The State Archaeology and Conservation Department cries hoarse over lack of funds to restore the glory of Quila Mubarak, Sheesh Mahal, painted chambers and artefacts rusting in stores in the city, but a huge quantity of material and chemicals required for conservation, lying unused for many years, tell a different story altogether.

The material, including bitumen sheets, wood, crushed stones and cement, bought for protecting the crumbling edifice of the over 300-year-old Quila Mubarak and costing the public exchequer a few crores is dumped in dark dingy store rooms of the old fort. While the quality of bitumen sheets and wood is on the wane, the walls of the storerooms stuffed with it have also developed cracks, becoming a major threat to the monument's safety.

Apart from this a number of special machines and chemicals bought by the department for protecting painted chambers in Quila Mubarak, Sheesh Mahal, Kali Devi Temple and a number of other historical artefacts like weapons, ivory items and sculptures are also lying unused and forgotten in the store rooms.

These equipments include a vacuum hot table machine for oil paintings bought in 1990. A vacuum clang in 1980 for strengthening the fragile artefacts. A thermohydrograph to check humidity of painted chambers and to control it has been rarely used. Besides, these several chemicals have lost their power for want of non-use over the years. An inquiry report done a few years ago even claimed that layers of fungus have grown over the chemicals.

The department's failure to make optimum use of these materials has not only resulted in loss of money spent on them but has also amounted to loss of scores of art abjects that could have been saved.

A Tribune investigation reveals that a tourist visiting this erstwhile princely state goes home marvelling at the artefacts shown in the Sheesh Mahal and weapons in Quila Mubarak museum, hardly realising that he has been shown only 20 per cent of the rich treasure while the remaining lies rusted in store rooms for want of care and conservation.

Interestingly, a few internal inquiries have also been conducted about the unused material and chemicals but no one has been punished. Reports point to the inept handling of the matter by the local staff. Unfortunately, it was also revealed that the staff, instead of working as a team to preserve the historical things and attract more tourists, was indulging in infighting. Officials contacted for verification traded charges at each other.

Official version, interestingly, remains the same old lack of funds. Mr Sucha Singh Chauhan, State Archaeological Engineer, in charge of conservation, acknowledged the less use of the material. He said the bitumen felt sheets bought for protecting roofs of Quila Mubarak has not been used because there was no money for buying tarlok bitumen solution to mix with the sheets. He said there were no funds for the last three years.