Ticking away: The tower that stood the test of time
Loss of lives during Friday’s anti-encroachment drive at Ghanta Ghar will only fuel resistance from shopkeepers.
A artist’s impression on a postcard of Ghanta Ghar, circa 1910. PHOTO COURTESY: DR ALI JAN
PESHAWAR:
Ravaged by time and apathy, the historic clock tower of Peshawar, commonly referred to as Ghanta Ghar, no longer tells the hour.
The Cunningham clock tower was erected at the turn of the 20th Century smack in the middle of the walled city during the diamond jubilee celebrations of Queen Victoria and named after AFD Cunningham, who was the commissioner of Peshawar district at the time.
Today, the tower and its surroundings reek of fish for which dozens of roadside sellers have set up stalls illegally. Incidentally, the water that keeps the fish fresh is eroding the very foundation of the clock tower which has already been subject to neglect for more than a hundred years.
Unfortunately, the outside only mirrors the state of the tower from the inside. There are cobwebs around broken windows; the clock on the tower no longer works, the needle no longer ticks.
“AFD Cunningham should not be confused with [British politician] George Cunningham,” says conservationist Dr Ali Jan. “Many writers have inadvertently linked the clock tower to George Cunningham, who was born many decades later.”
Jan said Ghanta Ghar was the brainchild of James Strachan, an architect and engineer who served as the municipal engineer at the time and designed many buildings in British India, including in Peshawar and Karachi among others.
In 2003, Haroon Bilour, who was then serving as the town nazim, ordered repair work at the tower and had it whitewashed. Eventually, though, its upkeep was forgotten, and the tower turned into just another monument in one of the oldest cities of the region.
Jan said the tower’s brick colour has been painted over many times in different hues. This, he added, has tarnished its archeological value. “Our history is associated with it and efforts on war footing are required to preserve it,” stressed Jan.
Of food and war
It was Balmukand family which donated a large sum for the tower’s construction. The Balmukands migrated to India after Partition and today operate one of the country’s largest food companies by the name of Clock Tower, said Jan.
Perhaps the most important inscription on Ghanta Ghar is about the participation of Peshawar’s people in World War I. “From this city 200 men went to the great war in 1914 -1919, of these 7 gave up their lives,” reads the inscription etched on the tower.
Tug of war
Due to its historic importance, the building’s control should rest with the K-P Directorate of Archaeology and Museums which has the required expertise to preserve such sites. However, the directorate says it has no authority over Ghanta Ghar.
“We do not have any control over the building though it is a historic site and should be preserved by archeologists,” Archaeology and Museums Director Dr Abdul Samad told The Express Tribune. “Unfortunately, there are only six sites over which the directorate has authority. These do not include the clock tower.”
A veteran archeologist, Dr Samad said water is extremely detrimental to such an old building and can completely erode its structure. He added only archeological experts can restore the site now as only they have the expertise and instruments to do so. “Despite the struggle, we could not get control of all the historic sites from the municipal administration.”
The municipal administration presently yields control over the building. It has issued several notices and consequent deadlines to illegal vendors, but little heed has been paid to these warnings. “We have declared all those fish mandies illegal as no prior NOC was obtained from the city administration for setting up the fish market,” said municipal administrator Zafar Ali Shah, adding they have also allocated funds for the repair of the clock.
Shah, however, was unaware at the time he spoke to The Express Tribune how complicated the anti-encroachment drive would become after Friday, when an excavator crushed at least three people to death.
The incident occurred when shopkeepers protesting against the campaign began pelting the vehicle with stones. The driver of the municipal corporation’s excavator hastily stepped on the reverse-gear — unmindful of the fact that some people were standing behind the heavy-duty vehicle.
The tragedy has angered shopkeepers who are likely to step up their resistance in wake of the deaths. The eventual casualty of this tussle, though, will be the clock tower. Will the crumbling building be salvaged by a savior? Only time will tell.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 18th, 2015.
Ravaged by time and apathy, the historic clock tower of Peshawar, commonly referred to as Ghanta Ghar, no longer tells the hour.
The Cunningham clock tower was erected at the turn of the 20th Century smack in the middle of the walled city during the diamond jubilee celebrations of Queen Victoria and named after AFD Cunningham, who was the commissioner of Peshawar district at the time.
Today, the tower and its surroundings reek of fish for which dozens of roadside sellers have set up stalls illegally. Incidentally, the water that keeps the fish fresh is eroding the very foundation of the clock tower which has already been subject to neglect for more than a hundred years.
Unfortunately, the outside only mirrors the state of the tower from the inside. There are cobwebs around broken windows; the clock on the tower no longer works, the needle no longer ticks.
“AFD Cunningham should not be confused with [British politician] George Cunningham,” says conservationist Dr Ali Jan. “Many writers have inadvertently linked the clock tower to George Cunningham, who was born many decades later.”
Jan said Ghanta Ghar was the brainchild of James Strachan, an architect and engineer who served as the municipal engineer at the time and designed many buildings in British India, including in Peshawar and Karachi among others.
In 2003, Haroon Bilour, who was then serving as the town nazim, ordered repair work at the tower and had it whitewashed. Eventually, though, its upkeep was forgotten, and the tower turned into just another monument in one of the oldest cities of the region.
Jan said the tower’s brick colour has been painted over many times in different hues. This, he added, has tarnished its archeological value. “Our history is associated with it and efforts on war footing are required to preserve it,” stressed Jan.
Of food and war
It was Balmukand family which donated a large sum for the tower’s construction. The Balmukands migrated to India after Partition and today operate one of the country’s largest food companies by the name of Clock Tower, said Jan.
Perhaps the most important inscription on Ghanta Ghar is about the participation of Peshawar’s people in World War I. “From this city 200 men went to the great war in 1914 -1919, of these 7 gave up their lives,” reads the inscription etched on the tower.
Tug of war
Due to its historic importance, the building’s control should rest with the K-P Directorate of Archaeology and Museums which has the required expertise to preserve such sites. However, the directorate says it has no authority over Ghanta Ghar.
“We do not have any control over the building though it is a historic site and should be preserved by archeologists,” Archaeology and Museums Director Dr Abdul Samad told The Express Tribune. “Unfortunately, there are only six sites over which the directorate has authority. These do not include the clock tower.”
A veteran archeologist, Dr Samad said water is extremely detrimental to such an old building and can completely erode its structure. He added only archeological experts can restore the site now as only they have the expertise and instruments to do so. “Despite the struggle, we could not get control of all the historic sites from the municipal administration.”
The municipal administration presently yields control over the building. It has issued several notices and consequent deadlines to illegal vendors, but little heed has been paid to these warnings. “We have declared all those fish mandies illegal as no prior NOC was obtained from the city administration for setting up the fish market,” said municipal administrator Zafar Ali Shah, adding they have also allocated funds for the repair of the clock.
Shah, however, was unaware at the time he spoke to The Express Tribune how complicated the anti-encroachment drive would become after Friday, when an excavator crushed at least three people to death.
The incident occurred when shopkeepers protesting against the campaign began pelting the vehicle with stones. The driver of the municipal corporation’s excavator hastily stepped on the reverse-gear — unmindful of the fact that some people were standing behind the heavy-duty vehicle.
The tragedy has angered shopkeepers who are likely to step up their resistance in wake of the deaths. The eventual casualty of this tussle, though, will be the clock tower. Will the crumbling building be salvaged by a savior? Only time will tell.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 18th, 2015.