LAHORE: The Punjab government has expanded the scope of the Walled City of Lahore Authority across Punjab after renaming it as Punjab Walled Cities and Heritage Areas Authority.
In this connection, the Punjab amended the Walled City of Lahore Act 2012 through an ordinance, The Walled City of Lahore (Amendment) Ordinance 2023, promulgated by Punjab Governor Muhammad Baligh Ur Rehman. After the amendment, this Act will be cited as ‘The Punjab Walled Cities and Heritage Areas Authority Act 2012.
Under the amended law, the jurisdiction of the Walled City of Lahore Authority was extended to the whole of Punjab with a comprehensive legal framework, providing special institutional arrangements for the effective preservation of walled cities across Punjab and the preservation of heritage properties.
It may be noted that the Walled City of Lahore Authority had already undertaken the restoration of other walled cities like Kasur, Bhera, Multan and Sialkot, and it had also restored various church and temple buildings in the province.
Commenting on the new changes in the Authority, Punjab Walled Cities and Heritage Areas Authority Director General Kamran Lashari said that the new Authority will follow in the footsteps of the previous Walled City of Lahore Authority to work on the special historical places and culture of the entire Punjab and preserved it for the future generations to come.
As per the Ordinance, the Punjab Chief Minister will be the chairperson of the Punjab Walled Cities and Heritage Areas Authority while the Punjab Chief Secretary has been assigned as its vice chairperson. The Authority will be comprised of several members, including the Punjab Local Government and Community Development Minister; two provincial legislators to be nominated by the chairperson from the constituencies fall in the walled city or heritage area; the Planning and Development Board Chairman; the Punjab Finance Secretary; the Punjab Local Government and Community Development Secretary; the Chairperson of the Heritage Member Conservation Board; not more than two heads of the concerned local governments co-opted by the Chairperson for conservation of the heritage of respective walled city or heritage area or heritage property; four qualified persons to be nominated by the chairperson; the Authority’s Director General who will also act as a secretary; and a prominent and well-reputed professional having expertise in the fields of heritage or history.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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