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KARACHI: The provincial authorities razed over 1,000 illegal shops around the historical Empress Market on Sunday in an attempt to restore the Mughal era building and surrounding area to its original shape.
Although the recent anti-encroachment drive was launched after the Supreme Court’s intervention into the matter, the Sindh government was working to rehabilitate the city area under the World Bank-funded Karachi Neighborhood Improvement Project (KNIP).
The project costs US$98 million, in which the World Bank’s share amounts to $86 million, while the provincial government will provide $12 million. The plan involves improvement of public spaces and mobility in three select neighbourhoods comprising the revitalisation of the Saddar downtown area, Malir and Korangi.
According to Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) Anti-Encroachment Senior Director Bashir Ahmed Siddiqui, the Empress Market area will be reinstated to its former glory in the next 15 days. Moreover, the civic body’s efforts to clean the historical building situated at the heart of Saddar is underway.
This is how Karachi’s famous Empress Market will look like after restoration:
Empress Market traces its origins to the British Raj era. It was constructed between 1884 and 1889, and was named to honor Queen Victoria, Empress of India.
The commodities sold here range from spices, fruit, vegetables and meat to stationary material, textiles and pet shops. It is amongst the most popular and busiest places in Karachi for shopping and mirrors as one of the few historical spots of the city.
The market was constructed at a well-chosen site and clearly visible from a great distance. The site of the market had historical significance as it was situated on the grounds where a number of native soldiers were executed ruthlessly after the First War of Independence in 1857.
Not only spices from all over the globe can be bought from here but there is a section for meats and seafood. This historical place in Karachi is also a great place for photography.