For the past several years, I have been out of touch with Karachi’s evolution due to health issues. I have not been able to wander around as I used to. Yet, I gather what has been taking place from the people who visit me, from newspapers, and from what one can see through the windshield of a car.

A lot has changed, and it is important to talk about it — both the good and the bad.

Some very important institutions have been added to the city, such as The Dawood Foundation MagnifiScience Centre, which is a beautiful science museum that people of almost any age can relate to. School children especially need to visit it, as it can help them better understand the scientific phenomena that govern our lives.

The location of the centre is also important. It is a warehouse in the Railway Quarters in the historic city of Karachi. Around it, there are many abandoned railway warehouses. Hopefully, they will also be used as public spaces for other museums, auditoriums and for the performing arts.

The same organisation has also gifted one of its properties, TDF Ghar, to the Government of Sindh. It is an old building that has been beautifully conserved. The space is now used for mushairas, exhibitions, concerts and lectures. From its rooftop, visitors can take photographs with the Mazar-i-Quaid in the background.

New museums, revived public spaces, and growing youth participation in and engagement with the arts are reshaping Karachi’s cultural landscape. Yet, this emerging energy exists alongside deep urban inequalities, anti-poor policies, and problems of infrastructure that continue to define the city

New museums, revived public spaces, and growing youth participation in and engagement with the arts are reshaping Karachi’s cultural landscape. Yet, this emerging energy exists alongside deep urban inequalities, anti-poor policies, and problems of infrastructure that continue to define the city

An important change has also taken place at Frere Hall. Its library is now open to the public after years of closure. It has been cleaned, and members of the public visit regularly, although the books still need proper dusting. A conservation process is ongoing, and what has been completed so far is encouraging.

The Frere Hall gardens host gatherings such as the Aurat March, the Minority March and the Flower Show, as well as other social events. In one corner of the garden, there is a small eating place called Kavita Didi’s Eat Express, a dhaba serving South Indian food, which has become very popular.

Some elites in Karachi were concerned about the condition of Frere Hall and tried to protect the area by building ‘beautiful’ walls and gates around it as part of a conservation plan. However, there was strong public pressure against this plan, and the project could not continue. Later, the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) again attempted to install gates, but citizens challenged the decision in court. The court rejected the proposal, arguing that restricting access would affect public events held at Frere Hall and deny the public the use of an important public space.

PEDESTRIANISATION AND RESTORATION

The idea of pedestrianised zones has also taken root among Karachi’s planners and local politicians. Frere Road was pedestrianised earlier this year and became very popular with citizens, including the working and lower-middle classes.

From the press, it appears that there are plans to pedestrianise the Saddar area during the Eid holidays. Pedestrianisation brings together different classes of Karachi and various types of food, as well as different ways of serving them.

Several conservation programmes for heritage buildings have also taken place, such as at the 1926 Hasan Ali Hothi Market, where shop owners have been removed and have lost their livelihood. This is bad conservation, as it has adversely affected the shop owners. It is unclear where they went.

In the old town, the 1886 Denso Hall has also been conserved and is once again functioning as a library, as it was originally intended. The space and street in front of Denso Hall have been pedestrianised, which is a positive idea; however, shopkeepers and hawkers were removed from these spaces and lost their livelihood. They are angry and planning to return, as they feel they have not benefitted from the change.

Meanwhile, the 1906 Khaliq Dina Hall is now used for events, and a........

© Dawn (Magazines)