LARKANA, Nov 5: A decision to decentralise the department of archaeology and hand over monuments of historical and cultural importance to provinces hangs in the balance as the provinces have failed to submit lists of archaeological sites to the federal government.

The director-general of the department of archaeology, Dr Fazal Dad Kakar, told Dawn in Mohenjodaro on Sunday that the department was still waiting for finalised lists of monuments.

He replied in the negative when asked if there was a deadline for receiving the ‘agreed lists’ and said that it was up to the provinces to decide.

The provincial secretaries of archaeology were given a list of ‘protected monuments’ with request to tick the sites they wanted to take care of in future, in a meeting with the federal secretary of archaeology in Islamabad about a month and a half ago, said the director of southern circle of archaeology department, Qasim Ali Qasim.

The onus now was on them as “we are ready to hand over the sites along with the staff working there to the provinces,” he said.Sources in the archaeology department said that Sindh had a total of 129 protected sites.

Sindh culture secretary Abdul Qadir Mangi said that he would write to the federal government to hand over the control of Mohenjodaro to Sindh, the sources said.

The federal secretary asked the department to go ahead with its annual development programme after getting unclear responses from the provinces about the finalised lists in his correspondence, said the sources.

The southern circle had undertaken a Rs35 million five-year plan at Mohenjodaro in the light of fresh instructions and started work, which included the underpinning of structures, measures against salt action, developing lawns and constructing visitors’ pavilion and public toilets, said Mr Qasim.

The department had released Rs40 million to the Sindh government to undertake the work of preservation and conservation at the site, he said.

It was, however, yet to be seen how the provincial government would spend the amount, said Dr Kakar.

The sources said that Ecnec had still not approved the Rs1,100 million second phase of the master plan for Mohenjodaro submitted in June this year.

JUI: Activists of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (Fazl) staged a procession in Shahdadkot on Sunday in protest against the bombardment of a religious seminary in Bajuar which killed 83 people.

The protestors marched on roads of the town before reaching Kotoo-Motto Chowk where the participants staged a demonstration.

Party leaders, Moulana Mubeen Mastoi and Hafiz Dur Muhammed Brohi condemned the air-strike and demanded that government order an inquiry into the tragedy by the judges of Supreme Court of Pakistan.