Capri and Prince cinemas, as well as St Anthony’s Church have made it onto the Sindh government’s new list of 1,016 buildings to be classified as heritage, Pakistan Today has learnt. Other buildings and places now classified as heritage include Cowasjee house, Do Talwar, Teen Talwar, Bagh Ibn-e-Qasim, Karachi Gymkhana, PIDC House, Hotel Metropole, Saifee House, BCCI building, PMA House, Coconut Park, Army Public School, Aisha Bawani School and College, Qamar House, mausoleum of Abdullah Shah Ghazi, Lucky Star Circle, Fawwara Chowk, and Baloch Officers Mess.
All these buildings are included in the list compiled by the Sindh Culture Department that was drawn up under the Sindh Culture Heritage (Preservation) Act-1994. The Sindh government has sought objections regarding declaring these buildings as heritage within one month, following which a final notification will be issued. The Sindh Culture Department, however, has declared that these buildings and places are now under the cover of heritage.
Any change, construction, demolition, harm, alteration would be considered a crime, and punitive action taken under the Sindh Culture Heritage (Preservation) Act-1994. Protected sited covered before the new list include Artillery Maidan Quarters, Karachi Cantonment Quarters, Frere Town Quarters, Mashi Miani Quarters, Napier’s Quarters, Old Clifton, Railway Quarters, Ranchore Lines Quarters, Bandar Quarters, Clifton Quarters, and Jail Quarters.
Similarly, Pakistan Cost Guard headquarters, Kandawala building, Nishat Cinema, BMB School, Seventh Day Hospital, Napier Barracks, Faran Masjid, Sindh Medical College (old building), Trinity School, Pakistan Bible Society, Burma Oil Mill, Khatija Manzil, jogging park in old Clifton, NBP Cricket Ground, KPT Warehouse, and Nigar Cinema enjoy protected status.
No bulldozing of memories made in Capri, Prince, St Anthony’s Church
