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Repeated renovations raise many questions
By: Jam Sajjad Hussain
LAHORE - Substandard material in the name of real red sandstone used in the restoration work of the Badshahi Mosque’s floor has caused to renovate the historical monument for the third time in just 9 years, as the floor of left-side wall and courtyard near the entry gate is now being renovated under the supervision of Badshahi Mosque Authority (BMA).
The marble inlay in the main vault was repaired in 2000 under the supervision of Saleem Anjum Qureshi. In 2008, the restoration of the vast courtyard was again initiated, using the red sandstone that was especially imported from the original source in India during the 1970s.
Speaking at the spot, a worker said, “The visitors ask us what type of repair is made which fails after only a few years but we have no answer to the question, as we are without any information in this regard.”
The visitors present at the splendid historical place said the root cause might be a little more difficult to discover, but the signs of reconstruction defects, however, were exposed by the repeatedly needed restoration in the last 9 years. No doubt, it was a bitter result of poor material used to build the floor, they opined. “This could also be a result of using less-experienced and less-skilled workers to restore the floor,” they added.
According to another visitor M Saleem, the use of equipment and substandard material along with the contractors or subcontractors hired for installation are the potential causes and said the damage done could be the direct result of cutting the corners by the builder. He said the builder could have also hired less-skilled contractors or subcontractors, without any experience or workmanship to deal with such structures.
The Nation: June 27, 2009
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