KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Tuesday urged Karachi Mayor Waseem Akhtar to consult heritage experts for the restoration of the historical Empress Market so that its original beauty could be restored.
The chief minister said that after removal of encroachments from the surroundings of Empress Market, it has emerged into its original shape. “Now, its restoration is an important and sensitive task which must be made in consultation and guidance of the heritage experts,” he said and added that sandblasting without proper guidance of the experts would make the British-era market dull.
CM Shah said that after the restoration of law and order in the city, the removal of encroachments was another challenging job which had been carried out properly and was still in progress. “The areas which have been cleared from encroachments must be made neat and clean,” he said and added that he had a plan to restore all the old buildings through a World Bank-sponsored project and the provincial government would also utilise its resources.
The chief minister said that “Karachi belongs to each and every one of us and we have to make it neat and clean and one of the best livable cities of the world”.
“All the heritage buildings located in the old areas of the city would be restored to their original shape,” he said, adding that the scheme to restore the old city from Pakistan Chowk to Saddar would be accelerated and on the same pattern, other areas of the city would also be restored.
The mayor said that he was involving leading experts for the restoration work of the market.
