PESHAWAR, Sept 18: A subsidiary of the federal ministry for industry has sought amendment to the Antiquities Act, 1975 to allow manufacturing and export of copies and replicas of vintage weapons and other equipment.

Arms manufacturers say the country could earn huge foreign exchange if the government allows export of replicas and copies of vintage guns, firearms, shields and daggers through an amendment to the law.

“Antiquities Act, 1975 is a stumbling block in the manufacturing of copies and replica of vintage weapons and other equipment,” said Brig (retd) Naveed Rehman, chief executive of the Pakistan Hunting and Sporting Arms Development Company.

He said that President Pervez Musharraf at a meeting last year had directed the authorities concerned to amend the act or introduce a system of certification to legalise the export of hunting and sporting arms, but no action had been taken.

Arms manufacturers say that Darra Adamkhel had great potential and gun manufacturers in the town have the advantage of having cheap labour which can help the local market flourish and export the vintage weapons to other countries, especially Europe and America.

Section 30 of the Antiquities Act, 1975 prohibits making of copies of protected antiquities without licence. The director-general of the Federal Department of Archaeology can grant licence for exporting replica and copies.

Archaeology department officials, however, said the act was not hurdle to the export of replica and copies if the manufacturers abided by rules and regulations.

They said the rules permitted the export, but normally such laws were misused for counterfeiting of antiquities which was a punishable offence as per the law.

But critics said that the act was not a sacred document and it could be modified with the requirements of the situation. They said that there was no definition of the antique firearms, military firearms and copies in the act.

Officials said that export of hunting and sporting weapons was already flourishing and arms worth $105 million had been exported last year.

Brig Rehman said that export of weapons manufactured in Darra and other towns of the country could reach $5 billion if the government allowed manufacturing of replica and copies of vintage arms, adding that Darra had potential to capture market in Europe and America.

“The government does want commercial manufacturing of automatic weapons in Darra. Our plan is only to produce and export quality hunting, sporting weapons and manufacturing of vintage guns,” he said.

The government has chalked out a plan for manufacturing quality guns and ammunition in Darra town, some 35km south of Peshawar.

The officials said that a training centre in the town had been planned, while industrial estate for manufacturing of hunting and sporting weapons, including gunsmith school and proof house, would be established.

Some 20,000 gunsmiths have been engaged in designing and manufacturing of various types of guns and ammunition in Darra town, known for manufacturing illicit weapons in the region. Under the plan gunsmiths would be trained to enhance their capacity.