LAHORE, June 17: The committee, constituted by the provincial government on May 6 this year to assess the damage done to the Badshahi Mosque, has yet to convene a meeting to formulate recommendations in this regard.

The committee was supposed to submit its recommendations by May 15.

The Badshahi Mosque’s back wall had been defaced by the Parks and Horticulture Authority by drilling holes into it to install lights to illumine the proposed art and craft bazaar.

The committee comprising one representative each from the auqaf department, the Punjab archaeology department, the archaeology department (North Wing) and the PHA could not convene the meeting, as one of its active members (from the archaeology department’s North Wing) had reportedly left for Japan on an official tour.

The PHA had installed a number of lights without the permission of the auqaf department which is responsible for the repairs and maintenance of the historic mosques and shrines.

A senior federal archaeology department official told this reporter that the members of the committee had yet to come up with any practical solution to the problem. Therefore, they were reluctant to convene meetings, he added.

He said the lights should be removed from the mosque before the start of monsoon, as the red sand stone was prone to the effects of climate and the holes could widen with rain water.

The PHA reportedly had conveyed to the auqaf department that it would do the work according to the suggestions of the committee.

As many as 56 buildings along the Fort Road have already been upgraded in accordance with the requirements of the proposed art and culture bazaar. There are 48 old and 10 new buildings on both sides of the bazaar. Walkways built with small tiles have replaced the footpaths.

A PHA official said the authority had completed the bazaar, but would not interfere in its development. “The residents of the area will start businesses in the bazaar,” he added.