KABUL, AFGHANISTAN, December 25, 2001: With the erstwhile Taliban regime destroying all musical instruments in the country because they were “un-Islamic,” the new Afghan interim government has sent an SOS to India for despatch of a set of musical instruments to compose the new national anthem. The Afghan cultural ministry said the country had only one recorded cassette of the new national anthem, which was not in proper format. The musical instruments asked by Kabul include a set of harmonium, tabla, sarod, sitar, tanpura, surmandal, sarangi, pakhwaj, and a traditional dhol. They also asked for a violin, guitar, piano, flute and a banjo. India is the only country to have been approached by the Afghan regime with cultural ministry officials saying the SOS has been dispatched as New Delhi and Kabul had common cultural heritage.
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