Karachi’s historic sites fall prey to builder mafia greed

Much of Karachi’s history is held within the many buildings that line its oldest colonial districts. Once grand and monumental, these British-built structures today exist as only but crumbling remnants of their former glory.

Where some 1,735 of such establishments, in the last seven-and-a-half decades, managed to earn the government’s favour as sites of national heritage, the rest were left to fade with the shifting sands of time; bulldozed and replaced by multi-storey residential and commercial complexes at the grim hands of the city’s builder mafia.

However, the growing capitalist-lust of Karachi’s construction giants has now set its course to the few historical buildings that do fall under heritage protection and cannot be legally razed. So they have instead been made subject to unauthorised reconstruction, which is feared to wipe history that has long remained preserved in the very walls of these establishments.

History of laws

The first law to preserve historic buildings was passed in 1954 under the name of the Antiquities Act, but was restricted to mainly archeological sites and some historical buildings. In most parts of the city however, these laws had little to no bearing. Later, the Sindh Assembly passed the Sindh Cultural Heritage Preservation Act 1994, but the number of sites that came under its jurisdiction was still rather limited.

Subsequently, the Sindh government set up a technical committee and advisory committee in 2009, that included architects, social figures, and government officials. It was the result of this committee’s work, that led to a greater number of sites in the city being declared as safe and historic.

The Heritage List grew in 2011, and the number of buildings increased to one thousand through intensive surveys and other matters under the committee’s chairpersonship. By the year 2018-19, the number of these historic buildings was increased to 1735, and included both; public and private structures.

Govt colludes with mafia

According to a Sindh government official speaking on conditions of anonymity, there are two categories of historic sites: Declared Historic Buildings and Non-Declared Historic Buildings. “Declared Historic Buildings in Karachi are numbered to be around 1,735 while no there is no list or account of undeclared historic buildings at the government’s disposal,” the official explained. “Interestingly, there are many old buildings which can be included in the list of historic buildings according to the established rules, but they are not deliberately declared historic buildings so that the builder mafia can benefit to the maximum,” he added.

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The Sindh Archives and Culture Department and the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) are the agencies responsible for preserving the historic buildings, but due to the negligence of these two institutions, many of the declared historic sites have not only been demolished but also converted into new buildings.

The government official also alleged that even in the buildings that could not be demolished, new constructions have been made by modifying the buildings without permission, which has tarnished their historical and cultural aspects. “It is due to this collusion of the officials of Sindh Building Control Authority with the builder mafia, that we have lost many a historic site,” he lamented.

The blame game

Speaking in the regard, Sindh Culture and Archives Department Director Fateh Sheikh, said that their coordination with the Sindh Building Control Authority was very poor, due to which the process of monitoring historic buildings has not improved. “There are 3,220 declared historic buildings in Sindh, including 1,735 in Karachi. The Sindh Archives Department has only 15 staff members who do fieldwork and also carry out office work, while the Sindh Building Control Authority has a large workforce; they have on-street surveying staff and inspectors,” revealed Sheikh, implying the department’s limited capacity. “However, whenever new construction takes place in Karachi it is reported to the SBCA. The SBCA does not cooperate with us, which leads to fewer complaints, but whenever cases of vandalism or any breach in historic buildings are reported, and we take immediate action, impose fines, and lodge FIRs; under the 94 Act, per which there’s a penalty of Rs50,000 to Rs100,000 and three years of imprisonment,” he added.

While on the other hand, SBCA Secretary Beenish Shabbar maintained that the responsibility of protecting declared historic buildings lies with the Provincial Culture and Archives Department. According to him, the SBCA immediately notifies the culture and archives department when it receives a report of alterations or vandalism in historic buildings, as they are legally responsible. “From there, it is their responsibility to take action against the owners of the building,” he expressed.

In response to which, Fateh Sheikh, speaking on behalf of the archives department, said that they have been issuing notices to people responsible for demolishing and reconstructing on historic building sites without permission. “The SBCA has been directed to demolish them. But owners of private buildings usually secure a stay from the courts after constructing new buildings. As a result, no action is taken against them. Owners of private buildings have also sought permission for delisting. These petitions are presented before the Technical Committee, and the Advisory Committee set up by the Sindh Government. Still, the criteria of both committees is stringent, and due to this, these applications are rejected,” he told The Express Tribune.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 4^th, 2022.