Capturing history on film now free in K-P

PESHAWAR: The photography fee in all museums and archaeological sites of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has been waived off.

Students will also be allowed free entry, while researchers will be able to access the reserve collection (items not on regular display), said a notification issued in Peshawar on Sunday.

The fee waiver will apply to all commercial and personal video and still photography for a period of one year.

“This step has been taken to promote Archaeology in the region and to draw domestic and foreign tourists,” said Dr Abdul Samad, a consultant for the Archaeology & Museums Department.

“Tourist numbers for the region have dwindled in recent years and this move aims to attract documentary makers, writers, photographers, media and researchers to our museums and sites,” he added.

The new Peshawar Museum Curator Nidaullah Sehrai said museums in the province housed a fine collection of Gandhara Art which is unparalleled in the world, but very few were aware of its significance.

Under the prevailing challenges, when the region needs favourable media projection, commercial fees for videography as high as Rs20,000 were proving to be a hindrance in the department’s goal to promote priceless relics.

The notification order further stipulates setting up of a separate Peshawar Museum fund account to receive donations for the museum’s upkeep.

The fund will be maintained by a committee headed by secretary culture, representatives of finance department, directorate of archaeology and two reputed civil society members.

Museum curators and site in-charges will be responsible for granting permission to commercial documentary makers, who will be bound to properly acknowledge and accredit the museum in their films and also share copies of their finished works with the museum.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 21^st, 2011.