz Khana. He asked the government not to touch the building and preserve it in the same layout and also proper arrangements should be made for the preservation of the historical record therein. “If the government handed over the building to the SCN, it would arrange necessary funds for its preservation,” he said.
Nicola Ruck, a Health and Human Resources Consultant, in a letter to the NWFP Chief Secretary has also requested that the historical landmarks should not be lost both because of the economic benefit from tourism and because of the cultural, environmental and historical value of NWFP and Pakistan. “Destroying traditional buildings and trees and replacing them with concrete will ruin Peshawar - it will increase heat and dust in the summer and make the city unhealthier for all,” she said. (Ends)