UNESCO Warns Pakistan Over Taxila Reconstruction
NEW DELHI-Reacting strongly to reports of reconstruction work carried out by Pakistani authorities at two historical sites in Taxila, India on July 3 emphasized that cultural heritage, especially sites recognized by UNESCO, belongs to the entire world and not to any particular individual or country.
UNESCO has warned Pakistan that the sites could be placed on the World Heritage in Danger List if corrective measures are not taken and that Taxila could even face delisting over the recent “unnecessary interventions” that compromised the site’s integrity and authenticity.
The issue came to light after photographs and information on the reconstruction work carried out by the Punjab archaeology department were shared with Pakistan’s Permanent Delegate to UNESCO in Paris by a third party.
According to Pakistan’s daily ‘Dawn,’ the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural has asked the Pakistani government to reverse the reconstruction work carried out at the Mohra Moradu and Sirkap archaeological sites in Taxila, saying it undermines the integrity of the World Heritage site.
Taxila, located in Pakistan’s Punjab province, is a vast serial site that includes a Mesolithic cave and the archaeological remains of four early settlement sites, Buddhist monasteries, and a mosque and madrassa.
The ruins of the four settlement sites at Taxila reveal the pattern of urban evolution on the Indian subcontinent through more than five centuries, according to the UNESCO website. (IANS)
