KARACHI: Addressing a conference on challenges to heritage sites of Sindh and the centenary celebrations of excavations of Mohenjo Daro, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah stressed the need for studying effects of climate change in order to protect national heritage sites.

He said that the inheritors of the Indus Valley Civilisation were now facing severe patterns and effects of climate change and there was a serious need to understand and study the effects so that researchers and scholars could provide guidelines for policymaking and addressing the issue.

The conference titled ‘New Challenges to Sindh Heritage & Sculpture & Paintings Exhibition on Centenary Celebrations of Mohenjo Daro Excavations’ was convened by the culture department here at Arts Council on Sunday.

The chief minister inaugurated the Sculpture & Paintings Exhibition on Centenary Celebrations of Mohenjo Daro Excavations.

“We are inheritors of the Indus Valley Civilisation and originators of the world’s leading and centuries-old civilisation. Most of the past civilisations, including ours in the Indus Valley, were doomed due to certain, sudden, and severe patterns of climate change, which needed to be understood and studied by researchers and scholars for guidelines,” he said.

He said the recent calamity of flood had affected the province greatly and his government had tried its level best to rise to the crises.

“It is a fact that our monuments and ancient properties suffered a great deal of loss and I have personally been to a few such places and observed the effects on the World Heritage Site of Mohenjo Daro,” he said.

“When the United Nations secretary-general recently visited Pakistan and went to Mohenjo Daro to assess the damages to the heritage site, I led the team and briefed him in details and requested him for saving and securing at least the heritage sites,” the CM said, adding: “He had assured me of his full support at that time.”

He said the recent Sharm El Sheikh Climate Change Conference (COP 27) also achieved some level of success and Pakistan actively participated in it.

“Our case with a call for climate justice was passionately advocated by chairman PPP and foreign minister in Egypt, as a result, the world now has agreed to create The Loss and Damage Fund, whereby developing countries like us would be financially incentivised rather than compensated — as they take the burden of carbon emissions of the developed world, which are the key reasons for changed and severed patterns of the climate change,” Mr Murad said.

The Sindh government as a policy would try to implement recommendations made by a heritage fraternity represented by Dr Kaleemullah Lashari.

The CM said that under his advice, The Endowment Fund Trust (ETF) had started work on Ranikot to restore its walls damaged by rain and flood.

“A French team has surveyed Sehwan city and the fort this month and an international conference is to be held on Sehwan, (Alexander) in February 2023 where 10 eminent scholars are likely to participate,” he disclosed.

The chief minister proposed to set up an independent monitoring committee to study and initiate restoration works.

He said in January 2023, the Sindh government was going to Davos, Switzerland, at World Economic Forum with a case study of Sindh.

He appreciated Education and Culture Minister Syed Sardar Shah to have taken this initiative and starting a discussion on challenges of climate change to the cultural heritage.

Those who spoke on the occasion include minister Sardar Shah, archaeologist Dr Lashari, Italian archaeologist Dr Valeria Piacenti and others.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2022