Establishment of Pakistan Philatelic Association (By:- Imtiaz Hussain Subzwari)

Before the formation of Pakistan, Lahore was the largest center of Philately in the subcontinent. The famous stamp dealers of the subcontinent, including Sakhani, Advani and Suri, had large stamp shops on the Mall Road. A large number of English, Parsis, Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims were lovers of this hobby. At that time, the trend of collecting stamps was very high. Among Muslims, there were small dealers like Fazal, Sharif Qureshi and among Christians, Bijan Bhatti etc. School children mostly bought stamps from them. Jal Ko Par, who was a famous stamp collector and a well-known researcher and writer of the subcontinent, lived in Lahore. Jal Ko Par was a Parsi and the road of Lahore, Ko Par Road, is attributed to this family. From Fountain House near the Civil Secretariat to MAO College, all the big houses on the Lower Mall Road belonged to this family. Jal Ko Par was employed by an insurance company and lived in a flat on the first floor opposite the High Court on Mall Road. The ground floor now houses an E. Plummer Opticians shop. Before the formation of Pakistan, it was owned by a Hindu named Penn Corner of India. Jal Ko Par had gone to Bombay a few years before the partition of the subcontinent.

After the partition of India, almost all the Hindus and Sikhs left Lahore. But the British, who were mostly employed in the army, moved away long after the partition. Among them, Colonel Martin, General Gracie, At Rod and Boshan, etc. were quite famous stamp collectors. Among them, At Rod and Bofan belonged to the Royal Air Force. Among the Muslims, Dr. Ahmed Wajid Hussain, Salahuddin and Nawab Bahawalpur, etc. were associated with this hobby. In late 1949, when the law and order situation improved somewhat, Sharif Qureshi Fazal and B. Jan Bhatti, etc. were inspired by some stamp collectors to establish an association to promote this hobby. This association was formed in Lahore under the name of Pakistan Philatelic Association. Najmuddin (owner of John Macdonald School on Lower Mall Road) was elected its first president and Sharif Qureshi remained its spirit and general secretary as long as he lived. All the British and other Christians and Paris, etc. used to attend its monthly meetings regularly. Exhibitions began to be held every year and have continued to this day. In 1957, Safdar Sahib was elected its president and SM Masood Sahib became its vice-president.

Former Provincial Education Minister Mr. Usman Ibrahim is also a member of this association. Even when he was the Education Minister, he blessed this association with his useful advice and personal influence. Initially, all the meetings and exhibitions of this association were held at the YMCA located on Mall Road. This is the only association in Pakistan that has issued commemorative stamps on two of its exhibitions and many other exhibitions.

Special stamps were issued. In 1988, Dr. Ahmed Wajid Hussain was elected its president. After that, in 1998, SM Masood (former Federal Law Minister) became its president and continued to provide energy to this association with his efforts until 2013. Muhammad Jamil Bhatti is the current president of this association.

This is the second exhibition of this association which is being organized at Pakistan Institute of Linocuts, Art and Culture (PLAC) Gaddafi Stadium Lahore. For this, we are especially grateful to the Director General PLAC and Director Ms. Dr. Sughra Sadaf Sahiba who took special interest in organizing this exhibition. Dr. Sahiba is one of the cultural lovers of Lahore who is using her best skills to preserve the culture, heritage and heritage of Lahore.

Finally, I would like to express my special gratitude to Mr. Faqir Syed Shah Yaruddin DG Pak Post, Hon. Rubina Tayyab Additional DG Pak Post and Mr. Aslam Niazi Postmaster General Punjab who greatly contributed to organizing this exhibition.

Earlier, during the Pervez Musharraf era, a former army general devoid of professional qualifications and vision headed this organization. During his tenure, while this most reputable, profitable government institution of Pakistan Post reached the verge of collapse, Philately also suffered immense losses. The Philatelic Advisory Committee was abolished. Useful journals like Pakistan Post and Post News were discontinued. Post offices all over the world encourage and support stamp collecting associations for their marketing because these associations work selflessly for the sake of their passion. Stamp enthusiasts collect unused stamps worth crores of rupees in their stock boxes, on which the postal department does not have to provide any kind of service. The Pakistan Philatelic Association has been making tireless efforts to develop this hobby for the past several decades. It is hoped that in this public and democratic era, Pakistan Post will continue to patronize all the philatelic associations of Pakistan for its marketing as before.

History of PPA Exhibitions in Pakistan

S.No.	Year	Monty	Cancellation / Stamp	Venue
1	1951	January	Not Issued	Y.M.C.A
2	1951	October	Not Issued	Y.M.C.A
3	1952	January	Not Issued	Y.M.C.A
4	1954	January	Not Issued	Y.M.C.A
5	1956	January	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
6	1957	January	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
7	1959	January	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
8	1960	January	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
9	1961	February	Cancellation & Stamps Issued	Y.M.C.A
10	1961	October	Cancellation Issued	Alhamra Hall
11	1962	January	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
12	1963	January	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
13	1964	April	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
14	1965	February	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
15	1966	February	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
16	1968	April	Cancellation Issued	Alhamra Hall
17	1970	March	Cancellation Issued	Y.M.C.A
18	1973	December	Cancellation Issued	Lahore Museum
19	1974	February	Cancellation Issued	Lahore Museum
20	1975	March	Cancellation Issued	Lahore G.P.O
21	1976	October	Cancellation Issued	Lahore Museum
22	1983	November	Cancellation & Stamps Issued	Lahore Museum
23	1989	December	Cancellation Issued	Jinnah Hall
24	1990	December	Cancellation Issued	Alhamra Art Gallery
25	1991	November	Cancellation Issued	Alhamra Art Gallery
26	1992	April	Cancellation Issued	Alhamra Art Gallery
27	1999	October	Cancellation Issued	Lahore Museum
28	2004	October	Cancellation & Stamps Issued	N.C.A. Gallery
29	2009	March	Cancellation Issued	Lahore City Museum
30	2014	November	Cancellation Issued	PILAC Qadafi Stadium
31	2016	November	Cancellation Issued	PILAC Qadafi Stadium