Strong coordination needed to promote heritage sites: Senate Committee

ISLAMABAD, Jun 5 (APP):Senate Standing Committee on Information, Broadcasting, National History and Literary Heritage in its meeting Tuesday recommended a strong liaison and coordination between the Information and Broadcasting Division and the National History and Literary Heritage Division of the Ministry to have efficient promotion and awareness about the work of division and its allied departments in preservation, restoration and promotion of heritage sites, literature and culture of reading and writing.
The meeting was held under the Chairmanship of Senator Faisal Javed Khan here at the Parliament House and was attended among others by Senators Anwar ul Haq Kakar, Syed Sabir Shah, Rubina Khalid, Maula Bakhsh Chandio, Mushtaq Ahmed, Secretary National History and Literary Heritage Division Amir Hassan, Chairman National Language Promotion Department Iftikhar Arif, Managing Director National Book Foundation Inam ul Haq Javed and officials from the ministry and other allied departments.
The committee was told that the division has conducted a number of activities which promote tourism and help in spreading awareness about the richness of our heritage which included Vesak festival, calligraphy competitions, book fairs, creation of an endowment fund, inclusion of heritage sites in UNESCO tentative lists among others.
In response to the briefing about various events and promotion activities held by the division, Chairman Committee observed that this division being a sister institution of Information and Broadcasting Division can do a lot for publicizing these events as well as the historical and literary heritage of the country.
He emphasized on having an integrated marketing and promotional campaign involving the state media organs, internal and external publicity wings, Pakistan’s missions abroad and embassies of other countries in Pakistan. Members of the Committee agreed that heritage is a national subject and treating it solely as a devolved subject is not serving any purpose.
A comprehensive plan about the ongoing and future projects of the division and its allied departments under PSDP was shared with the Committee. It was told that the ministry has been allocated a budget of Rs. 121 million while 964 million are given to the 11 allied departments.
The PSDP projects in 2018-19 for the allied departments amount to Rs 550.597 million.
Members of the Committee deliberated in detail about reviving and promoting reading and writing culture in the country and making books easily accessible to the people living in any area of Pakistan. MD National Book Foundation apprised the Committee about the efforts the foundation is undertaking for promotion and accessibility of books through publication of more books, more book fairs and having book shelves placed in marts and stores on highways and other places that are frequently visited by public. Chairman NLPD also gave insight into how literature and its use can be and should be promoted and how Pakistan is failing in the international market of copyrights, publications and royalties. Members of the committee expressed concerns on neglecting innumerable heritage sites in the country and observed that the upcoming government through this division and its departments needs to take steps to have our heritage sites acknowledged nationally as well as internationally and measures to preserve and restore them. The committee acknowledged the work undergone by the division and its departments but at the same time called for improvement at a brisk pace. The meeting will take up the agenda again in the next meeting to give solid recommendations regarding promotion and work efficiency of departments working in the domain of national history and literary heritage.