Many cannons from the forts in the Deccan region, including those of Hyderabad, have been vandalised and sold as scrap for their metals, with many still lying unprotected in public areas due to official negligence, charged S. Jai Kishan from the Deccan Archaeological and Cultural Research Institute here on Saturday. “These old pieces of artillery are worth anything between Rs. 4 to Rs. 40 lakh.
There have been instances of police arresting people for stealing cannons from there. Even in Yadagiri fort in Karnataka, cannons have been vandalised,” mentioned Dr. Kishan, who catalogued about 900 cannons from various eras in the entire Deccan region, including the states of Karnataka and Maharashtra some years ago.
Dr. Kishan also claimed that cannons from the Golconda Fort were stolen, reflecting the lack of security for the old heritage articles. He also pointed out the need for the Telangana State government to take care of the State’s heritage.
He observed that out of several forts in Telangana alone, only a handful of them were ‘listed’ and ‘protected.
“It’s up to the State government to ensure their protection,” he said.
Addressing attendees during his presentation at a workshop on ‘Heritage on Telangana State’ conducted by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTAC), Dr. Kishan said that many cannons from the times of different rulers are kept in public, without any protection.
Apart from the presentation made by Dr. Kishan, the workshop held by INTACH featured a host of slideshows and presentations by young student volunteers of the INTACH Zilla Khazana programme.
