Historical City Wall threatened with neglect & encroachments
Haq Nawaz Shinwari
PESHAWAR: The remaining portion of the historical City Wall is facing fresh threats of encroachments as it has been broken at several points to pave the way for commercial concerns.
A visit to the sites revealed that the wall, built almost in the 19th century to protect the inhabitants of the city, is in a deplorable state. There have always been announcements by the successive governments to preserve and conserve the wall but these were never honoured.
Although the major portion of the wall has vanished over a period of time due to the utter neglect shown by the relevant government departments such as Culture, Archaeology and Local Government, the little one that remains has been put in danger of late.
The portion of the wall along the City Circular Road starting from the Ramdas Chowk and passing through the Sarki Gate, Chowk Kohati Gate, Yakatoot Gate, Gunj Gate, Lahori Gate up to Nishtarabad is under great threat. It is crumbling at a number of points while parts of the structure are being pulled down, allegedly in connivance with the staff of the departments concerned.
A portion of the wall was demolished recently and a gate fixed there near the Kohati Gate.
“It is strange that departments concerned such as Culture, Archaeology, Local Government and district administration are silent as the City Wall is being pulled down so brazenly,” lamented an elderly citizen.
When approached, Deputy Commissioner Saqib Raza Aslam said the City Wall was part of the rich architectural heritage of Peshawar. He assured that all steps would be taken to protect this historical structure and action taken against the officials found negligent.
The deputy commissioner said he had constituted a special committee which would inspect the City Wall and submit a report to him. He said three assistant commissioners were on the committee.
The historians and cultural experts say that Peshawar fell to the Sikh Empire in year 1818. The entire region was under Sikh rule from 1834 to 1849.
The wall was got constructed by the Sikh Governor of Peshawar, General Avitabile to secure the city. He remained in office from 1838 to 1842. The first wall was made of mud and had 16 gates.
Later the British snatched the city from the Sikhs in 1849. They replaced the wall with bricks. The structure started facing encroachments after Independence when the population of the city grew considerably.
Despite all past neglect, the portions of the City Wall still intact could be saved. The most vulnerable portion is at the Kohati Gate. An ancient graveyard is located to the other side of the wall as well and has several graves including the famous folk character, Pari Chehra. The wall of the ancient graveyard is also in great need of repair.
