MULTAN, Aug 29: An amount of Rs39 million is being allocated to restore the original historical shape of the famous Qasim Bagh fortress, besides cleansing it of the surrounding encroachments and other defacing elements.

Talking to this agency, Finance and Planning EDO Javed Iqbal said on Monday that dozens of dwellers had been living around the ancient fortress as encroachers, so a comprehensive plan had been chalked out to shift these families to Qasim Bela colony, a suburb of the Multan Cantonment.

Javed Iqbal said the matter had been put up before Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi for the grant of the state land and for his approval of requisite funds to the tune of Rs39 million for their settlement at Qasim Bela.

He said the Lohari Gate police station, which at present is situated at the western entrance of the fortress, is being shifted temporarily into the Qasim Bagh stadium.

He said: “More funds are likely to be earmarked for the renovation and beautification of the fortress, where the 13th century mausoleums of renowned mystic saints Hazrat Bahauddin Zakariya and Hazrat Shah Ruknuddin Alam have added to its glory and grandeur.”

The EDO said the plan was a part of the efforts to restore the historic beauty of the city of Multan and rehabilitate its historic buildings like Ghanta Ghar, several ancient tombs of saints and gates of the Walled City, restoring their original architectural contours and fascination.

Multan is a city of great importance and well-known for the the tombs and shrines of mystic saints, who came here to spread the light of Islam and its teaching and they have been mentioned in all the books written on saints by prominent scholars and even the Mughal Prince Dara Shikoh and Persian scholars and poets including, Saadi and Shirazi. —APP