| CSJ opposes MMHC’s conversion into hotel, urges LG to save Dogra heritage | | |  EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, July 31: In a petition signed by 110 prominent citizens, the Civil Society of Jammu (CSJ) has written to the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to intervene in the matter to save the Mubarak Mandi Heritage Complex (MMHC) Jammu from being leased out to private parties for conversion into commercial hotels. This was disclosed in a statement issued by Th. Gulchain Singh Charak, Former Minister, Founding Vice Chairman of the Mubarak Mandi Jammu Heritage Society and President, Dogra Sadar Sabha, J&K, here today. It may be recalled that the participants in a meeting convened by him last week, to discuss the issue, had unanimously opposed the move terming it as an attempt at oblitrating the glorious heritage and cultural identity of the valiant and nationalistic Dogras, and amounted to trampling upon their emotions and sentiments, for a short term financial gain.
Charak disclosed that it was emphasized in the petition, a copy of which was also made available to the newsmen, that the complex was a protected monument, under the Jammu and Kashmir Ancient Monuments Preservation Act, Svt.1977, which does not permit its misuse as a commercial hotel of a protected monument.
He further disclosed that during a visit to the heritage complex by a committee of the Dogra Sadar Sabha including members of the Civil Society today itself, comprising Th. Gulchain Singh Charak, Col Karan Singh, Ajay Khajuria KAS (Retd), Brig (Retd) MS Jamwal, Col (Retd) VK Sahi VrC and Dr VS Sharma it was seen that the priceless Dogra heritage kept temporarily in the Army Headquarters building is being treated with total apathy and that the rare and precious artifacts of the Dogra Art Museum, including its collection of paintings worth crores of rupees, were continuing to deteriorate due to dust, seepage and fungus. Similarly, the rare and fragile 300 years old records of Archives are also in danger of being further damaged due to excessive moisture and dampness.
Charak asserted that the deliberate shabby treatment being meted out to Dogra heritage, especially the way in which the Museum artifacts and archival record has been dumped, was indicative of a conspiracy to do away/remove these intrinsic components of the Dogra heritage, once and for all.
Charak appealed to Dr Jitendra Singh, MoS in PMO and representing J&K at the national level in the Council of Union Ministers that he should also intervene in the matter to save the Dogra Heritage, and to give time to a delegation of the people of Jammu to meet him and explain this issue to him in detail, so that we do not have to cut a sorry figure before the future generations.
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