New look Saddar: people in for a surprise

Rawalpindi
Those who haven’t visited Saddar for last six months or so would certainly be surprised to see it pleasantly changed with a new look and grandeur.
The credit goes to Corps Commander Rawalpindi Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa and Brigadier Zahid Ahmed Rana whose personal interest and efforts turned the overcrowded looking erratic, messy and patchy financial hub of the city into a beautiful, spacious and customer-friendly shopping centre.
There is much more improvement visible; no pushcarts, no encroachments, no illegal stalls or illegally extended shops, and no unpleasant looking shop boards or hoardings, which had in fact made the Saddar area not a likely place to visit. The mushroom of unplanned multi-storey buildings without coping with the ever-growing needs of parking, unmanageable electricity, telephone wires and CATV cables had almost eclipsed the beauty of Saddar.
The cantonment during the last seven, eight years had undergone a lot of changes in terms of widening the already existing roads and building new roads, but no one had given attention to Saddar shopping centre which was more like a big nuisance and traffic hurdle than a facility for the citizens. Thanks to the vision of new administration that gave the gigantic task to Fahim Zafar Khan who worked day and night and completed the first phase of development in just six months.
This has been done for the first time in the history of Rawalpindi Cantonment; a history that dates back to the 15th century. Founded by Sardar Jhanda Singh in 1493, it was primarily an abode of the famous Rawal tribe, who originally built vast roads and streets with a large number of green trees, healthy and serene environment. But with the passage of time it got overcrowded. The trees were cut, green belts and grassy areas were deserted, the increasing number of vehicles without a specified parking contributed to polluting the environment.
The bazaars became narrower due to the parking of vehicles as well as the encroachments by the shopkeepers, illegal stalls and pushcarts. Existing parking places were converted into plazas or markets. The small shop boards were replaced with huge and ugly looking billboards. The historical buildings were covered with signboards of the size as that of the building facade. Every corner had a horrid hoarding awaiting to hit the sight and breaking the soft look of the area.
Keeping this in view, a lot of work was decided in May 2014 to be done under the ‘RCB Grand Uplift and Beautification Plan’ not only in the Saddar area but also in the adjoining areas — in fact the entire Cantonment area. Multiple improvement steps were taken up simultaneously. The removal of pushcarts, stalls and encroachments as well as the billboards and unnecessary shop boards yielded original designs and building features.
Uniform sized shop boards and other signage were introduced. The building façades were improved by means of restoring to their original structure and design. The horrible looking overhead wires and cables ‘jungle’ was removed to underground, which provided wider space in the streets and bazaars as well as a sense of safety from fire and shock hazards. Provision of new and dedicated parking areas was also given high priority.
To restore the green past and to break the harsh look of roads, green belts and planters are introduced. Centre-medians that originally had barbed wires or dust and mud, are improved with multi coloured perennial flower beds incorporated in. Even the electricity poles, wherever present, have some beautiful flower baskets attached to them instead of being clogged with wires. Fully grown and tall date palm trees have been transplanted on the Kashmir Road in front of the Mall Plaza and GPO. This green belt is a big addition to the beauty of Saddar. Another beautiful green belt with boulders was designed and implemented on the Haider Road and Saddar Road around the new parking, which discontinues the rigid look of the commercial buildings running on both sides of the road.
A state-of-the-art Pedestrian Street has been designed and created on the Bank Road. This features, tuff tiled walk ways, lovely entry gates, wonderful lights and building illumination, beautiful street furniture and a specially designed sitting area in front of the National Bank Building. An artiste corner incorporating singers, flute-players, ‘tabla-nawaz’, violinist, guitarists, jugglers and other street performers has been included in the walking street. New footpaths have been laid and old ones repaired. A clock tower with latest design has been erected at a crossing on the Bank Road.
Special cleanliness campaigns have been launched. Residents are made aware of their responsibilities by imparting awareness through newspaper, banners and pamphlets. Open drains are either covered or in most cases replaced with piped sewer lines. To improve the hygiene conditions, and to provide the residents with healthy food, numerous steps are taken. In this connection, all food vendors and bakeries in Saddar are asked to strictly adhere to the cleanliness and hygiene rules as described under the food laws. Proper vaccination of the workers of these shops or firms, clean kitchens, clean eating places and furniture are ensured, besides use of only fresh and hygienic ingredients and provision of disposable head covers and gloves for the workers.
One vertical floral wall with exotic plantation on it is a great addition to the beauty of Haider Road. Some other ornamental walls are created in place of previous encroachments those provide historic look to these roads. Almost all small and branch roads are improved. Some roads now have green belts while the centre media has larger plants installed. Various design planters have been placed either along the roads or on the centre medians. Places where previously garbage dumps were seen, can now be seen with green floral patches. Most of the roads are now either concreted or tuff tiled rather than being dusty and dilapidated.