A communiqué from the department said the old City Wall along with its gates was an important component of the cultural heritage of Peshawar city. “The wall is a historic structure that connects us to our past. The destruction of any part of the old City Wall will lead to elimination of an important sign of our history,” it added.

The statement said there was a written complaint by the Archaeology Department that construction of shops had started on the historic City Wall land. The Home and Tribal Affairs Department took the action accordingly and asked the commissioner of Peshawar division to probe the issue and take necessary action, it added.

Meanwhile, the civil society organisations hailed the move and called for concrete steps to preserve the culture heritage of Peshawar, which was the oldest living city of South Asia. The spokesmen for the Citizen for Clean Environment (CCE), a platform of six bodies, Dr Adil Zareef, termed the action positive development. “It is heartening news for the residents of Peshawar who have great attachment to the city and its rich heritage,” he said.

The CCE comprises Institute of Architects of Pakistan, Dal Las Gul, Gandhara Hindko Board, Frontier Heritage Trust, Sarhad Conservation Network and Idara Barai Taleem-o-Tarraqi.

He said it was ironic that the government and public representatives, claiming to be custodians of the city, were violating relevant laws and rules and damaging the rich cultural heritage of the city. He said not only the old City Wall, but historical and heritage sites should be preserved in original shape while executing the development projects.

It may be mentioned here that showing total disregard for Peshawar’s cultural heritage, a portion of the historic City Wall on the Circular Road was allegedly allotted to workers of a ruling political party for construction of shops.

This portion, which houses the decaying City Wall and lies between the Lahori Gate and Nishtarabad Chowk, was retrieved by the district administration from the poor Christian community some six months back to widen the City Circular Road. The residential quarters of the Christian community were demolished to pave the way for widening the road to streamline the traffic.

When the small-size residential quarters were pulled down, a sufficient portion of the City Wall, which had been constructed with mud in 1838-1842 AD and later rebuilt by the British in 1930 AD with concrete bricks became clearly visible.

A piece of the reclaimed land was used for the widening of the road but remaining one next to the City Wall remained safe. The culture lovers believed it was the best opportunity for the Archaeology Department to conserve the City Wall that once had 16,500 feet circumference, 15 feet height and three feet width but has been reduced now to a few patches after encroachments from time to time.

There were reports that the portion of the City Wall retrieved from the Christian community was allotted to the workers of a ruling political party for construction of shops. The beneficiaries started erecting a temporary structure for construction of shops next to the Lahori Gate that drew criticism.