On November 2, at around 2 pm in the afternoon, Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif posted this message on his official Facebook page:
“I am seeing a lot of rumors circulating about proposed demolishing of some historical places for Orange Line Metro Train… I would officially like to declare such rumors as baseless and part of propaganda … Before initiating this project; it was our principled decision not to harm any historical place including Chuburji, GPO & St. Andrews Church etc… I have personally presided over a number of meetings to ensure that all such landmarks are protected and preserved in their actual condition as they define the culture and heritage of Lahore … I have been informed that ‘Leader’ of a certain political party was also involved in spreading such rumors… I believe that national leaders must confirm facts before spreading a word because they influence and shape public opinion…. We all must act responsibly as honorable citizens of Pakistan.”
This was in reply to multiple media reports suggesting that Chauburji, St Andrews Church and GPO were being threatened by the proposed Orange Line Metro Train. Numerous civil society protests, spearheaded by the #RaastaBadlo movement, could also have prompted the chief minister’s clarification.
The project is accused of violating procedural norms of accountability and transparency
The current Orange Train route is believed to be threatening the Shalimar Gardens, Chauburji, Buddu’s tomb and other heritage sites as well, which would violate Section 22 of the Antiquities Act of 1975, which states: “…no development plan or scheme or new construction on, or within a distance of two hundred feet of a protected immovable antiquity shall be undertaken or executed…”
Protesters at the Chauburji
According to a list provided by the Lahore Conservation Society the following sites would be impacted by the Metro Train:
Shalimar Gardens (protected under the UNESCO World Heritage Convention)
Gulabi Bagh Gateway (protected under the Antiquities Act 1975)
Dai Anga’s Tomb (protected under the Antiquities Act 1975)
Buddhu ka Awa (protected under the Antiquities Act 1975)
General Post Office (protected under the Antiquities Act 1975 and under the Punjab Special Premises Preservation Ordinance 1985)
Chauburji (protected under the Antiquities Act 1975)
Mauj Darya Shrine (protected under the Antiquities Act 1975)
Zebunnisa’s Tomb (protected under the Antiquities Act 1975)
Railway Station
Lakshmi Mansions (protected under the Punjab Special Premises Preservation Ordinance 1985)
Miani Saab Graveyard
Royal Park/ McLeod Road
Old EFU House
Lahore High Court
Mominpura Graveyard
University of Engineering & Technology
Kapurthala House, Anarkali
Jain Mandir and vicinity
St. Andrews Presbyterian Church Nabha Road (built in 1860, protected under the Antiquities Act 1975)
Aiwan-e-Auqaf Building
Aiwan-e-Auqaf garden
Supreme Court Building Lahore (protected under the Antiquities Act 1975)
Kurri Bagh (protected under the Antiquities Act 1975)
The General Post Office, Gulabi Bagh Gateway, Dai Anga’s Tomb, Buddhu ka Awa, Lakshmi Mansions, New Age Mansions and other sites are protected by the Punjab Special Premises (Preservation) Ordinance of 1985, Point 11 of which states:
“No development plan or scheme or new construction on, or within a distance of two hundred feet of, a Special Premises shall be undertaken or executed…”
A banner from the #RaastaBadlo campaign
The Shalimar Gardens, meanwhile, is a UNESCO-protected world heritage site.
Another concern cited by civil society is the Orange Line displacing living communities, with the largest being at Kapurthala House, Jain Mandir and the Punjab University Town One. The land acquisition is heavily debated and has cast a shadow on the project’s integrity.
Furthermore, the project is accused of violating procedural norms, especially with regards to accountability and transparency.
“A failure to fully disclose the details of such projects by government agencies and departments violates the laws of this country and imply the bad faith of the government,” wrote the Lahore Conservation Society in a letter addressed to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The signatories include Imrana Tiwana, Convener, Lahore Bachao Tehreek and General Secretary, Lahore Conservation Society, along with Kamil Khan Mumtaz, Nayyar Ali Dada, Arif Hassan, Sajjad Kausar, Dr. Ajaz Anwar, Salima Hashmi, Feryal Gauhar, I.A. Rahman and others.
Local and international laws apply equally to the government or any private constructor, according to Mariam Hussain from the #RastaBadlo movement
The letter further said:
“The Pakistan government continues to receive financial aid from International Aid Agencies conditioned on the premise that it observes environmental protocols and standards, and honours its commitments to international climate change initiatives in letter and in spirit. The Orange Train Project, in its current form, violates many of these protocols and commitments. This poses a serious threat to Pakistan’s reputation, particularly with the COP 21 Conference imminent in December 2015. It also puts existent international aid to Pakistan at serious risk.”
It also highlights Pakistan’s location in an earthquake prone area.
“Pakistan is located on the Chaman Fault and is a high risk earthquake prone area. Given that recently constructed road and transport systems have already become structurally compromised in the wake of recent tremors, we would like to know if the technology being used for the Orange Train is earthquake-safe and environmentally sound, and be provided with detailed data in this regard. It is the unmitigated responsibility of the government to ensure the safety of citizens; this should be of central importance in projects undertaken by the government.”
A protest against projects which threaten heritage sites in Lahore
The letter presents a two-point solution to Nawaz Sharif.
“We hold our ancient city in trust not only for our future generations, but for the world. We believe that as our democratically elected representatives, our government cannot fail to work with us and in our interests; however we will leave no stone unturned in order to ensure that the Orange Line Train Project is undertaken in a transparent, ethically sound and socially responsible way.
As our elected representative and fellow Lahori, you will understand and share our concern. We strongly urge that your government undertakes to do the following:
Put an immediate halt to the Orange Train project in order to review the project and to prevent further damage and destruction.
Redesign the project with an altered route, so that it no longer threatens heritage sites, homes and communities”
On October 29, UNESCO Islamabad had written a letter to the Punjab Chief Secretary, Khizer Hayat Gondal, addressing the issue. The letter, signed by UNESCO Representative Vibeke Jensen, said: “Pakistan has signed the World Heritage Convention and UNESCO appreciates the efforts and measures taken by Government of Pakistan so far to fulfill its obligation in protecting the Outstanding Universal Values of World Heritage properties lying in its territory. I believe that your good office will look into the matter and ensure that relevant authorities to the aforementioned project will carry out necessary assessments of possible negative impact to the site and take necessary safeguarding measures to mitigate the impact of the project on the site and its buffer zone.”
A protest by civil society organisations
On the same day UNESCO Paris had sent a letter to Ambassador Ghalib Iqbal, Pakistan’s permanent delegate to UNESCO. The letter, signed by Mechtild Rössler, Director World Heritage Centre, said: “…we would be grateful if the competent authorities of Pakistan could respectfully provide detailed information on this project in line with provisions of paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, which reads as follows ‘The World Heritage Committee invites the States Parties to the Convention to inform the Committee, through the Secretariat, of their intention to undertake or to authorize in an area protected under the Convention major restorations or new constructions which may affect the outstanding universal value of the property.’”
“These local and international laws apply equally to the government or any private constructor,” says Mariam Hussain from the #RastaBadlo movement.
On Thursday, November 12th, the Director General of Archaeology, Punjab, Saleem-ul-Haq was sacked. The Lahore Conservation Society claimed he had been “relieved of his responsibilities for failing to issue the NOC (no-objection certificate) required in connection with the construction of the Orange Line Metro Train project near heritage sites”.
Traders based around the Shalimar Gardens are also perturbed by the development plans
Hussain says Saleem-ul-Haq was under relentless pressure.
“He raised objections. That is his job as a professional. But he was being pressurised by the government to give the NOC with regards to all the heritage sites. He was relentlessly pressurised until he was finally dismissed last Thursday.”
“They just wanted to put their own puppet in his place. And the person who has replaced Saleem-ul-Haq has got nothing to do with archaeology. What the government now expects to streamline are the NOCs for the heritage sites, which would give it the green signal for destruction.”
Hussain highlights the fact that the #RastaBadlo movement is gaining momentum, with many groups and communities joining hands with civil society.
The amount spent on the Metro Bus project could have financed transport buses for the entire Punjab province
“We have representatives from communities that are going to be left homeless, who have joined the #RastaBadlo movement. We have people from the Jain Mandir with us. Traders near Chauburji have joined us. The list people who are a part of this movement is growing.”
“The bottom line is that the government is breaking a number of national and international laws. UNESCO Paris and UNESCO Islamabad have written them letters. UNESCO has clearly asked the government to stop any construction work that is being carried out around Shalimar Garden.”
Hussain asserts that the issue is multi-pronged.
“There are multiple legal framework issues at play here. There are issues of due process, transparency, tendering, financing, Right to Information Act – there are multiple laws that are being broken here. The removal of DG Archaeology itself was illegal, and we’ll be taking the matter to court.”
Protesters from the #RaastaBadlo campaign
“We are also going to be writing to the Chinese Ambassador, because China is a signatory to the World Heritage Convention, since this is a Chinese-financed project, which has been looked after by Chinese companies as well. Maybe he does not know exactly what is happening.”
Imrana Tiwana says that the Lahore Conservation Society (and civil society in general) is aware of the need for public transportation but the government needs to go about it in the right manner.
“It’s evident that the city needs public transport. We have been talking about it for years. We’ve been asking for express bus linkage in all of Punjab. The Metro Bus, which carries 200,000-250,000 people every day, was built on the Green Line, which was originally earmarked for an underground metro train.”
“There is no doubt that all this is for the public, and this indeed is development. But development must be executed and conceived keeping integration in mind. Integration here means considering the needs of the people being affected and the on-ground statistics. What we’re witnessing is ad-hoc decision-making from the government. The chaotic construction work over the signal-free corridor is a prime example.”
Tiwana continues: “According to our calculations the amount that was spent on the Metro Bus project could have financed transport buses for the entire Punjab province. If we had a properly envisioned traffic management plan, instead of the Metro Bus which has no linkages, we would have had express shuttle lanes all over the city, which would have better linked and integrated. In fact this could have been implemented all over Punjab. Before executing grand schemes, it’s very important to look at the ground realities and management principles.”
Tiwana says the Lahore Conservation Society is aware of the opportunity costs involved in construction projects, but the government doesn’t seem interested in minimising the damage.
“There are three issues at play here: heritage destruction, law impeachment and displacement of masses. We understand similar projects all over the world entail certain opportunity costs. But the opportunity cost cannot be so high so as to be detrimental to the health of the city and well-being of the people.”
“In our eventual design for cities, we always say that cities are for people; cities must be for improving the natural and built environment and cities should improve the lives of all people – not a minor fraction.”
She says historical cities like Lahore need extra care whenever mega constructional projects are planned.
“When we consider heritage, there are few cities that even come close to Lahore. So when we factor in development, we need to focus on the location of that development. There has to be a balance. Lahore is like a museum. It has certain world heritage sites. It is full of cultural history. Not that we want to live in the past, but we have to preserve our heritage, which is protected by law.”
But where do we go from here? What is the plan of action? For Tiwana, at least, it is clear.
“We need to stop this project immediately. We need to review it, with particular attention to the preservation of Lahore’s heritage. Second, we must follow the rule of law. Third, we must work on ensuring the least displacement of communities.”
“The route has been changed thrice following the first public hearing over the project. Now I believe there is another hearing on the 30th of November. Our question is: where is the transparency? What about the legal obligations of the government?”
