Encroachments hamper old buildings restoration

LAHORE
MASSIVE encroachments have become the major hindrance for the Walled City of Lahore Authority (WCLA) to restore and improve the façade of buildings from Purani Kotwali to Masti Gate area.
Sources said that after completion of its package-I (Delhi Gate till Chowk Purani Kotwali), WCLA intended to start its package-II (Kotwali to Masti Gate through Chowk Chuna Mandi and Moti Bazaar and Chowk Purani Kotwali to Sonehri Mosque via Dabbi Bazaar), with an estimated cost of Rs667.2 million for infrastructure services and Rs103.9 million for façade improvement. Sources said the work would be carried out in partnership with Aga Khan Trust for Culture as was done in package-1.
Sources claimed that WCLA had started working on gathering data about encroachments on the roads from Purani Kotwali to Masti Gate. They said work on package-II would be restored by improving the façade of the buildings and the infrastructure works after removal of encroachments. Sources said that after removal of encroachments, electricity poles, wires and transformers would be replaced by an underground electricity system as was done in package-1.
The PC-1 of package-II has already been approved by the Punjab government and P&D Chairman while the amount was released to WCLA, sources said and maintained that to start with the work, social mobilisation team of WCLA had formed the Community Based Organisations (CBOs) in the marked area. They said these CBOs would help in the community works and infrastructure services.
A community-based organisation, public or private non-profit, is the representative of a community or a significant segment of a community, and is engaged in meeting human, educational, environmental, or public safety community needs, said a senior WCLA official.
He said similar CBOs were formed before starting of work in package-1 to facilitate the WCLA staff in various restoration works.
The official said CBOs of female and male staff were separate.

The female CBOs usually help WCLA by motivating the households and neighbours for letting WCLA play its preservation and restoration part while the male CBOs are the decision-makers in case any rift arises during work. He said these CBOs were also used for grievance management. Director Marketing WCLA Asif Zaheer said as the first step the demarcation for removal of encroachment from Purani Kotwali to Chuna Mandi had already been started. He said this mechanism involved the CBOs and the patwari and this was the most complicated part in starting any project. He said the encroachments were enormous and to remove them there was a lot of public pressure.
“In order to remove encroachments, the original Masawi / record of patwari is obtained and then a line is marked through which the encroachments will be removed. Once this process is completed the works of infrastructure and façade improvement will start,” he said.
Asif Zaheer said that WCLA was planning to give alternative places for business to Rim Market merchants. The traders are in liaison with WCLA team, as WCLA is planning to provide a new route to Gur Mandi. Furthermore, the process of removal of encroachment is in progress at Kashmiri Block Azam Market. This will give the area a new look as we did in the package-1, he concluded.
Nosheen Zaidi, Deputy Director Mobilisation said public dealing and management was the toughest task of the project which WCLA was handling these days. “We form the bridge between the local community and WCLA. We will now start the process of signing agreements with the community regarding the future interventions. The same process was followed in the package-1,” she said.
Removal of encroachments is one of the complex tasks of social mobilisation and the negotiations for the same have started with the package-II, said Ali Gill, Assistant Director Mobilisation. These are much difficult in the package-II as most of the area is converted into markets like Kashmiri Bazaar, Dabbi Bazaar and the Rim Market.
Director General WCLA Kamran Lashari said the project was of much importance as much emphasis was on the improvement of living standards of the locals. “With improvement of infrastructure services especially underground electricity and sewerage and storm water separate pipes, hygiene and living standards will be uplifted,” he said, adding that package-II was an important area having the Golden Mosque and the Mariam Zamani Mosque in it leading to the Akbari Gate of Lahore Fort. Once this part is restored the magnificent monuments will be free of encroachments and restored to their originality, he concluded.