08 November 2004	Monday	24 Ramazan 1425

SIALKOT, Nov 7: Yet another year has slipped by, the 145-year-old Iqbal Manzil, the birthplace of Allama Iqbal, continues to be neglected by the authorities concerned despite the adoption of a resolution by the district council for its renovation.

The resolution was adopted almost one and-a-half year ago, but the historic place is still in a state of disrepair failing to prick the conscience of the officials at the helm.

The historic Iqbal Manzil stands out as a symbol of official apathy and step-motherly treatment meted out to it. Its rickety doors and cracked walls and roofs speak volumes for the negligence, which has brought about a marked decline in the number of the visitors. There was a time when at least 300 people used to visit the building daily, but now the number has been reduced to few dozens.

The upper storey, which has been declared dangerous, has been closed to the public. Only its facade has been whitewashed to save it from an ugly look.

The government had purchased the building from the Iqbal family and handed it over to the archaeology department considering it a national heritage. Some of its parts were re-opened to visitors by the military government in 1999.

It is a pity that there is no proper arrangement to preserve the rare books containing Kalaam-i-Iqbal and research on the life of great scholar and poet. The books placed in a mini-library in the drawing room have become dusty. Iqbal's famous hookah, fireplace, furniture and other belongings are fast rusting away.

On Nov 9 last year, Punjab Industries Minister Muhammad Ajmal Cheema and Tehsil Nazim Muhammad Akmal Cheema had visited the crumbling building and announced its immediate renovation from their pockets.

They also expressed grave concern over the negligence of the authorities concerned and stressed the need for adopting necessary measures to save the dilapidated building from collapsing. However, the minister and the Nazim have yet to honour their commitment.

The district administration, too, failed to allocate even a single penny for the historic building in its Rs3.19 billion development budget. The Tehsil Municipal Administrations is equally blind to the significance of the national heritage, as it ignored the building in the Rs550 million budget it had announced for the current fiscal.

The commitments made by the Sialkot business community from time to time to contribute to the renovation of the Manzil have proved mere statements.

Visitors to the Iqbal Manzil have raised a question that why the great poet's son, Justice Javed Iqbal (retired) and his family, have never bothered to visit the crumbling building.

While the district government officials claim that it is the responsibility of the TMA to look after Allama Iqbal's birthplace, the latter passes the buck on the administration or the Punjab Archaeology Department.

Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi during his visit here on Oct 24, 2003, had announced a special package of Rs3 billion for the uplift of the district. Unfortunately, the Iqbal Manzil was again ignored.

Talking to Dawn, Naara-i-Pakistan founder Prof Asghar Saudai has urged the government to chalk out a plan to establish Aiwan-i-Iqbal in Sialkot on the pattern of Lahore's.

Expressing grave concern over the negligence of the successive governments in paying due respect to the home of Iqbal, he stressed that promotion of Iqbaliyaat was the need of the hour.

He urged the government to launch PhD classes on the subject at the Government Murray College.