Fort and Shalamar Gardens in Lahore

a) Demolition of two of the tanks and partial demolition of a third tank of the hydraulic works of the ShalamarGardens;

b) Encroachments and urban pressure;

c) Inadequate management mechanisms (including incomplete legislation, lack of financial resources);

d) Lack of definition of boundaries of the Lahore Fort and ShalamarGardens.

• Damage to the external walls and demolition of hydraulic works of Shalamar Gardens;
• Serious state of degradation of the historic monuments and garden complex within the property

a) Master Plans for Lahore Fort and ShalamarGardens approved and implemented;

b) Foundations of the water tanks of the hydraulic works at ShalamarGardens protected and consolidated as archaeological relics;

c) External walls of ShalamarGardens and Lahore Fort preserved and protected;

d) Boundaries of the core and buffer zones of Lahore Fort and ShalamarGardens redefined and extended;

e) Encroachments and urban pressure adequately controlled;

f) Safeguarding programme with corresponding timeframe and financial resources elaborated.

a) Implementation of Master Plans for Lahore Fort and Shalamar Gardens;

b) Consolidation and adequate protection of the foundations of the demolished water tanks and preservation of the remaining third tank of the hydraulic works at Shalamar Gardens, as well as overall preservation of the hydraulic works as archaeological relics;

c) Protection and preservation measures for the external walls of Lahore Fort and Shalamar Gardens;

d) Redefinition of boundaries of the core and buffer zones of Lahore Fort and Shalamar Gardens and submission of proposal for extension to the World Heritage Committee, taking into account the recommendations to include the Badshahi Masjid (Royal Mosque) and Tomb of Rangjit Singh, proposed following the 2003 and 2005 missions;

e) Removal of encroachments and control of urban pressures, including removal of parking for busses in the immediate vicinity of Lahore Fort;

f) Prioritisation for allocation and use of available resources according to the management objectives determined in the Master Plans.

Total amount provided to the property: USD 975,000, Norwegian Funds in Trust, Japanese Funds-in-Trust, Getty Foundation, United States Embassy in Pakistan

The State Party submitted a report on the state of conservation of the property on 15 April 2010. With regard to the above-mentioned corrective measures, the report presented by the State Party outlines progress as follows:

a) Implementation of Master Plans for Lahore Fort and Shalamar Gardens

The report states that further progress has been made in the implementation of the Master Plans for Lahore Fort and ShalamarGardens, according to a 5 year programme. The workplans for 2009-2010 have been approved by a Steering Committee and the planned restoration and preservation activities are progressing for which an amount of RS 50.00 million have been allocated.

b) Consolidation and adequate protection of the foundations of the demolished water tanks

Following the consolidation and restoration of the remaining hydraulic structures, a permanent boundary wall with fence has been built around the area. All the debris and encroachments around the area have been removed.

c) Protection and preservation measures for the external walls of Lahore Fort and Shalamar Gardens

The State Party report lists the extensive actions carried out to repair and strengthen the badly deteriorated external walls of Lahore Fort and ShalamarGardens. Other activities include the creation of walkways in the Moat area, partial conservation of the Ath Dara Pavillion and of a water tank in Jahangir’s Quadrangle, of the Diwan-e-Aam, Akbari Mahal, and Kharak Singh Haveli, of the Shish Mahal surroundings and the Shah Burj area, of Sha Jahan’s Quadrangle, of the 2nd storey roof of the Shish Mahal, and of the Moti Mosjid, restoration of the walkways of the summer pavilion, of the Khwabgah Building, of the Moor-Craft Building of the Aramgah Shahjahani (Royal Rest House), of the Corner Towers. Thanks to internationally funded projecs the authorities have been able to import red sandstone from India for the conservation works.

d) Redefinition of the boundaries

The State Party reports that the boundaries of Lahore Fort and ShalamarGardens have been defined and that notifications in this respect have been issued by the Government of Punjab.

e) Removal of encroachments and control of urban pressure

The State Party has acquired land for parking and a public facilities at the south-east corner of ShalamarGardens. Efforts on the Government side are being made to control the urban pressure and encroachments inside the buffer zone.

f) Prioritisation for allocation and use of available resources

Information on the amount of funding for conservation works as foreseen in the Master Plans for Lahore and Shalamar Gardens has been provided, although no further information is given concerning the prioritisation for the use of these and other resources.

The State Party report does not provide any further information concerning progress made with the preparation of the Statement of Outstanding Universal Value, as requested by the World Heritage Committee at its 33rd session (Seville, 2009), nor have the redefined boundaries been submitted for formal approval to the World Heritage Committee according to the procedures set out in the Operational Guidelines.

The World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies note the considerable progress made in the implementation of the Master Plans for the Lahore Fort and ShalamarGardens, notably as concerns the conservation of individual buildings and structures within the property and the measures taken to protect the remains of the demolished water tanks. They further note that work remains to be done to ensure an effective control of encroachments around the ShalamarGardens. This is a delicate issue that requires careful consultations with the local community and appropriate solutions that balance conservation needs and sustainable development.

As regards the draft Statement of Outstanding Universal Value, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies suggest that this be addressed in the framework of the Periodic Reporting exercise for Asia and Pacific, when the State Party will receive training and technical assistance. Once the State Party has submitted a proposal for the extension of the property, as recommended by the World Heritage Committee at previous sessions, and based on the progress made on controlling urban pressure on the two component sites of the property, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies consider that a monitoring mission could be dispatched to assess the possibility of removing the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger.