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Heritage Districts

• Introduction
• Marriott Road - Juni Gali

Introduction

All historic cores in various towns are of extreme significance due to their distinctive architectural character. Over a period of time, the historic cores have become part of the down town. In view of rapid development in Pakistan’s cities, there has been large scale destruction of these historic assets.

Since its inception in 1980, the Foundation has been in the forefront of demands for the protection of heritage buildings in old cities, which are prerequisite for maintaining the distinctive characteristics of each city.

The Foundation has prepared several proposals for declaring heritage districts in Karachi in order to safeguard the special character of Old Karachi. The first such proposal was prepared for Zaibunnisa Street (old Elphinstone Street) in early 1980s. It was further developed in 1996 as part of Empress Market Gardens Project to create an urban square in the Saddar area along with management of traffic to create pedestrian areas.

Other proposals developed in 1996 included pedestrian precincts in Civil Lines as part of Frere Hall Cultural District as well as in M.R. Kiyani Road for cultural activities.

The latest proposal is for development of Marriott Road as a pedestrian street in order to celebrate the cultural diversity of various ethnic groups that reside in Karachi.

The Foundation has recommended to the Karachi City Government to declare at least 10 Heritage Districts in the city which comprise a large number of notified historic buildings with the following objectives:
a.Preservation of historic urban character
b.Preservation of old trees, open spaces
c.Enactment of special byelaws for controlling development in the area e.g
FAR and height controls – give advantage to those who maintain street facades
and integrity of historic buildings
d.Management and redirection of vehicular traffic to minimize pollution
e.Creation of Walking Streets, as was the case in old times
f.Revitalization of historic urban core through relocation of environmentally damaging local industry
g.Urban and graphic design controls
h.Control over hoardings

Marriott Road - Juni Gali

       
                A 19th century view of Denso Hall .          A recent view. Denso Hall is on the left. 

                       
                Location map of Denso Hall.                       Google map of Denso Hall.

The proposal was developed by Heritage Foundation in January 2007. In the meantime, through help from NSN, the historic Denso Hall facade has been cleaned through gentle washing. The urban design of the area has been prepared and negotiations with the City Government are in progress.

            
             View of Marriott Road with Denso Hall on the left.

Historically, Denso Hall and its environs carry immense significance. The area abuts the Kharadar area and represents the continuity of the original ‘Black Town’ that existed at the advent of the British. To this day it continues to house the old markets of Karachi and offers a variety of goods and experiences which retain the flavour of old Karachi. The tangible heritage of the area consists of two-three storey historic buildings, most of which have been protected under the Sindh Cultural Heritage (Preservation) Act 1994.

It is proposed to develop the Denso Hall precinct focusing on the Marriott Road in its rear as the Tarikhi Guzargah, Juni Gali or Purani Gali. The proposal consists of the following:
• Conversion of the historic Denso Hall, being cleaned with Nokia support, into a reading room and museum of Karachi’s Ethnic Commu nities.
• Cleaning of all facades lining the M.A. Jinnah Road between the crossing of Denso Hall and next junction.
• Conversion of Marriott Road into a landscaped pedestrian street.
• Design of all paving, signage, kiosks, and other small structures to be based on 19th century Karachi.
• Presentation of Karachi’s diverse communities from the earliest times to today by portraying their intangible cultural heritage through street activities. KaravanKarachi to devote each Sunday for portrayal of one community e.g. Parsis, Shidis, Bohris etc.: Ethnic cuisine; folk dance and music street theatre; people in ethnic dresses.

             
              Schematic Plan of Marriott Road as a Pedestrian Precinct.

                           
                          Schematic view from M.A. Jinnah Road. Denso Hall is on left.

                          
                           Schematic view of pedestrianized Marriott Road or Juni Gali.

Strengths

The landmark Denso Hall and other historic buildings e.g. the KMC Building and the Merewether Tower etc., endow the precinct with immense significance. Along M.A. Jinnah Road Denso Hall is flanked on one side by the well known Jahangir Kothari Building, also designed by James Strachan, and on the other several other attractive structures. On the opposite side are situated several historic buildings built by the old merchant princes as reminder of Karachi’s eminence as the largest wheat exporter in the entire British empire. The famous Marriott Road in the rear also carries many protected historic structures. The area is easily accessible from all parts of Karachi. On Sundays M.A. Jinnah Road is devoid of vehicular traffic presenting an opportunity to draw people from other sections of the city and elsewhere. A large number of
people reside in Kharadar, rear (north) of the Denso Hall, who is likely to become the ‘captured audience’ to attend cultural activities, held in the precinct.

Weaknesses

The area is highly congested with traffic and has a proliferation of impediments contributing to visual and audio pollution. Lack of parking and unregulated traffic are major issues. Overhead electric cables, broken
pavements, lack of garbage collection and unsightly signboards add to environmental degradation The buildings mostly present a pitiable site, left in a state of neglect.

Opportunities

The precinct provides a rare opportunity to present Karachi as the multicultural rainbow city of Pakistan. The cleaning of the entire precinct and providing a pedestrianized landscaped street, the Marriott Road has the potential to become a hub of cultural activity presenting Karachi as it once was. Such a transformation will not only present the cultural face of Karachi, through visitors’ interest it can bring untold benefits to the whole area.

Threats

The threats include lack of maintenance by government agencies after the area has been developed. There may be opposition from the local shop keepers and others particularly, the pushcart owners, khoka restaurants and the makeshift mosque occupying the corner.

Conclusion

The project has the potential to influence the direction of future development of Historic Karachi.

Tangible Heritage

• World Heritage
• National Heritage
• Local Heritage
• Urban Historic Cores

Classification of Tangible Heritage

Heritage assets  are rated according to their instrisic heritage value according to the study and research that might have been carried out upto a certain date. It does not mean that the classification is static and cannot be changed if more information is gathered or more research is conducted.

World Heritage

The number of world heritage sites that a nation possesses is a measure of how high heritage is rated in any country. Most countries strive hard to have their heritage sites placed on the World Heritage List. The World Heritage Committee whch meets at regular intervals examines the dossiers on each application and depending upon how the case is put forward, accords approval for it to be placed on the List.

The acceptance of these sites signifies that they contain universal values which are valuable for the entire world. As such the safeguarding and conserving them is also the responsibility not only where they are located but also of the world.

To date Pakistan has 7 sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage list: 
• Moenjodaro Archaeological Site, Sindh
• Thatta Monuments or Makli Necropolis, Sindh
• Lahore Fort and Shalamar Gardens, Mughal Monuments, Punjab
• Rohtas Fort, Pre-Mughal Monument, Punjab
• Takht-e-Bahai, Gandhara Archaeological Site, NWFP
• Taxila Archaeological Site, Punjab & NWFP

National Heritage

All the provinces in Pakistan have a large number of national heritage sites. The Federal Department of Archaeology has traditionally been the custodian of these sites. However, in the recent past there have been moves to shift the cusodianship to the provinces. Although so far only some monuments in Punjab have been handed over to the provincial department of archaeology, it is likely that gradually all sites in the provinces will become the responsibility of the respective provinces.

360 archaeological sites and historic monuments have been placed on National List, with purview of their being provided protection under the Federal Antiquities Act.

Under the act, it is incumbent upon the custodians to ensure that measures are taken for safeguarding and conserving them.

These heritage sites are located in different parts of Pakistan. Where it is necessary that the federal department should conserve them, it becomes important that each Pakistani also participates in their safeguarding.

Local Heritage

There are hundreds of monuments that are found in all provinces of Pakistan. Although rudimentary, some form of inventories have been prepared by various provinces; however, due to lack of funds, most of the monuments are in a greatly deteriorated state. Many of them, which were recorded, are probably no longer in existence. This is a grave state of affairs which needs to be rectified through a collective effort.

It is clear that local heritage is of extreme importance to the community and local initiatives are needed to catalogue and preserve the sites. Heritage Foundation has prepared a Catalogue of Heritage Assets of the Siran Valley as part of the work being carried out in the Earthquake Area. There is a need to develop many more such catalogues which would initiate the process of heritage safeguarding in various areas.

Urban Historic Cores

Pakistan has a wealth of historic cores as part of various cities that back to Mughal and post-Mughal period. Even those that were developed during the 19th century British rule have areas which are extremely valuable as representative of a shared heritage with Britain. Since many historic cores have become part of the downtown, the historic assets in these cores are gravely threatened. There is an urgent need to declare conservation districts in order to apply special zoning and building byelaws for maximizing their value as heritage assets, which can enhance the distinctiveness of various cities.

Heritage Foundation has carried out the work of cataloguing extensively in Karachi Old Town, as well as in Lahore, Peshawar and the Siran Valley in Mansehra. The catalogues are published as part of the National Register of Historic Places of Pakistan.

Where the identified and protected monuments suffer from natural threats and causes, historic architecture found in Urban Historic Cores and Urban Centres is gravely threatened due to wilfull destruction. Since most urban centres are now growing at a rapid pace, the planning byelaws allow a higher Floor Area Ratio than the original planning parameters. This has resulted in pulling down of valuable structures and replacement with modern buildings. The chaotic condition in many of the inner city areas is due to destruction of heritage buildings. There is an urgent need to save them through a campaign for identification and protection, as has been done in Karachi.

Introduction - Pakistan's Cultural Heritage

• Type of Tangible Heritage
• Archaeological Sites
• Historic Monuments
• Urban Historic Cores

Pakistan is endowed with a large number of ancient sites and historic structures. These historic assets are our link with our past and, as the custodians, it is incumbent upon all Pakistanis to stabilize and conserve them so that they could survive for many centuries more.

In an age when globalization is all pervasive, it is Pakistan’s ancient lineage that provides us with a distinct identity. Lest we forget —since this seems to be our best kept secret from the outside world — Pakistan is a treasure-house of ancient heritage, spanning over scores of centuries.

Pakistan is home to Mehargarh, Moenjodaro and Harrappa —it is the land that beckoned Alexander to sail down river Jhelum with purple flags fluttering; the spectacular Gandharan civilization as the seat of Buddhism; the devotional carvings of the Hindu Shahi temples of the Salt Range and Tharparkar; the stately funerary clusters of Makli, Multan and Ucch Sharif, a fusion of local trabeated and imported arcuate, representing successive Sultanate dynasties; the heart-expanding chahar-baghs and jewel-like edifices of the greatest kingdom in the world, established by the young ruler of Farghana; the Sikhs emulating the Great Mughals, and the shared legacy of eclectic architecture with its European overtones, a bequest of the British who colonized this land.

It is not only the ancient sites and historic monuments, but equally the historic urban cores, stretched from the peaks of the Khyber in the farthest north to the southern-most edge of the mighty river Indus — Peshawar, Multan, Thatta and Karachi, and scores of other living cities with their historic environments, all valuable in our search for, and understanding of our cultural diversity.

There are the Walled Cities, a depository of irreplaceable architectural heritage, with their organic morphology and the meandering streetscapes, which need to be saved from destruction, and revitalized to continue to endow our fast-growing urban centres with distinction, and historical flair. These footsteps of history are a reflection of a traditional value system, tempered over centuries, but needing support to meet the demands of contemporary life without losing their inherent radiance — the traditional lifestyles determined by, and themselves determining the historic environments.

This is our heritage that we need to safeguard as if family silver to be passed on to future generations to maintain our distinctive identity.

Type of Tangible Heritage

Pakistan’s heritage is among the country’s best kept secrets. The country has several World Heritage sites as well as countless sites of national and local importance. 

For ease of safeguarding, tangible heritage of Pakistan is considered in the following categories:
a. Archaeological sites
b. Historic Monuments
c. Urban Historic architecture

The Antiquities Act of the Federal Government provides protection to archaeological sites and historic monuments, however, urban historic architecture in most cities remains largely un-catalogued and unprotected.

Through the efforts of Heritage Foundation the Sindh Cultural Heritage (Preservation) Act 1994 was promulgated by the Sindh Assembly. Through the heritage act, almost 600 heritage sites of Karachi, catalogued and published by the Foundation were provided protection. This is the largest number of protected heritage sites in any province of Pakistan. However, most of the historic towns in Sindh are in the process of losing the valuable heritage.

Under the Punjab Premises Act, a few dozens historic buildings have been provided protection in the entire province. The walled cities have suffered a great deal of degradation and loss of the historic environment. The recent proposal of Punjab Government at the revitalization of the Shahi Guzargah in the Walled City, originally identified by Yasmeen Lari in her Lahore Heritage Guide, is likely to bring the value of heritage for economic regeneration into sharp focus and it is hoped that it will be instrumental in revitalizing of other historic towns and districts.

Although Peshawar walled city is among the most exciting traditional environments, because of lack of protection, the city as well as other historic cities in the Frontier are in grave danger of losing their valuable heritage. The recent steps by the NWFP government, taken under the direction of Additional Chief Secretary, in establishing a Heritage Fund and the Documentation Centres as proposed by Yasmeen Lari, are likely to initiate a process of cataloguing and protection through participation of the private sector.

There is no protection to historic environments of Balochistan and its historic architecture is extremely vulnerable.

Archaeological Sites

Pakistanpossesses remains of several ancient civilizations. The most famous is Indus Valley Civilization which dates to 3,000 BC. However, due to investigations in Balochistan the remains of Mehergarh have stretched the antiquity even further back in time to 5,000 BC. The most famous sites of Indus Valley Civilization are Moenjoaro (Sindh) and Harrappa (Punjab).

The other famous ancient sites are evidence of Buddhist civilization that flourished in this land. There are several of them and are found in the northern part of Pakistan. They are situated in Taxila (Punjab) and Takht-e- Bahi (NWFP).

Most archaeological sites are protected under the Federal Antiquities Act.

Historic Monuments

The historic monuments are standing monuments or ruins which are found all over Pakistan. They represent various periods of our history and demonstrate the rich cultural milieu of the land. Thus, we can find historic Hindu temples in Tharparkar (Sindh) and Punjab, Sultanante period monuments in Makli Tombs, Thatta, in Multan and Ucch Sharif, and Mughal monuments in Thatta, Multan, Lahore etc. Many monuments are protected under the Federal Antiquities Act; however, there are thousands of others which still need to be provided protection.

Urban Historic Cores

There are many historic urban areas that are found in various provinces. Most of them had been constructed as walled cities e.g. Peshawar, Multan, Lahore etc. Although the walls have long since disappeared, the special urban morphology continues to provide them with a special character. Although there has been a lot of destruction in the past years, many of the historic structures continue to endow them with a special flavour. Unfortunately, due to lack of protection, we continue to lose a large number of valuable historic structures. There is an urgent need to provide protection to them in order to save the special flavour that the historic urban cores possess.

Most cities of Pakistan have a shared legacy with Britain. This shared legacy is equally important for the growing urban centres of Pakistan. The British built centres are now part of the Central Business Districts of major cities, gifting them with a special flavour. Except for Karachi, where over 600 buildings identified and published by Heritage Foundation, have been provided protection under the Sindh Cultural Heritage (Preservation) Act 1994, and Lahore where over 3 dozen historic buildings have bene provided protection under the Punjab Premises Act, historic structures in most cities are gravely threatened. As part of growing metropolis, the compulsions for modernity is destroying valuable heritage.

Heritage Centre

KaravanPakistan

KaravanPakistan (earlier KaravanKarachi) was established in 2000 as a community and youth outreach arm of Heritage Foundation. it seeks to develop good citizenship attributes among children and foster a sense of pride and ownership among communities regarding our local and national heritage.

Its activities are carried out through volunteer effort that focus on heritage safeguarding, rule of law, good citizenship and peace. It was formally launched in March 2001 to celebrate the diversity and dynamism of the city of Karachi. The year was declared a KaravanKarachi Festival and various activities were held throughout 2001 culminating in a Carnival Parade around Quaid-e-Azam’s Mausoleum on M.A. Jinnah Road. Due to its growing activities in other parts of the country, in 2005 the name was formally changed to KaravanPakistan.

KaravanPakistan

About Us

• Registration
• Mission
• Vision
• Board of Directors
• HF Offices 

Registration

Heritage Foundation is incorporated under Section 42 of Companies Ordinance 1984.

Vision

Pakistan’s Heritage, the best kept secret of the country, should be utilized to promote Cultural Pakistan.

Mission

To document and conserve the traditional and historic built environment of Pakistan; create an awareness of Pakistan’s rich and diverse historic architecture and art; and to promote cultural heritage for social integration, peace and development. 

Board of Directors 

Yasmeen Lari

SI HI Fukuoka Prize Laureate

Co-Founder and CEO, Heritage Foundation of Pakistan

Founder Chair, INTBAU Pakistan

Architect, Architectural Historian, Heritage Conservationist, Philanthropist.

 Yasmeen Lari is Pakistan’s first woman architect and among the best known architects of the country.She graduated from Oxford School of Architecture (now Oxford Brookes University) and was elected to Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) in 1969. She has built several landmarks buildings in Pakistan e.g. FTC, PSO House and ABN Amro Bank, Karachi. She is considered among pioneers of Brutalistic Architecture and her architectural work is included in Phaidon Books UK publication (2013) devoted to the best examples of 20^th century architecture. She retired from architectural practice in 2000. She is a UNESCO consultant and has been published among 60 Women who have contributed the most towards UNESCO’s objectives.

She co-founded Heritage Foundation of Pakistan in 1980 with her husband, noted historian Suhail Zaheer Lari, for undertaking research and safeguarding Pakistan’s cultural heritage. She has conserved several historic monuments in World Heritage Sites of Makli and Lahore Fort as well as important heritage sites in other parts of Pakistan. The conservation projects have been supported by UNESCO, US Ambassador’s Fund, German Government funds, Prince Cluas Fund of the Netherlands, and Spiritual Chords (South Africa). In 2016, with support from UNESCO/Republic of Korea Funds-in-Trust, ‘Revitalization of Ancient Glazed Tiles in Sindh’ project was taken up which helped to complete the 16^th c.tomb of Sultan Ibrahim along with imparting the ceramic making skills to poor communities, especially women, for income generation.

Lari was elected president of the Institute of Architects Pakistan in 1978 and was the first chairperson of Pakistan Council of Architects and Town Planners (PCATP) in 1983.

Since Earthquake 2005, she has devised various programs based on women-centred zero carbon footprint structures and sustainable building techniques, resulting in 40,000 green shelters (using bamboo, lime and mud), placing Pakistan in the lead as World’s largest zero carbon shelter program, herself being acknowledged as the largest provider of shelter.

In recognition of her services towards architectural profession, heritage safeguarding and humanitarian assistance, President of Pakistan has awarded her Sitara-i-Imtiaz (The Star of Distinction), 2006 and Hilal-i-Imtiaz (The Crescent of Distinction), 2014. In 2016, from Japan she has receivedthe highly acclaimed Fukuoka Prize for Asian Art and Culture.

Lari’s works have been exhibited in the First Chicago Architectural Biennial 2015 and in RIBA’s ‘Creation from Catastrophe’ exhibition 2016 in London, as well as being displayed in RIBA’s permanent collection.

She is the author and co-author of several books and has lectured extensively at home and abroad.

Afroza Bhamani

Educationist, Entrepreneur
Afroza Bhamani is an eminent educationist and is the Founder Managing Director of the Hampton School, one of the best known schools in Karachi.

Afroza holds an MBA degree in Finance and Marketing from the prestigious Institute of Business Administration (IBA), Karachi. She is a dynamic business entrepreneur and has been contributing to several welfare projects since her graduation.

She has served as Finance Coordinator, Home for Senior Citizens since 1986 and from 1999-2002 she served as a Portfolio Member, Women Development on the Aga Khan Economic Planning Board. Since 2001 she has been serving as a Trustee of Aga Khan Charitable Trust.

She is a Founder Managing Director of ERA Project, an HR Consultancy, Chairperson of Forum for Ismaili Educators, and Advisor on Curriculum of Aga Khan Education Services. She is Director of Ally Adil, A Fasion House and Founder President of Forum for Women Development.

She is among the early members of KaravanPakistan and is chair of KaravanPakistan Schools Initiatives.

Shaha Jamshed

Educationist
Shaha Jamshed is a well known educationist, a poet and a writer. She has taught in several prestigious educational institutions and is currently the principal of the Hampton School.

She is among the early members of KaravanPakistan and has helped put up several KaravanPakistan events.

Shakiel Zaheer Lari

Lawyer
Shakiel Zaheer Lari is an eminent lawyer who began his practice in 1968. He is the honorary legal advisor to the Foundation.

Shakiel has served on the board of several private and public companies and is currently a member of the Privatization Commission constituted by Government of Pakistan.

Suhail Zaheer Lari

Historian 
Suhail  Zaheer Lari is a scholar and noted historian. After his early schooling in Allahabad and Lahore, he attended Karachi University before proceeding to St. Catherine’s College, Oxford University, for a degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics. 

He was Managing Director of Khyber Insurance Company, a public limited company for over two decades and served as director of a number of public and private limited companies, before retiring and devoting full time to writing. 

As co-founder of the Society for the Preservation of Muslim Heritage and Heritage Foundation, Suhail has been instrumental in supporting the documentation and conservation of historic and traditional architecture since the late 1970s, including the pioneering work conducted on Thatta, the old capital of Sindh, and Makli, the largest necropolis in the world. 

He was among the first civilians to go into Tharparkar after the Indians, who had occupied it in 1971, vacated it, to photograph and prepare a report for the rehabilitation of the area for the President of Pakistan. 

He is an avid photographer and is the author of several books on history.His photographic collections date back to the 1960s. Many of the proposals developed for Makli by Heritage Foundation are based on the photographic documentation he has carried out at the Makli necropolis since Late 1980s. His photographic archives include extensive documentation of the Pictured Wall, Lahore Fort World Heritage as well as many other historic sites throughout Pakistan.

He is the author of several books including the highly acclaimed Pictorial History of Sindh, which has wide circulation in the subcontinent. His other books include the following:

The Jewel of Sindh: Samma Monuments on the Makli Hill

Neither Islamic nor Persian

History of Sindh

Meri Mitti Kay Log

Meri Society Kay Log

His quartet on Makli includes the following:

Makli under the Sammas (published)

Makli under Mughal Rule (published)

Makli under Timurid Rule (in print)

Makli and its Shrines (compiled)

Hameed Mayet

Entrepreneur 

Director Abdul Hameed Mayet is a South African of Pakistani origin. He did his M.A. (Economics) from South Africa in 1972 and B.A. (Economics) University of Karachi in 1970. He was Director of Eastern Commercial Corporation which was involved in promoting joint venture projects. He was Director on the board of Merck Sharpe & Dohme Pakistan Ltd ., affiliated with Merck & Co., New Jersey , USA and Executive Director, Keloil Pakistan Limited a Malaysian  LPG terminal project at Port Qasim.

Presently he is a consultant on alternate energy projects. He is President of TOS Pakistan, which is affiliated with the Theosophical Society and promotes education of children in marginalized communities in Karachi. He has undertaken the project of renovation of Jamshed Nuserwanjee Memorial Hall and refurbishing of the Theosophical Library and make the space available for revival of cultural activities in the area.

Shanaz Ramzi

Journalist 

Shanaz Ramzi has been working as a freelance journalist since 1994.  She has written on a variety of subjects for various publications, both local and international, and has served as the Karachi correspondent for a Dubai-based newspaper, Emirates Today.  She has also authored a best-selling book, Food Prints, published by OUP and iscurrently working on her second book, commissioned by OUP, Oxford Companion to Pakistani Cuisine.

Ramzi joined HUM Network as Head of PR and Publications in October 2004 and was with the organization till October 2015, where she was heading these two departments as their GM and was also the editor of all their publications including the two monthlies GLAM and Masala TV Food Mag.

Ramzi has been twice nominated for Gender in Journalism Award by UNESCO and Best Journalist Award by Mandoob. She was awarded Woman of Substance Award presented by her alma mater, St Joseph’s Covent High School on the 150th anniversary of the school. She has edited (Urdu section) of the Gourmand award-winning Hindi-Urdu book, Zaiqay Frontier Kay published in 2014.

 In November 2015 she set up her own PR and event management company by the name of StarLinks Pr and Events. Within one year of the company’s existence it had carried out diverse and huge projects including the launch of the largest mall in South Asia, Lucky One mall. On 23rd March 2016 she was bestowed Icon Of  The Nation award by Icon Foundation. In November 2017 Starlinks won the prestigious international Stevies Award for Women in Business for the category of Start-up of the year, in an awards ceremony in New York.

HF Offices

Ms. Yasmeen Lari, CE 

Head Office, Karachi

Mr. Ashfaq Ahmed, HF Manager

Mr. Muhammad Mehdi, Architect

Ms. Asfania Farman, Assistant

Mr. Habibullah, Driver

Accounts

Mr. Abdul Aziz

Ms. Sara

Field Teams, Sindh

Mr. Naheem Husain Shah, Project Manager

Ms. Momal Memon, Social Mobilizer

About Us

Kodar School Inaugurated

The inauguration of the primary school at Kodar, Union Council Sachan Kalan, District Mansehra, NWFP, took place on 7th November 2007 at 12:30 pm on the premises of the school.

The event was well attended by over 600 children and several hundred local notables as well as teachers from the union council.

The event was arranged in the court/playground of the school, while a makeshift rostrum was placed in the veranda. The children sat on the floor covering. Some chairs were provided for guests, however, in view of the large number of people, many stood on the periphery of the ground.

              
                                   Views of assembly in the school yard.
 
The District Nazim, Sardar Yousuf, was the chief guest. Others who attended included the Executive District Officer (EDO) for Education, Project Manager, District Rehabilitation Unit (DRU) as well as District Officer Education and several other officials and notables of the area.

An exhibition of photographs was mounted on large boards, sent by Ms. Atifa Asghar, and was arranged at the top of the access road.

The ribbon cutting was carried out by the District Nazim at the school wicket gate erected at the base of the access road, when dua (prayer) for the success of the school was offered by those present.

             
                      Ribbon cutting by District Nazim (left) & speech by Yasmeen Lari (right).

following programme was organized:
- Recitation from the Holy Quran by a boy student
- Naat recital by a group of three girl students
- Welcome by Yasmeen Lari on behalf of NSN, Nokia and Heritage Foundation
- Speech by Mr. Shah Khan, Nazim, UC Sachan Kalan
- Speech by the EDO (Education)
- Speech by the District Nazim, Sardar Yousuf
- Distribution of shields and mementoes to KaravanPakistan employees and guests respectively.
- Tour of the school rooms by guests
- Distribution of 250 gram sweetmeats boxes and fruit drinks to children

In her welcome speech Yasmeen Lari, Chair, Heritage Foundation conveyed regrets of NSN and NOKIA representatives that in view of the emergency imposed in the country they had not been allowed to proceed to Kodar due to security reasons.

She outlined key activities accomplished in Kodar and Jabbar with special focus on livelihood programmes for women based on traditional crafts. The salient features of school construction with maximum utilization of traditional materials, improved local techniques and local labour as well as the effort in jointing the whole structure together for resilience and seismic resistance were described. The need for taking care of the school building and improved teaching methods were highlighted with a request to the Education Department to increase the number of local teachers.

The work jointly with the community in mountain pathways and reforestation with plantation of 15,000 saplings was highlighted. Discussions with ERRA regarding the design of health centre and the urgency for the community to provide land for its construction was explained. The importance of collaboration in rehabilitation of the old mosque was also underscored. The various programmes that have recently been undertaken were explained, including 10 kitchens for “Destiny Roti” (corn bread) initiative, 10 nos. one room KaravanGhar for widows and the disabled, and community latrines, the designs of which have been provided to the community and will be built under our guidance. The Jabbar villages programme that is in hand was also explained including mountain pathways, completion of school/community centre building, start of community heritage museum and rehabilitation of ancient Jabbar graveyard with community participation.

She also described the experiments being carried out for drying of vegetables and fruit with an experimental solar dehydrator chamber provided through a collaboration of Heritage Foundation and Pak Swiss Society. Experiments are being carried out for construction of cheap individual solar dehydrators which, if successful, could be used by each household.

She explained that the community needs to take pride in its heritage, crafts and traditions which, along with self-reliance, is the underlying principle for rehabilitation works undertaken by the NSN-Nokia-Karavan partnership. The partnership is determined to undertake only those works which ensure maximum participation by the community itself.

              
                                    District Nazim  speaking (left) & speech by EDO Education (right).


The District Nazim and EDO praised the comprehensive programme particularly the use of environmentally sustainable construction techniques, livelihood programmes for women and the underlying principle of self reliance adopted by NSN-Nokia-Karavan partnership. He exhorted the community to collaborate fully with the partnership for engaging in productive work for greater economic benefits and transformation of their area. The District Nazim was also appreciative of construction of a museum in Jabbar to foster pride within the community.

Mementoes commemorating the inauguration of the Kodar School were presented to KaravanPakistan staff in appreciation of their hard work to achieve the completion of this challenging project. Those presented mementoes by the District Nazim included Shifa, Raja, Nadeem Shah, Ishtiaq Ahmad, Naeem Shah, Ahmad, Sajjad, Faiz and Benaris. A memento of the occasion was presented by Yasmeen Lari to the District Nazim, EDO Education and Project Manager DRU (Mansehra). The function was conducted by Naeem Shah.

While taking the round of the building, the District Nazim, EDO and PM, DRU appreciated the design, quality of construction and the effort that had gone into its construction considering the extremely remote mountainous terrain of Kodar. The school furniture and the provision of computers were also greatly appreciated. The photographic exhibition with large number of photographs showing various stages of work and activities was also enjoyed by the participants. The work on solar food dehydration was also appreciated.

There was a general air of festivity and much enjoyment by the community.

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