KARACHI, Dec 18: The federal archaeology department had to act a second time in a fortnight to stop construction by a telecommunications company at Moenjodaro, a heritage site protected under the law.

The mobile phone company was constructing a telecommunication tower at Moenjodaro – an important archaeological site representing the 5000 year old Indus Valley Civilisation – when a Unesco team visited the site on November 30.

The team and federal authorities were horrified to see construction work in progress. The work was stopped immediately and the federal archaeology department’s top officials gave orders that the area police ensure the work is not resumed.

Sources said after keeping the work suspended for more than a week, the mobile phone company resumed work at the protected site. The department officials approached the police and work stopped again.

In a letter to the Larkana district police officer, the Moenjodaro Curator wrote that Moenjodaro is a site protected under the Antiquities Act 1975 and under Sections 18, 19 and 22, new constructions, destruction, causing damage to it of any kind was strictly prohibited. The DPO was asked to take stern action against the telecommunications company and ensure work did not resume.

The curator has also written to the mobile phone company officials on the encroachment at the site of Moenjodaro close to Moenjodaro Balhreji Road.

Responding to Dawn queries, the Sindh Balochistan chief of the federal Archaeology Department, Qasim Ali Qasim, said that the work by the telecommunications company had been stopped once again. However, the local revenue department officials, besides some officers of the area police were helping the mobile phone company.

The Sindh government’s top officials have been informed and they warned if work resumed at the world famous protected site, stern action would be taken against the revenue and police department officials and the mobile phone company.

This scribe repeatedly tried to contact the mobile phone company’s public relations chief Syed Hasanat to learn the multinational telecommunications company’s version on the issue, but he did not respond.