Farheen Ujjan

         Fall of Print media due to an Electronic media 

Print media is one of the oldest means of sharing information and it has been around for the hundred years.
It is a well-known form of advertising by using printed media like newspapers, magazines, brochures, books etc. 
Johannes Gutenberg was the first who invented the printing press in 1440 and over the next 600 years, print media developed as a primary source of news.
Print media has an ability to reach an extensive range of people. 
It is produced by printing, a process which reproduces text and images on paper using ink in a printing press and uses printing technology and methods to spread news, messages and information among the people. 
The three main types of print media include:
I) Newspapers II) Magazines III) Books
Digital media refers to all means of sharing information, except the print media, such as radio, television, internet etc.
It is a media that can be shared on an electronic device for the audience viewing and can be broadcasted to the extensive population and an electronic media remains active 24X7. 
We can watch live programs, events or news channels at any time to get news updates on televisions, smart phones etc.
Since last decade, many print media companies have been branched out from traditional print and have started posting news on digital platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and company websites.
Basically, modern technology has disintegrated the spread of media. 
Before, It used to be journalistic and media had to be spread in print form to be approached and consumed by readers but now a days the Internet shares content instantly and this disruption changes everything.
Now a days, youngsters seem to spend most of their time on the internet than reading printed materials. 
I see many people in my daily life that instead of having printed newspaper, are reading articles on electronic devices.
In this modern era, people are provided with a wide range of traditional and digital channels. 
At this moment online news websites have magnanimously satisfied the expectations of the readers, and the circulation of print newspapers have been decreased.
Traditional print newspapers and other news sites fulfil different needs. So, currently the youngsters who are well-educated prefer other news sites to print newspaper. But, due to the cost of the print newspapers, most of the individuals have started to use newspaper websites.
However, only senior citizens still prefer to go with the print media, specifically, newspapers.
2009, was the worst year in decades for the newspapers because newspapers moved to social online version.
News being documented and shared on social media platforms has had a negative effect on the print media industry. According to an article about newspapers, “Average weekday circulation fell 7%, the most since 2010. This drop was due entirely to print circulation, which declined by 9%, while digital circulation increased by 2%. ... As with weekday circulation, the fall in Sunday circulation was due to a decline in print circulation, which fell 5% while digital rose 4%”.
In 2010, digital printing became the new norm as commercial printing and printing fade slightly due to technology.
Print media companies that own the newspapers, they're either diversifying or dying. This is the industry that gave us something called the newspaper, 
If you think times are bad for newspapers, the print industry is obsolete to the point where even calling it the "print" industry will soon seem quaint and neglected itself. 
Printing is like a vehicle for the carrying information, which for several centuries was the most efficient way of doing so, but now it isn't, any more.
The print industry will soon be more dead and it can empirically conclude that electronic media affects print media.

Farheen Ujjan

         The Central Bank of India Branch in Shikarpur 

''A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots'' 
Shikarpur which was considered as the Paris of Sindh is not only famous for its pickle, sweets, kulfi falooda seven gates, its rich tradition, culture, history but Central Bank of India Branch in Shikarpur is also one of them, which adds beauty to the Shikarpur city and tops the list of most popular landmarks in Shikarpur district.
The former branch office of the Central bank of India was constructed in 1940 CE, before the partition of sub-continent with the collaboration of Shikarpuri Hindu traders to facilitate the traders of Shikarpur and it is still located in Shaikh Mohalla Shikarpur Sindh.

The concept of banking system also had started from Shikarpur in the form of Hundi, And the Shikarpuris are the pioneers of the Hundi which was acceptable in different parts of the world and considered as good as gold, later on the banking system was introduced by the local traders (Hindus) and contributed to establish the bank building in the city.
It is believed that a person who settled (muhajir) whose name could not discover, purchased this building in Rs 13000 in the year of 1950 through an auction.
After a couple of few months, Akbar Ali Shaikh bought this building from that settler in Rs 15000 in the year of 1950.
In 1959, after having nine years of the ownership, Akbar Shaikh decided to rent out the ground floor of the building to the Education Department on a monthly rent of Rs 60 with the view of promoting education among girls in the area.
As there was no educational facility for girls so they decided to publish a school for girls named Primary Girls (Urdu and Sindhi) School.
Now the building has become shabby and needs immediate repair but in spite of that the heirs of Akbar Shaikh, including his son Qadir and his family are still living in the building.
However, the owner cannot meet the expense of its renovation due to their financial issues.
They want it to be renovate and protected by the department responsible for its preservation as heritage.
The building has a reasonable accommodation while expensive Sagwan wood was used in making of all the doors, windows including fittings and main electricity board of the rooms.
When the flood had hit the province of Sindh in 2010, the building owner had asked the deputy commissioner to vacate the building, as he feared that the flood victims will ruin the structure of the building by occupying it in the name of shelter.
In result, the department vacated the building and shifted the school to some other place.
In 1998, UNESCO had declared 1,203 buildings of Shikarpur as cultural heritage, but 250 buildings have been destructed, said Prof Dr Anila Naeem of NED University, who has done extensive research on Shikarpur and its historical buildings.
After the partition of sub-continent, it losts it's worth & beauty, but it is still located in Shaikh Mohalla Shikarpur.
But unfortunately, it has been turned into residential building by CBI, the building has been a subject of negligence by the Endowment Fund Trust, an institution responsible for the preservation of the heritage of Sindh.
The members of the civil society have demanded from the government to take keen interest in Shikarpur’s heritage and play their role to preserve them for enormous interests of the nation.
I am talking about something that cannot be bought, it's our heritage, and it needs to be preserved for community, government should take some steps to protect it.
''A concerted effort to preserve our heritage is a vital link to our cultural, educational, aesthetic, inspirational and economic legacies, all of the things that quite literally make us who we are''