Helping people admire city

hyderabad: an organisation to instil pride among the people about the city and to preserve its cultural heritage had been formed in june 2001. the organisation - the hyderabad historical society (hhs) - was formed with the initiative of haripriya rangarajan, the wife of the governor, dr c rangarajan, and ranee sharmah - both history enthusiasts. the hhs presently has over 90 members, despite the fact that the society is barely three months old."the primary objective of the hhs is to sensitise the people of hyderabad about the rich cultural glory of the region in the past as well as about its affluent historical heritage," explains hhs secretary ranee sharmah. to help people understand the city better, lectures are organised by eminent historians and noted litterateurs. "there is so much to learn about hyderabad. only when people are educated about it, will they realise about the region's past eminence and preserve the fabulous hyderabadi heritage," says sharmah. the hhs does not have any office as of now, but meetings are generally held either at the raj bhavan or ranee sharmah's house.as the members are mostly engaged in other professions, there are no fixed timings for the meetings. the hhs lectures for the members as well as for the public are routinely held at salar jung museum aud i t o r i u m every second saturday at 11 am. "we want to create a cultural renaissance in hyderabad as it existed in earlier times," said hhs chairperson mrs rangarajan.. she said people would be encouraged to contribute to preserve the heritage structures of the city like charminar, the quli qutub shahi tombs and the golconda fort. "interactions with eminent scholars and historians, who are also members of the society, will help understand the need to preserve the buildings," she said. the membership fee of the hhs is only rs 100 per annum. "the plan is also to take members on short trips to places of historical interest, in the company of eminent archeologists, who will explain to them the background of the places," said haripriya. those interested in joining the society can contact ranee sharmah on tel. no. 3312600 or haripriya rangarajan on 3310521/522.