Cannon at Golconda chips off on monumental apathy

HYDERABAD: The massive bronze cannon named Fath Raihbir, also known as ‘Guide to Victory’, lies in a desolate splendour atop Petla Burj of the historic Golconda Fort. The locals call this area as attara siddi (eighteen steps).
The mighty cannon, which is said to be over 480 centimetres long and weighs about 16.59 tons, is now being chipped off for its valuable metal, locals said.

With authorities showing no interest in protecting the mighty cannon, it is being subjected to vandalism. “People are not just vandalising the cannon by writing their names on it, but they are also chipping off the metal from the outer circumference and selling it for money,” Aadhil Ibrahim, a resident of Old City said.
The Fath Raihbir cannon is accessible to public, but one has to walk through damaged steps and thorny bushes get a glimpse of the cannon. According to the historians, this cannon was used by the army of Aurangazeb to storm into the Golconda Fort and capture last Qutb Shahi ruler, Abul Hasan Tana Shah in 1687.
Aurangzeb had brought along some massive cannons and they were stationed atop Petla Burj after his army captured the Golconda Fort. The Fath Raihbir said to be one of them. This cannon is an example of the Mughal bronze cannon manufacturing technology prevalent during the time of Aurangzeb The Persian inscriptions engraved on the top surface of this cannon explains most of its history. However, it appears that some of the inscriptions have been erased by the people visiting the Golconda Fort.
When contacted, the officials of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) said that they will inform the officials concerned about the problem. “We will inform the Golconda Fort site engineer about the problem and verify the issues immediately,” said Kamal Hassan, Assistant Archaeologist, ASI.
TIMES VIEW: It is unfortunate that an important military ware of historical significance is lying in neglect. The government should immediately take up the issue with ASI and other bodies to ensure these are protected and preserved.