Campaign to revive ‘Karachi’s glory’ kicks off at Denso Hall

Students volunteered on the first day in restoration work

KARACHI: The campaign to restore Denso Hall kicked off on Sunday with a large number of school, college and university students who participated and volunteered for the cause. Aiming to return the city its lost beauty and glory, authorities in pursuance of the Supreme Court (SC) orders have started a campaign to restore historic building structures in Karachi. The provincial government, in this regard, is assisted by Heritage Foundation of Pakistan - an institution that works for the preservation and promotion of vintage buildings.



The Heritage Foundation of Pakistan, through public-private partnership (PPP), launched a campaign to recruit volunteers from all over the city for the restoration work. The campaign started on Sunday with restoration work on the historic 133-year-old building of Denso Hall Library, located at MA Jinnah Road. The building was surrounded by encroachments, which were planned to be removed while in order to restore the glory of the city, the foundation and its volunteers also planned on restoring and decorating the interior of the building. Once the structure would get back its shape and space, the building would be used for public events and activities.

Moreover, Marriot Road, located at the back of Denso Hall, will also be blocked for traffic when any cultural or literature-related event will be organised. Stalls for books or handicrafts may be set up in such events and arrangements for public seating will also be made.

Active volunteering

The students volunteering for the restoration were seen cleaning the dust on the walls of Denso Hall that had been resting there for a few decades.

Former Karachi deputy mayor, Karachi Commissioner Iftikhar Shallwani, German Consul-General in Karachi Eugen Wollfarth and Senator Nasreen Jalil also participated in the event.

Speaking at the event, Shallwani said that for the purpose of restoration, Sindh government will be actively participating through public-private partnerships and public support. “Marriot Road has been closed for traffic while the illegal structures around it are removed to make space for pedestrians so that this beautiful and historic building can be used for public events and social activities,” he said, adding that the measure was being undertaken as a first step to restore historic buildings and bring back the lights to the city of lights.

Trees and boundary walls were also being placed around the sides of Empress Market, he said, adding that tourists coming from all over the country would definitely want to visit this historic building. The boundary wall will be completed within four months. “Sindh government and the district administration is providing all possible support,” Shallwani assured.

Social responsibility

Architect and campaign manager Yasmeen Lari said that safeguarding historic buildings was a collective social responsibility. “The identity of the city will be lost if we are not able to keep the buildings intact,” she said, lauding the SC for its orders for the revival of the original shape of the city after which public places, parks, roads and footpaths were being cleared of encroachments.

Lari said that the orders of the apex court raised the spirits of the citizens and motivated them to restore the lost glory of the city, including historic buildings. “We will take this campaign forward through the help of volunteers and the civil society and revive one building after another.”

Lari thanked the Sindh chief minister, chief secretary, Karachi commissioner and all relevant departments for their efforts to clean up the encroachments around Denso Hall.



On the other hand, German consul-general, while inspecting the interior of the building and its roof, lauded the spirit of the citizens and said that the revival of the cultural heritage will instil pride in the hearts of citizens. Karachi was a significant city in terms of its social and economic value, he said, the city was a remarkable force to help the country stand on its feet in its early days while Denso Hall is still considered one of the key buildings for being a centre of learning. “The citizens and the private sector should actively participate in bringing back the cultural heritage of the city so that the next generation could be aware of the city’s glorious past,” he said.