Gandhara Means 'the Land Of Fragrances'; Commissioner

Gandhara means 'the land of fragrances'; Commissioner

Commissioner Rawalpindi Division Liaquat Ali Chatta on Tuesday said that the meaning of Gandhara was the land of fragrances.

He said this while inaugurating the Gandhara Festival celebrations at Rawalpindi Arts Council

RAWALPINDI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 31st Jan, 2023 ) :Commissioner Rawalpindi Division Liaquat Ali Chatta on Tuesday said that the meaning of Gandhara was the land of fragrances.

He said this while inaugurating the Gandhara Festival celebrations at Rawalpindi Arts Council.

The Commissioner said that the message of peace, tolerance and love for humanity would be spread through these fairs while this land had nurtured the well-known and reliable civilizations of the world and they have highlighted scientific, literary and cultural phenomena.

The expected arrival of ambassadors from China, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Laos, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Indonesia in this festival proves that "we have been extremely successful in this process." Chatta lauded the Punjab Arts Council (PAC) for inviting the Embassies of various countries to set up stalls regarding the Gandhara culture and said that the arrival of the Buddhist delegation from Sukkur was showing how open-hearted and noble-minded we were as a nation.

On the festival's third day, the Director of the Arts Council, Waqar Ahmed, welcomed the Malaysian Ambassador to Pakistan, Muhammad Adam Tugio, at the PAC Rawalpindi and informed him about the aims and objectives of the festival.

Malaysian Ambassador Muhammad Adam Tugyu said there were long-standing diplomatic relations between Pakistan and Malaysia.

He said that the Gandhara civilization connected the two countries in a strong relationship and the teachings of Buddhism had traveled a long distance to reach Malaysia.

The Government of Punjab, especially PAC's initiative to highlight the culture of Gandhara is welcomed, the envoy said adding the Malaysian Embassy will continue to play its role in presenting the culture of Gandhara to the world.

On this occasion, Executive Director of PAC Muhammad Mehboob Alam said that civilization was a mirror of any country, nation and its people.

He said that such fairs were being organized to bring the culture of Gandhara, Sindh, Harrapa and Cholistan to the people.

Today, Fazal Jatt won the audience's applause by narrating folk tales in his unique style.

The festival will continue till February 4.