Hyderabad: The Deccan Heritage Trust, which is celebrating 425 years of Hyderabad and the 450th birth anniversary of Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah, the fifth ruler of the Qutb dynasty, is striving for a commemorative stamp and a coin of Quli Qutb Shah and Charminar for the occasion.
The city of Hyderabad celebrates its 425th birthday on October 9, the date coinciding with the first day of 1000th Hijri/1591 AD which is accepted as the foundation day of Hyderabad as per the Hijri calendar.
Since Charminar was the first building in the new city of Hyderabad, it is the birthday of Charminar as well. Mohammad Quli Qutb Shah had built Charminar in 1591.
Managing trustee of Deccan Heritage Trust Muhammad Safiullah, told this newspaper on Thursday that the Trust has approached the Telangana state government for conducting celebrations officially and has also requested it to take up with the Centre to issue a Rs 5 commemorative stamp and Rs 5 coin.
“We requested the Telangana state government to take up celebrations of the twin events in October and the government was quite positive,” Dr Safiullah said.
“We have also requested the government to take up with the Centre and the Union finance ministry for a Rs 5 coin and with the Posts and Telegraphs for a Rs 5 stamp, since they are landmarks in the history of Hyderabad,” the historian said.
The first stamps of Hyderabad were issued in 1869. They were replaced in 1880 with a new design. The brownish “One Anna” Charminar stamp is still quite famous. Dr Safiullah said he would also request the Archaeological Survey of India, the custodian of Charminar, to celebrate the event in a befitting manner and illuminate the famed minarets for the occasion.
The Deccan Heritage Trust is planning to provide a couple of designs to the Telangana state government for the proposed commemorative stamp and coin to be forwarded to the Centre. “We will rope in historians and experts to design a fitting commemorative stamp and coin. This will be handed over to the state government,” Dr Safiullah added.
