WCLA starts conservation of Bhatti Gate

LAHORE:The Walled City of Lahore Authority (WCLA) has started the rehabilitation work on Bhatti Gate and the trail up to Katri Haji Allah Bakhsh (Taveela Shaikhen) with the funding of World Bank through Punjab Tourism Economic Growth Programme (PTEGP).

Officials said that the project would be completed by 2025, at a cost of Rs1,730 million. Moreover, the project was divided into two phases that included the rehabilitation of House Facades and the infrastructure works.

According to details, a total of 1,038 properties were set to be rehabilitated, with work already completed on almost 190 buildings. Almost 35 buildings were of high architecture merit out of 194 heritage properties that were in this area, and all these will be rehabilitated.

Talking about the importance of Bhatti Gate, the WCLA Director Marketing and Tourism Tania Qureshi said that it was once known as the Chelsea of Lahore, as most affluent and literary personalities lived there.

‘Bhatti Gate has been home to numerous notable figures from the past, including poets, singers, sportsmen, and artistes. Among them were Allama Iqbal, Agha Hashar, Fasih Ul Mulk, Dagh Dehlvi, Chaudhry Sir Shahab Ud Din, Faqir Syed Azizuddin, Indian singer Muhammad Rafi, music composer Khawaja Khurshid Anwar, and many others,’ she added. Moreover, she explained that the name ‘Bhatti’ is believed to have originated from the Bhatti warriors of Multan, who camped there before the Mughals arrived. Over time, the name evolved to Bhatti. Some sources suggest the gate was named after Emperor Raja Bhatti, while others believe it was due to the Bhatti Clan that settled in the area centuries ago.

The Director Conservation Najamusaquib Sheikh mentioned that the significant part of the project involved the removal of encroachments from Bhatti Gate. ‘As part of this effort, the police station within the Bhatti Gate building had been relocated, and informal shops outside the gate have also been removed. This was the most difficult task that we had to take up during this project,’ he added.

He further explained that the works to be done on the Bhatti Gate Trail included replacing of dangerous roofs, surface rendering, wood works on the Jharoka’s doors, windows or balconies, consolidation of structures, works.

Director conservation said, ‘We are doing the flooring of Bhatti Gate, the rooms will be functional for tourist purposes. We are also doing fresco lining, making the historical gate functional and illumination of the gate will also be done.’ He added that the roof treatment of Bhatti gate is also being done during the conservation process.

The WCLA Director General Kamran Lashari said that Bhatti Gate was one of the most famous and important gates of the walled city. ‘We had always wished for the rehabilitation of this area. We will soon be turning it into a tourist hub, just like Delhi gate. The rooms next to Bhatti Gate have been vacated, which were earlier being used a police station. After conservation, we will set up tourist centre and a craft bazaar in these rooms for the tourists to come and enjoy the locality of Bhatti Gate. Also, I am very hopeful that this trail will be one of the hotspots for tourists as its holds a number of historic houses and streets,’ he added.