Tourist attraction: Rangeela rickshaw tours launched in the Walled City

Routes begin at Delhi Gate and Bhati Gate and ends at Fort Road.

LAHORE:

An environment-friendly rickshaw tour was inaugurated by the Walled City of Lahore Authority at a ceremony on Friday.

The Rangeela Rickshaw tour features smoke- and noise- free rickshaws that are decorated in patterns reminiscent of those associated with trucks widely used in the country for goods transportation. Some of the decorative stickers glow at night.

The inauguration ceremony featured a musical performance by Sayeen Muhammad Ali. Those in attendance included city district government officials and students from the Punjab University.Walled City of Lahore Authority Director General Kamran Lashari said the tour service was part of WCLA’s efforts to attract more tourists to the Walled City. He said the routes were carefully selected for the tour to ensure that they included the important historical sites of the city.

WLCA Communication Director Tania Qureshi said she was confident that the rickshaw rides would attract a large number of people to the area. She said a trial carried out for few days period to the inauguration had been extremely popular.

Initially, the WCLA is running the rickshaws on two routes. One is from Delhi Gate to Fort Road. Rickshaws on this route travel along Shahi Hamam, Wazir Khan Masjid and Sonehri Masjid. The route also covers the popular Kinari Bazaar and Akbari Mandi markets and a bangles market.

The second route is from Bhati Gate to Fort Road. It passes along Allama Iqbal’s House, Fakir Khana Museum and Naqsh Art Gallery.

The WLCA has set a Rs250 per person charge for a trip along the entire route. The tourists have the option to stop the rickshaw on the way and explore a particular site.

Shehzad Ahmed, a PU student, said he was looking forward to his first ride in the rickshaw.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4^th, 2015.