Paying heavy price for urbanisation

A development plan further damaged the structure in Srinagar

When the 16th century Mughal emperor Jalalud Din Muhammad Akbar, popularly known as Akbar the Great, got 5-odd-km-long rampart constructed in Srinagar, for protection of his courtiers and other influential living inside, even unnecessary touching of this mega wall would invite punishment.

But six centuries on, this historic marvel is a victim of official neglect. While illegal constructions have almost buried major portion of the rampart, elsewhere the wall is crumbling. And all this is happening at a time when the Jammu and Kashmir government has formally declared it a protected monument, which was to be promoted as a “major tourist destination” in Srinagar.

Koh-e-Maran (the mount of serpents) which has a fort atop, has the historic wall, locally known as “Kalai”. Inside used to be called as the walled city. While locals called it “Kalai Ander”, Akbar had named it “Naagar Nagar”.

“Inside the walled city, used to be Naagar Nagar which housed the royal houses, so Kalai was a very important edifice for the then rulers, which were Mughals,” says Muhammad Saleem Beg, an authority on heritage conservation and member of the prestigious National Monument Authority (NMA), Government of India.

Till 1970s, Kalai was by and large untouched by mushrooming illegal colonies. But thereafter it became the biggest victim of massive urbanisation. Observers put the blame on then Chief Minister late Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah, who is accused of creating slums there to strengthen his vote bank.

“His decision to rehabilitate people of a particular community who could be his vote bank proved disastrous for this landmark. To strengthen Sheikh’s political party these illegal slums literally ate away the Kalai,” said a former bureaucrat in the know of the development.

Subsequently over the years, the illegal constructions mushroomed to a level that houses have been constructed right atop the rampart, which is some 14-20 feet wide. A ray of hope had emerged in 2010, when Abudllah’s grandson and then Chief Minister Omar Abdullah decided to declare the Kalai a historic monument.

A Cabinet order issued under Omar’s chairmanship said:  “In exercise of powers conferred under section (1) of section 3 of the JK Ancient Monument Protection Act, Samvat 1977(1922Ad) Act no V, the Government hereby declares the ancient monument Hariparbat wall (Kalai) situated around Hariparbat Fort as bearing Khasra no 16,229,328,510, 527, and 562 as the protected monument with the meaning of the said Act.”

Subsequently, the government decided to revive the walled city as a tourist circuit under banner Naagar Nagar. The Tourism Department proposed a plan to spend Rs 49 crore on the development of “Naagar Nagar Circuit.”

Official documents reveal that the project “envisaged renovation and development of age-old heritage of Kashmir in the area.”  The plan was scheduled to revive heritage sites there alongside establishment of requisite civil infrastructure in the form of Gazebos and food outlets for the visitors. But the plan was subject to the conservation of the protected monument. For this, the government earmarked Rs 5 crore for the “repairs/ strengthening of the wall.”

 But the irony is that the project which aimed at conservation of the wall, ended up deteriorating its condition. In the past 5 years since the conservation project started, Kalai has crumbled at many places. Despite declaring it a protected monument, the authorities not only failed to remove the encroachments but also many new constructions have been allowed.

While eyebrows were raised over the material used for conservation of the historic monument, cynics ridiculed the government saying “21st century engineering devastated the 16th century marvel.” The crumbling of Kalai has left the area uglier than before.

As of now a major portion of the Mughal city wall has been vandalised. The stretch between its three main gates – the Kathi, Bachi and Sangeen Darwazas – are the worst-hit. “Nothing is being done for conservation of this historic monument,” regretted Mushtaq Khan, an RTI activist.

Citing RTI reports, he said government officials have swindled crores of rupees in the name of conservation.

Though reports of Kalai crumbling post repairs have been hogging the headlines in the local media, successive regimes have failed to initiate any inquiry into the matter. Observers said the declaration of Kalai as a protected monument has ended up as a cruel joke. The protection is nowhere beyond paperwork.

Officials said, as per national standards, no construction can be allowed within 200 metres of the protected monument; whereas in case of Kalai, it often forms the fourth wall of upcoming constructions. Successive regimes have been silent over the Kalai neglect. Prior to coming to power, cabinet minister and government spokesman Naeem Akhter was among the voices stressing for heritage conservation and the Naagar Nagar tourist circuit. But after coming to power, he is maintaining steadied silence on the issue.

Observers say that the vote bank politics has been hampering the “true conservation”. “Basically slums have often been the main vote banks and thus no political party wants to displease the voters who decide the fate of government,” said a senior official. “Administration is helpless in the conservation efforts due to undue political interference,” he added.

But Tourism Secretary Farooq Ahmed Shah is optimistic. “We are committed to conservation of this historic landmark. Results will be visible by the summer of this year as we look ahead for central government funding,” Shah vowed.