MARDAN, March 23: Illegal excavation is continuing at five different sites in Mardan and Dargai without any check.

The excavators have reportedly recovered rare antiquities belonging to the Buddha period, Greeco-Bactrian, Hindu Shahi and Muslim age from these sites.

Sources said that Kashmir Smast (Cave), a protected Buddhist site near the Baboozai mountains some 65km from Mardan, had been destroyed due to illegal excavation. At present, smugglers of antique items have been excavating the site at four different spots. The site was discovered in 1862.

Officials of the Department of Archaeology, Peshawar University, also excavated the site some six months back, but they abandoned the exercise for unknown reasons.

An eyewitness claimed that smugglers of Peshawar and other areas were busy excavating the Kashmir Smast and they recovered a large number of antiques from there.

Another source said that illegal excavation at Hero Shah (Dargai), Katlang, Prang and Lusa Dheri at Baizo Kharkey (Mardan) was also continuing unabated.

The sources said the head of a huge Buddha statue was recovered from the Baizo Kharkey site, which was sold to some antique smugglers in Peshawar.