‘Lack of scaffolding, unskilled workers triggered Pucca Qila cave-in’

Fallen bricks excavated from debris, preserved for restoration work, says fort in-charge

HYDERABAD:

Inexperienced labourers and absence of scaffolding have been identified as two reasons that triggered the collapse of the main entrance gate of the 18th-century Pucca Qila fort in Hyderabad.

"Scaffolding may have prevented the collapse," a member of the five-member inquiry committee formed by the Sindh culture, tourism and antiquities department disclosed on the condition of anonymity.

The member was also informed that the labour engaged in the preservation work also appeared to lack the required skills.

Meanwhile, another member of the committee, who is also the administrative in-charge of the fort, the department's assistant director, Sindhu Chandio, said the old bricks have been kept at a secure place.

She told The Express Tribune that the debris was sorted and the bricks, which are to be reused on the fort's fortification walls, were separated from the debris that was disposed of by the Hyderabad Municipal Corporation staff. She, however, could not quantify the bricks when asked.

The five-member inquiry committee visited the site of the incident on Friday. It was headed by Sindh Museum Director Sher Muhammad Mahar and comprised Naseem Jalbani, Muhammad Tanveer and Sarfaraz Jatoi besides Chandio as members.

The arch-shaped main entrance, a remnant of the once glorious Pucca Qila Fort, built in the 18th century by the Kalhoro Dynasty in Hyderabad, caved in on Thursday during preservation works. No casualties occurred in the incident.

"The labourers were carrying out underpinning work with the bricks, when the gate suddenly fell down," Chandio had told The Express Tribune. She said that she witnessed the incident.

"There was no scaffolding under the arch of the main gate while work under the gate was being executed," Hyderabad Deputy Commissioner Fuad Ghaffar Soomro, who visited the site after the incident, had said.

Chandio, however, countered by saying that her department could not have placed scaffolding under the arch as it would have disrupted traffic movement.

The Pucca Qila fort is inhabited by tens of thousands of people and it happens to be one of the most densely populated localities in Hyderabad. It's fortification walls are occupied by traders who have opened up shops while houses built along the wall have time and again been issued evacuation notices because of the rickety structures but to no avail. All previous attempts to remove the encroachments have failed. The ongoing preservation work was being carried out by a private contractor under the supervision of Akhtiar Mangi, executive engineer of the culture department's Planning and Development Monitoring Implementation Cell (PDMIC). Mangi did not respond to phone calls and could not be reached for his comment.

Chandio said the entrance, which is around 15 feet tall and just as wide, was already crumbling. She complained that she had requested the district administration several times to start an anti-encroachment drive and help the department undertake the preservation scheme, launched under an annual development plan project.

The DC, however, denied that they did not cooperate with the culture department and said an anti-encroachment drive was already underway outside the fort.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, an archaeology expert, Shahzor Tayabani, blamed the Sindh culture, tourism and antiquities department for the collapse. "They haven't demolished the gate but Sindh's glorious history." Separately, in a tweet on Friday, Sindh Culture Minister Sardar Shah said that he has ordered an inquiry and the registration of an FIR against the contractor.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 4^th, 2021.