by Iqbal Ahmad
Heritage celebrations highlight a rich archaeological legacy, yet weak institutions, outdated methods, and inadequate policy continue to hinder scientific conservation, demanding professional reform and strengthened preservation systems
On the eve of heritage week celebrations, the heritage-related organisations and educational institutions, particularly the Culture and Tourism departments, get engaged in various programmes aimed at creating general awareness about the maintenance and preservation of heritage wealth. In fact, the heritage belongs to the nation, and it is very good to celebrate it. Steps have also been taken at the institutional level to preserve it.
But there is still very much to be done for this sector. The heritage-related policies need to be revived. Heritage-related subjects should be identified, and these subjects should be introduced at least at higher-education levels. The institutions looking after heritage preservation and conservation should be reorganised to pave the way for trained professional manpower. If heritage tourism is reorganised on modern scientific lines, it will not only help in heritage conservation but will also help create new job opportunities in the public and private sectors.
While speaking about heritage, this land is not behind any in the country. It has a rich archaeological heritage in terms of its ancient monuments, archaeological sites and artefacts, ancient coins, and epigraphs, but, to one’s surprise, so far as maintenance and conservation are concerned, it has not been maintained on the requisite modern scientific lines. In this context, the small institutions looking after this heritage are also not to be blamed alone for poor upkeep, as these institutions lack basic infrastructure, professional manpower, and modern conservation methodology.
For decades, these institutions have remained unorganised and relied upon traditional methods of conservation and maintenance. Indeed, these institutions could have performed better if they were reorganised with efficient professional manpower and modern conservation technologies. As such, I would never hold these little institutions wholly responsible for their poor performance. To be honest, it is the responsibility of the complete system, the entire establishment, including civil society, which has been watching this heritage mess for decades. The system never explored the heritage-related problems faced by the concerned institutions nor adopted any proper heritage policy to safeguard the scattered heritage of this land and its people. No doubt the Heritage Conservation and Preservation Act was passed as early as 2010, but I do not think it was ever implemented by any government.
Technically speaking, the little institutions looking after heritage suffer greatly at professional and technical levels; they are very poorly equipped with modern technologies and professional manpower. At the institutional level, these organisations need to be reorganised and strengthened with professional manpower consisting of learned archaeologists, numismatists, art historians, and conservationists. They also require proper equipment and modern archaeological technology. Annual refresher courses and workshops on archaeology, numismatics, palaeography, and conservation for the working staff should be conducted at Jammu and Srinagar to enable them to learn modern methods of archaeology and museum conservation. For this purpose, the services of experienced and trained experts should be hired or loaned. A team of experts should be constituted to take stock of the working of various institutions entrusted with maintaining this heritage. The experts should visit monuments, archaeological sites, museums, and repositories and carry out on-site inspections. They should take stock of the maintenance and conservation status of the archaeological sites and submit their reports to the establishment.
The story of the ancient archaeological heritage here is very long and interesting. There was a time when the archaeological wealth of Jammu and Kashmir was confined to literary records in Sanskrit, Persian, ancient literature, and foreign travel accounts. Much was spoken of religious edifices of grandeur and sanctity, but in the absence of archaeological findings, these sources lacked chronological order. The history and civilisation of ancient Jammu and Kashmir were therefore overemphasised, presenting perplexing contrasts and problems. But with the advent of archaeological, numismatic, and epigraphic research, the history and culture of ancient Kashmir have now been explored to a large extent, and major chronological gaps have been filled.
The pioneering work in rediscovering the past of Kashmir was undertaken by European missionaries. They conducted systematic geological and archaeological expeditions from the early 19th century and collected valuable information on environmental and geological features, ancient monuments, and archaeological artefacts.
The earliest archaeological explorations and excavations revealed ruins and remains of remarkable stone structures across the Kashmir Valley. Archaeologists admired these for their solidity, simplicity, and durability. Alexander Cunningham, the famous 19th-century European archaeologist, distinguished them by the graceful elegance of their outlines and the boldness of their parts. In his essay on the Arian order of architecture as exhibited in the temples of Kashmir, he writes:
“The architectural remains of Kashmir are perhaps the most remarkable of the existing monuments of India, as they exhibit undoubted traces of the influence of Grecian art.”
“The characteristic features of Kashmiri architecture are its lofty pyramidal roofs, its trefoil doorways covered by pyramidal pediments, and the great width of its intercolumniations. Its resemblance to Greek and Roman styles is evident…”
From these lines, it is clear he was greatly impressed by Kashmir’s architectural heritage. He explored stone-built monuments across the Jhelum Valley, including Bunyar, Rampur, Pattan, Parashpura, Takht-i-Suliman, Pandrethan, Avantipura, and Martand. These ruins were identified as ancient monasteries and temples. He also refers to the ruins of the Kanishka site at Parahaspura, which he considered a large and important centre.
Archaeological Evidence
Archaeological evidence of human settlement in Jammu and Kashmir is centuries old. Sites from the Palaeolithic, Neolithic, and Harappan ages have been identified. Two major sites have been systematically excavated so far: the Harappan site at Manda in Jammu province and the Neolithic site at Burzahama in the Kashmir Valley.
Other ancient sites in both provinces have yielded evidence from the Mauryan, Sunga, Indo-Greek, Indo-Scythian, Indo-Parthian, Kushan, Kidara, Hun, and Karkota periods (350 BC to 800 AD).
Investigations are underway to find evidence of settlement before the period when the Kashmir Valley was full of water and was traditionally known as Satisar. Archaeologists from the ASI, the state archaeology department, and university experts are engaged in this work. Fossils have been discovered at several places in the valley, including the plateaus of Khonmoh, Sumber, and Galendar in Srinagar and Pulwama districts.
European experts in the upper lands of Khonmoh made the earliest fossil discovery. Several samples are housed in the Geology and Mining section of the SPS Museum, Srinagar. The remains of an extinct mammoth were recovered during trial digs in 1923 and 2001 at Sumber and Galendar near the saffron fields of Pampore. One of these fossil remains is housed in the Srinagar museum, while the 2001 specimen is kept at Jammu University.
More recently, two lecturers, Dr Raouf and Manzoor Javid of the School Education Department, claimed to have identified million-year-old fossil deposits near the Aharbal waterfall in Kulgam district.
The archaeological and geological mission initiated by European experts continues, with departments of geology, archaeology, and university scholars engaged in ongoing research.
(The writer is a senior archaeologist and author. Ideas are personal.)
