‘City’s heritage sites can bring back tourism’
Shafqat House, a heritage site, is fast losing its beauty to years of neglect. It doors and windows have been dismantled and rear portion has been turned into a seasonal cattle market. PHOTO: EXPRESS
The Denso Hall Street, which was one of the encroached areas of the city, has been transformed into a modern street.
The street located at city's busiest wholesale market at M.A. Jinnah Road is surrounded by a number of old buildings.
Speaking during an event, titled: 'Preserving The Architectural Heritage of Karachi', organised in the middle of the street on Wednesday, Yasmeen Lari, a renowned architect, said, "Karachi is a beautiful city. It has given us everything we wanted. This is not an orphan city."
She said, "Youngsters should own Karachi and come forward to save it from further destruction." She said that without ownership, no one can preserve the heritage of the city.
Sharing her dream that came true, Lari said that there was a two kilometre long walking distance from Denso Hall to Karachi Port Trust. "You can see dozens of hertitage buildings on both sides of the road," she pointed out.
The Denso Hall Street that has been blocked for all vehicular traffic including motorbikes is an attractive place where local shopkeepers have planted local species.
In his comments, South Deputy Commissioner, Irshad Sodhar said, "Karachi hosts a large number of heritage places." He said that it is time to save city's heritage. "If we preserve it, we can bring back tourism," he said.
He said that the population of the city was growing with every passing day. The government is trying its best to improve the public spaces. The most of the public spaces in the city have been encroached.
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"This one is a great example. This is a modern street. This is the only street in the city that has unground electric cables," Sodhar said. He said that the street remained busy during the day time but, we can turn it into a food street after sunset.
Sodhar disclosed that the tiles in the street were made by some women who were involved in begging. "Look at their skills," he pointed out, saying all the shopkeepers in the street have already supported the team of Lari. "This is not possible without ownership of people living around it," he added.
"This is the street where women avoided to enter," Lari pointed out. But, she said, today I can see many young women sitting here and enjoying a beautiful sight of the street.
The city has a number of 'must see attractions'. There is only a need to promote them both at government, as well as individual levels.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 18th, 2021.