Karachi’s historical culture

THE urban centres of Pakistan are investing heavily in developing real estate but are neglecting the humanistic infrastructure that makes cities livable.
The investors of capitalistic pursuits are focusing on maximum profit through invasive methodologies such as the conversion of agricultural land, turn-key projects to procure decayed heritage properties and turn them into staggered apartment complexes, encroachment of natural wastelands and wetlands, and the constant extension of reclaimed land to build luxury gated communities.
In fact, there are many urban strategies to make cities viable and prosperous. Development and preservation can be one of the most important strategies where proper maintenance can bind the two forms together. Karachi’s infrastructural landscape is increasingly vulnerable and is challenged every monsoon season. One of the main reasons for this is the lack of care management. Any form of disaster preparedness is a long-term commitment and cannot be adopted just before a challenging season sets in.
In order to adopt resilient strategies, Karachi has to employ sustainable urban methods which guard against the threats of climate challenges. I feel that one of the most important of these methods is related to protection and prevention during the monsoon season, to avoid disaster — especially in Old Town Karachi.
In order to prevent devastation, the Heritage Antiquity Department of Sindh has to be awarded a special grant to undertake three critical analyses. One is to document the current status of the listed buildings and their condition in the existing document and develop a comparative study. Seco­­nd, it is essential to enhance and upgrade the historical building listings for a wider cultural understanding of the city. Third, it is necessary to implement a city-wide awareness programme, in different languages, regarding the importance of safe­­­guarding Karachi’s historical and ecological built environment and of the Sindh Heritage Act, 1994.

The first study will help to create different categories of building conditions — that may range from average to dangerous. This would mean involving residential tenants and commercial owners and encouraging them to participate actively in maintenance strategies. This can be accomplished though a special provincial endowment where the owners are given a small grant to rehabilitate the property and gain heritage scores.
The Sindh government has to start strategising a Karachi heritage incentive programme in order to encourage property owners to develop the heritage infrastructure of their area. Incentives can come in the form of tax deductions or electricity bonus initiatives. These would encourage heritage property owners to rehabilitate portions of buildings and be a part of the Old Town cultural narrative. Karachi, with a population of more than 20 million people, lacks access to neighbourhood town halls, libraries, parks and art districts.
The second part pertains to a very important and critical aspect of social understanding — the lack of cultural investment in the city. Karachi has no policy regarding the number of mosques and madressahs per square kilometre. In a residential neighbourhood, within a radius of 2km, one can often find four to five mosques. However, there is a dearth of small-scale museums and community centres where social learning from book readings, mushairas, cultural debates, theatre, painting and other such activities for all age brackets can take place.

The Heritage Antiquity Department has to take charge by enhancing the heritage list and declaring more sites of interest. By initiating Sindh Arts Council grants it must take historical information beyond state-run large museums and extend it to community centres as well as small-scale centres, allowing them to develop their own narratives.
The last city-wide awareness heritage programme can be further divided into three parts. First, the Sindh Heritage Act, 1994, must be made bilingual and shared through workshops with property owners. Second, a public knowledge platform can be developed through curated projects. These can be advanced through the Sindh government’s Peoples Bus Service. History-related information can be given to bus passengers through pre-recorded short historical notes while the vehicle plies near public buildings such as the KMC building, Mereweather Tower, the Quaid’s mausoleum, Mohatta Palace, etc, so that the people can become acquainted with these structures and their history. These announcements can be a part of the ‘Karachi heritage learning programme’.
Lastly, there should be recognition of and collaboration with grassroots initiatives such as Heritage Walk Karachi by the Pakistan Chowk Community Centre, the Super Savari Express, and independent storytellers like Karachi Walla with their everyday visual documentation of the city, mystapaki whose interests comprise finding new histories, and karachikhatmal’s indigenous food tours. They use various methods to share their experiences and interact with historical streets, music collectors, food vendors, thrift markets, and much more.

Projects like the self-driven/self-funded Citizens Archive of Pakistan, Mehr Ghar, T2F, Lyari Youth Café, TDF Ghar, and the Climate Action Centre should be part of Karachi’s larger cultural networks and supported by the Sindh government, so that their chances of sustainability and survival are long-term. These independent initiatives can collaborate with the government sector to enhance possibilities of starting cultural projects such as a people’s archive museum and food museum.
Lastly, recognising the wide gap between Sindh’s culture department and the existing subculture will be a huge problem in the future. This is the time for the government to invest in heritage preservation and cultural possibilities and work with existing young platforms to enhance a more tolerant social landscape in the city.
The writer is an architect.
X: @marvimazhar
Published in Dawn, October 7th, 2024