Umar foresees Peshawar as tourism destination

Minister hails steps for conservation of archaeological sites

PESHAWAR:

Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar has said that Peshawar is an important and unique city in the context of history and tourism in the region and it should be promoted as destination for faith tourism.

He was talking to media after his visit to Peshawar City on Saturday. The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Culture and Tourism Authority (KPCTA), Directorate of Archaeology and Tech Valley had arranged the visit for the minister to see the historic places in the city and apprise him of the ongoing renovation and development work in tourism, archaeology, museum and other sectors.

The minister praised the initiatives being taken by the KPCTA, Archaeology and Museum Department for the tourism promotion, conservation and preservation of antiques and archaeological sites and renovation of historic Peshawar Museum.

He said that he would ask Prime Minister Imran Khan to inaugurate the Peshawar Museum once its renovation completed.

Asad Umar said that religious tourism can be promoted by attracting the religious scholars and followers of Buddhism to the Peshawar Museum, Takhtbhai Archaeological Complex and other sites in Swat and elsewhere in K-P.

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“Peshawar Museum contains an important and precious part of our history. Peshawar City has a history and remained the centre of various religions in the past,” he said, adding that he would ask the local as well as the foreign tourist to visit Peshawar.

Later, the minister visited Peshawar Museum, Gor Khattree, Gorakhnath Hindu Temple, Heritage Trail, Sethi House and other historic places in the city.

It is worth noting here that Peshawar Museum is the only museum of Gandhara Art in the world with over 30,000 rare and precious artifacts. It has has been reopened for general public, archeologists and tourists after completion of renovation work.

The entire colonial-era building including its exterior and interior structure and designs has been completely restored to original form by renowned experts without compromising the original architecture.

The two-story building, an amalgamation of British and Mughal architectures, was originally consisted of a main hall and two side aisles on ground and first floor, surmounted by four elegant cupolas and small pinnacle on all corners, has been renovated. The renovation work was necessitated after its exterior and interior structure was badly affected by earthquakes and harsh weather conditions.

It is the only museum in world where the complete life story of the founder of Buddhism, Bhudda is preserved in the form of panels and statues, attracting domestic and international tourists, Buddhists and monks in great numbers.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 14^th, 2021.