Mohammed Jahangir can remember when his friends ran through the streets of the famous Walled City of Lahore, racing past the mosques and through the markets. Then came long decades when even walking through its streets, choked by illegal construction, was hard.
Now, a pioneering new restoration project has allowed the 80-year-old to glimpse once more the city of his childhood.
“I can’t really run about any longer but at least my grandchildren can,” Jahangir said.
A string of conquerors, notably the Mughals, built the mosques, fortifications, roads and palaces which, by the 18th century, had turned Lahore, once a trading town on a branch of the silk route, into a stunning demonstration of imperial prestige.
The Walled City’s gardens and squares are now obscured by illegal shops and businesses, the skyline cluttered by unplanned tenements and bundles of cables.
via Lahore authorities battle to restore splendour of ancient Walled City | World news | The Guardian.
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