Though Ahmedabad bagged the World Heritage City tag, huge hoardings keep the monuments out of sight
AMC’s heritage city logo prominently displays the Chabutaro at Labheshwar ni Pol. And, yet, a recent construction has completely blocked view of this structure. A commercial building has been built right behind the chabutaro, touching its stairs, with no regard to its fragile condition.
About a year ago, UNESCO declared Ahmedabad as India’s first World Heritage City. The international body recognised the uniqueness of the living heritage thriving in the 5.5-km Walled City that houses about 4.5 lakh people in century-old pols. And yet, the city seems underwhelming to many, as its intrinsically crafted heritage remains eclipsed by hoardings, shop awnings and encroachments.
There are 54 monuments under the protection of the Archaelogical Survey of India which include Jumma Masjid, Jhulta Minara, Dariapur Darwaza, Sarangpur Darwaza, Teen Darwaza, and Bhadra Fort as well. Yet, these monuments face great neglect.
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While most of the sites are encroached upon and damaged by commercial concerns, huge hoardings keep the heritage out of sight, out of mind. An ASI official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, “Under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, it is illegal to construct anything within 100 m of a protected monument. However, commercial concerns have sprung up near many structures in Ahmedabad and the responsibility to remove it falls on the AMC. This needs to be done as soon as possible to make the monuments visible and to ensure their preservation.”
Rizwan Kadri, Chairman of Sunni Waqf Committee said, “We have barely made any efforts to preserve our heritage since getting the UNESCO tag. The AMC recently passed a resolution to light up five heritage sites, including three bridges. While knows the heritage value of Ellis Bridge, why light up Nehru and Sardar bridges? The efforts are more towards public appeasement than heritage preservation.”
Kadri said, “The UNESCO delegation asked our officials if we really had the will to protect the heritage city tag. Ahmedabad was a fortified city and it is important to preserve the walls and gates. While the walls have disappeared over time, only the gates remain. These too are encroached upon by shops, lorries and other commercial concerns, completely hiding the heritage.”
The entrance to Bhadra Fort is covered by a huge market that once saw 1,000 traders ply their business originally. Today, it has expanded to 2,500 people selling their wares.
Dr Manek Patel, who has written several books on the city said, “The Bhadra Plaza was meant for people to stroll, but the market has encroached in such a way that the statue of Chinubhai Baronet, a philanthropist, which was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi in 1933, has been damaged. All encroachments must be removed and traders should be given space at Gurjari bazaars set up by AMC.” The matter regarding this in the High Court, said an ASI official.
Interestingly, the symbol of the city’s heritage city – the Chabutaro at Labheshwar Ni Pol – is also a symbol of AMC’s monumental neglect. A former resident of Labheshwar Ni Pol, refusing to be named said, “There used to be a large compound surrounding this bird-feeder till a few years ago. Then, a commercial complex was built next to this precious monument, obscuring and damaging it.”
Also under threat is Magen Abraham Synagogue in Khamasa. Synagogue secretary Aviv Divekar said, “A building next to us is not just a visual block, but also a security threat. Terrorists nabbed last October were allegedly planning to use this illegal construction as an entry-exit point.”
Then, there are the Shaking Minarets in Kalupur that one of the two pairs in the world. A railway compound wall hampers view of the structure. However, the Ahmedabad WR Division informed Mirror that it has already decided to demolish the wall. DRM Dinesh Kumar said, “We are making structural changes to the property to ensure better view and access to the shaking minarets.”
PK Ghosh, Director of AMC Heritage Cell said, “The AMC is planning to reduce effect of commercialization. We cannot take away the livelihood of people so we are planning to collaborate with design institutes to see what can be done to make it aesthetically pleasing. We are looking to reduce glaring advertisements till we can look into rehabilitating these people elsewhere to maintain the integrity of our heritage.”
There are 54 monuments under the protection of the Archaelogical Survey of India which include Jumma Masjid, Jhulta Minara, Dariapur Darwaza, Sarangpur Darwaza, Teen Darwaza, and Bhadra Fort as well. Yet, these monuments face great neglect.
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While most of the sites are encroached upon and damaged by commercial concerns, huge hoardings keep the heritage out of sight, out of mind. An ASI official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, “Under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, it is illegal to construct anything within 100 m of a protected monument. However, commercial concerns have sprung up near many structures in Ahmedabad and the responsibility to remove it falls on the AMC. This needs to be done as soon as possible to make the monuments visible and to ensure their preservation.”
Rizwan Kadri, Chairman of Sunni Waqf Committee said, “We have barely made any efforts to preserve our heritage since getting the UNESCO tag. The AMC recently passed a resolution to light up five heritage sites, including three bridges. While knows the heritage value of Ellis Bridge, why light up Nehru and Sardar bridges? The efforts are more towards public appeasement than heritage preservation.”
Kadri said, “The UNESCO delegation asked our officials if we really had the will to protect the heritage city tag. Ahmedabad was a fortified city and it is important to preserve the walls and gates. While the walls have disappeared over time, only the gates remain. These too are encroached upon by shops, lorries and other commercial concerns, completely hiding the heritage.”
The entrance to Bhadra Fort is covered by a huge market that once saw 1,000 traders ply their business originally. Today, it has expanded to 2,500 people selling their wares.
Dr Manek Patel, who has written several books on the city said, “The Bhadra Plaza was meant for people to stroll, but the market has encroached in such a way that the statue of Chinubhai Baronet, a philanthropist, which was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi in 1933, has been damaged. All encroachments must be removed and traders should be given space at Gurjari bazaars set up by AMC.” The matter regarding this in the High Court, said an ASI official.
Interestingly, the symbol of the city’s heritage city – the Chabutaro at Labheshwar Ni Pol – is also a symbol of AMC’s monumental neglect. A former resident of Labheshwar Ni Pol, refusing to be named said, “There used to be a large compound surrounding this bird-feeder till a few years ago. Then, a commercial complex was built next to this precious monument, obscuring and damaging it.”
Also under threat is Magen Abraham Synagogue in Khamasa. Synagogue secretary Aviv Divekar said, “A building next to us is not just a visual block, but also a security threat. Terrorists nabbed last October were allegedly planning to use this illegal construction as an entry-exit point.”
Then, there are the Shaking Minarets in Kalupur that one of the two pairs in the world. A railway compound wall hampers view of the structure. However, the Ahmedabad WR Division informed Mirror that it has already decided to demolish the wall. DRM Dinesh Kumar said, “We are making structural changes to the property to ensure better view and access to the shaking minarets.”
PK Ghosh, Director of AMC Heritage Cell said, “The AMC is planning to reduce effect of commercialization. We cannot take away the livelihood of people so we are planning to collaborate with design institutes to see what can be done to make it aesthetically pleasing. We are looking to reduce glaring advertisements till we can look into rehabilitating these people elsewhere to maintain the integrity of our heritage.”
BHADRA FORT: The walls and gates of this 600-year-old heritage structure are obscured by large hoardings, shops and commercial vehicles. Only the fort tower remains visible from the road. Ironically, Bhadra Plaza was supposed to be India’s first pedestrianising project — a concept muted by the then state government with the aim of bagging UNESCO World Heritage City status for Ahmedabad.
DARIAPUR DARWAZA: ASI has issued notice to several illegal establishments that surround Dariapur Darwaza. Illegal parking of both commercial as well as private four-wheelers is a huge problem at this monument. Constant traffic ensures the Darwaza — the only one in the city with small jharokhas on the outer walls — is never in full view of the public.
TEEN DARWAZA: Heritage lovers have expressed concern over hawkers that crowd Teen Darwaza. Once the city’s most important gate, today it is hardly visible among the squatters that have taken over the space. Pollution caused by heavy traffic is taking a toll on the structure even as the crafted jharokhas in the walls are used as shops and parking space for vehicles.
JHULTA MINARA, KALUPUR: There are only two pairs of shaking minarets in the world — one in Ahmadabad and one in Iran. The ones in Kalupur are structurally compromised. While no one can be allowed inside, there is a need to make it visible from the road. The compound wall of the railway station, trees, a building and shops outside the wall hamper the view of the structure.
JUMMA MASJID: The yellow-sandstone Jumma Masjid with 15 domes of different elevations supported by 260 pillars has been hailed as the most beautiful and imposing structure in the world. Yet, anyone who is ignorant of its location would walk right past its entrance which is lined with an array of shops on both sides. Residential buildings, including ones that touch the gate of the mosque, cloud it from sight.
SYNAGOGUE, KHAMASA: Built in 1934 in the Indo-Judaic architectural form, the Magen Abraham Synagogue, which is the only synagogue in Gujarat, is a protected heritage structure. The building in Khamasa is hidden on one side by a building that is under construction. Vendors block the main gate, leaving members of the community no option but to use the back exit.
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