HYDERABAD   -  Caretaker Culture Minister of Sindh Dr Junaid Ali Shah has said that it is our responsibility to introduce our culture and archaeology to future generations and each of the 272 historical places like Khuda Abad needs public recognition and there was also a need to create interest and awareness about these sites and small documentaries should also be made on archaeology. The provincial culture department has established a Sindh cultural mart in Karachi, where artists are earning money by selling their creations.

He expressed these views while speaking at the Khuda Abad (Saani) heritage conference on behalf of the culture and antiquities department near Hala, district Matiari. The emi­nent historians, scholars, intellectu­als and archaeologists of Sindh gave presentations and papers on Khu­daabad Sani. The minister said that he asked the education minister to conduct study visits to the 272 ar­chaeological sites of Sindh for the students. He mentioned during the period of caretaker ministry, a re­search lab and archives portal has also been created. 

Dr Junaid Shah said after becom­ing caretaker minister, he succeeded in getting back the valuable artefacts stolen from Kot Diji, 55 years back. He announced that along with estab­lishing a museum of books in Hala, a committee of writers would also be formed. He said that each of Sindh’s 272 sites should be included in the UNESCO World Heritage, where 6,000 sites in Iran were included and we have only two. He said that there are 33 heritage sites in Karoonjhar alone, which are on the provisional list of world heritage.

In his presidential address at the conference, renowned scholar and archeologist Kaleem Lashari called for comprehensive planning for the future of institutions and the need for policy guidelines with public participation to avoid repeating mistakes of the past. He said that houses and palaces are mentioned in Masoomi history, but It was be­ing asked why the rulers who built magnificent mausoleums do not have palaces, the reason being that mausoleums and mosques have sanctity, so they were not tampered with, while palaces and big houses with time were destroyed. He also mentioned that till now not a single excavation has been done at Khuda Abad. He said that if books were not patronized at the official level, the books would disappear, and we have to go with the new global era away from traditional education. He demanded that a museum of books be established in Hala, “Gu­lan Jo Kot” is also present in Khuda Abad, it should be protected, and an IT cell be established in the cul­ture department to promote these historical places on social media. Apart from Inam Sheikh, the guest of honour, Prof Habib Sannai, Dr Qazi Khadim and others also spoke on this occasion.