The fire engines, one from 1918 and the other from 1921, are now on display at an event arranged by the provincial tourism corporation, in collaboration with the Frontier Heritage Trust and Sarhad Conservation Council in Gor Gathri. PHOTOS: HALIMA MANSOOR/EXPRESS
The effort made by cultural and tourist authorities in Peshawar, with the support of a British social worker, Maureen Lines, to salvage two fire engines dating back to colonial times marks a welcome effort to keep alive our past. Preserving heritage is, of course, key to societies. We have neglected this task too often — and as a result, it is all of us who suffer. The two fire engines, lying in ruins, had been manufactured by the company Merryweather and Sons in 1918 and 1921, respectively. They have now been restored and put on display for the public.
Other relics from the time of the British lie scattered across our country. Salvaging them goes towards rebuilding a past we have lost. Indeed, the authorities in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa have set a good example by moving on with this project and enrolling the help of those who work with vintage cars to piece the engines back again. There are now plans to restore old buildings and other bits from history in that province. This is something we should emulate at a countrywide level. We have for too long neglected to do this, allowing buildings of huge significance to simply fall away. We need to invest more in preserving and improving our museums, and creating new ones, so that the future generations can learn more about their history and look over all that it has left behind. In our country, where many different dynasties, different empires, have reigned, there is a huge versatility in what has been left to us to look over and admire. Holding on to this past is in many ways vital for us. It is important not to lose it or allow it to be whittled away because we have failed to protect it. In Peshawar, we have seen an example of what can be done. The shiny red fire engines dating back almost a century were not even known to people; now they can be seen by all.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 27th, 2014.
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