LAHORE, June 2: The federal archaeology department has failed to follow Unesco’s terms and conditions required to put three new Pakistani archaeological sites on Unesco’s World Heritage List this year.

The three new archaeological sites — Harappa (Punjab), Mehrgarh (Balochistan) and Rehman Dheri (NWFP) — were recommended by Unesco, Pakistan, to be put on the WHL.

A committee, which was constituted to collect necessary information required by Unesco (Paris), has also been dissolved.

The archaeology department reportedly could not provide the required information to Paris in time after failing to get the contour maps (aerial picture) from the Survey of Pakistan. The contour maps of any archaeological site are the most required item submitted to the World Heritage Committee for this purpose.

The WHC meets in Paris every year in June to decide the enlisting of new archaeological sites on the WHL.

When contacted, Unesco (Islamabad) director Ingeborg Berines said the department could not provide the contour maps to the WHC. Therefore, it would not consider the Pakistani case this year, she added. “Had the Survey of Pakistan provided them with the maps, the department would have succeeded in submitting its case in time,” she regretted.

An official of the archaeology department, who requested anonymity, told this reporter that the department had requested the officials of the Survey of Pakistan to give them the maps, but they refused to do so citing security reasons.

Archaeology department Director-General Saleemul Haq said the department had completed all other requirements, including the sites’ history, documentation, condition survey and history of intervention. He hoped that the department would manage to get the contour maps from the Survey of Pakistan by the next year. However, in case of failure, it would prefer taking aerial pictures with the help of Unesco, he added.

After enlisting the WHL, the WHC provides technical assistance under the World Heritage Fund for safeguarding world heritage properties. Long-term loans and, in special cases, non-repayable grants are also provided for the preservation and conservation of the WHL’s sites. Besides, emergency assistance is also available in case the site gets damaged because of various factors.

At present, six archaeological sites in Pakistan are on the WHL. These are archaeological site of Moenjodaro, historic monuments of Thatha, archaeological remains of Taxila, Buddhist ruins of Takht-i-Bhai, city remains at Sehri Bahlol, Rohtas Fort and Lahore Fort/Shalamar Bagh. These historical sites, except Rohtas, were put on the WHL in 1981.

About 730 archaeological sites of 125 states are on the WHL. Of these, as many as 563 are cultural, 144 natural and 23 having mixed properties.

Spain tops the WHL with 40 archaeological sites. Italy, China and France have 33, 30 and 29, respectively, sites in the list. Those countries which have 10 and more archaeological sites on the list are Brazil, Canada, Japan, Mexico, Peru, Portugal, Czech Republic, Sweden, Russian Federation, USA, Germany, Greece, India and UK.

HARAPPA: The sites at Harappa are prominently visible in the countryside. These lie on the left bank of the old course of the Ravi. Harappa’s history dates back to the third millennium BC.

The archaeological site of Harappa encompasses the full chronological extent of the Indus Civilization ‘s occupation of the Punjab’s alluvial plain, from its earliest occupation in the fourth millennium BC to its final post-urban stages in the second millennium BC.

First excavation in 1920s has demonstrated that Harappa might share the plan of Western fortified ‘citadel’ and Eastern unfortified ‘lower town.’

It has two striking features; the presence of a series of residential mounds on both its northern and eastern sides and the presence of walls surrounding each of these residential mounds. This character challenges all previous models of the Indus city planning, and suggests that different areas of Harappa were established and occupied at different times.

An adjacent town’s buildings, pastoral, agricultural and other activities have adverse effects on the site. The rain water has also affected the exposed structures of the site. Outflow of heavy rainwater through its contour forms gullies and creates fissures in the mounds. Natural vegetation and wild growth has also expedited the degradation process.

MEHRGARH: Mehrgarh is located next to the west bank of the Bolan River, some 30kms from the town of Sibi. It covers 250 hectares, most of which has archaeological deposits.

Mehrgarh contains the earliest evidence for the domestication of plants and animals in South Asia and the beginning of sedentary lifestyle. It represents the best site for understanding the changing relationships between humans, plants and animals.

The development of early food production and the creation of semi-sedimentary settlements at Mehrgarh laid the subsistence and social base from which the Indus cities emerged.

The exposed structures and buildings within the excavation trenches have been covered with plastic sheets. There is no conservation plants here. A watchman has been deputed here to look after the open excavated trenches. Rehman Dheri: Rehman Dheri is situated 22 kilometres north of Dera Ismail Khan. It consists of a rectangular mound covering 22 hectares and standing 4.5 metres above the surrounding field.

Rehman Dheri represents South Asia’s oldest and best preserved formally planned settlement. It is significant for understanding the region’s emergence of urbanization during the Indus Civilization.

Rehman Dheri demonstrates cultural links with the region’s indigenous Neolithic and Chalcolithie developments. By the end of the fourth millennium BC, Rehman Dheri was one of a number of regional centres that had developed into a formally planned fortified settlements.

The exposed structures and buildings on the surface of the mound are eroding the walls of the deep trenches.