LAHORE: The Walled City of Lahore Authority (WCLA) has completed the first phase of conservation of the Tomb of Mir Chakar-e-Azam Rind in Satghara Okara while the cost of entire project is Rs. 120 million whereas there are three components of the project.
According to details, the components included infrastructure development of walled city of Satghara and its surroundings including the improvement of the drain system, tomb complex and the walls of city.
According to the officer of WCLA, initially, the site was documented through 3D Laser Scanner for Architectural Documentation and WCLA highlighted the issues which included the restoration of Tomb Building, the access towards the Tomb, the Consolidation of the Fortified Walls, Entrance Gates towards the Main Bazar & the Infrastructure of Walled City Satghara.
Talking to Tania Qureshi In Charge Marketing, Tourism and Culture WCLA, Mir Chakar Khan Rind was a Baloch chief and is popularly known as Chakar-e-Azam Rind.
“He was a Baloch chieftain in the 16th century, under whose leadership Baluchistan was formed by the Baloch. He conquered Sibi and became the head of Rind tribe. There was a 30 years civil war between the Lashari and Rind tribes of Balochistan. After which he migrated to Satghara with his allies and settled in Satghara where he lived his last years,” she added.
“His tomb is in Satghara is about 400 years old. The tomb of Mir Chakar had gone into decay and disrepair and Walled City of Lahore Authority was assigned the conservation of this Tomb and the walled city of Satghara. Inside the tomb there are a number of graves which are all unmarked while the central one has been identified as belonging to the great Baloch Chief, Mir Chakar Rind,” Tania added.
She further explained that the Walled City of Lahore Authority has completed the project and now it will be developed into a tourist site for the public and guided tours of the site will also be launched by WCLA.
The Director Conservation WCLA Najam Ussaqib said, “Our team did the documentation of Walled City and Tomb, studied the conditions of Satghara city and and jotted down the problems we noticed. 3D laser scanning for was carried out of the entire structure for the first time.”
“Conservation and rehabilitation of tomb has been done and inside the structure of the tomb the fresco work and illumination has also been done. Improvement of Infrastructure and drainage and street surfacing has also been done by WCLA so that the area gives a clean look and the locals are benefitted. inside the complex of the Tomb we have given washroom facilities for the tourists, a canteen area and have also installed directional and informational signages for the people to get there and know about the history of the place. moreover, a statue of Mir Chakar-e-Azam Rind has also been installed inside the complex,” Najam added.
A local who is curator of the site informed Pakistan Today that mostly people from Baluchistan and Sindh come to see this tomb and pay respect to the hero of history.
“There is not much influx of the tourists yet as common people do not know much about this area, but the people who respect Chakar-e-Azam do come here,” he explained. The locals of the area of Satghara walled city are happy with the work and Ali Jamal a local said, “It is good to see that the government is working for the betterment of the streets and city other than the monument. we had a lot of problems because of the drainage and broken streets but now we are comfortable.”
The Director General WCLA Kamran Lashari said, “WCLA is happy to work on such projects and we appreciate that the government nominated WCLA to carry out this conservation. WCLA is also working on other projects outside the walled city of Lahore like Red Fort in Muzaffarabad, DCO office in Sarghoda and shrines in Multan. All the conservation projects are being carried out by following international practices and principles of conservation and we are trying to deliver our best for this country and Lahore walled city.”
