Portal:Pakistan/Selected article/15

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The Walled City of Lahore, also known as the "Old City", or "Anderoon Shehr (اندرون شهر)", is the section of Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan that was fortified by a city wall during the Mughal era. It covers an area of 256 ha with a population of 200,000. The city walls were destroyed shortly after the British annexed the Punjab in 1849 and were replaced with gardens, some of which exist today. The Circular Road links the old city to the urban network. Access to the Walled City is still gained through the 13 ancient gates, or their emplacements. The convoluted and picturesque streets of the inner city remain almost intact but the rapid demolition and frequently illegal rebuilding, which is taking place throughout the city, is causing the historic fabric to be eroded and replaced by inferior constructions. Walled City of Lahore had 13 gates which included ; Akbari Gate, Bhati Gate, Delhi Gate, Kashmiri Gate, Lohari Gate, Masti Gate, Mochi Gate, Mori Gate, Roshnai Gate, Shahalmi Gate, Shairanwala Gate, Taxali Gate, and Yakki Gate. All of these gates survived till 19th Century when the British, to derfortify the city, demolished almost all of the gates except Roshnai Gate. After that some were rebuilt except for Delhi Gate and Lohari Gate in simple structures. Shahalmi Gate was burnt to ground during the riots of 1947 while Akbari Gate was also demolished for repairs but was never built again . Today out of 13 only 6 gates survives which are ; Bhati Gate, Delhi Gate, Kashmiri Gate, Lohari Gate, Roshnai Gate and Shairanwala Gate. (More...)