ANOTHER GRAND OLD MAN GONE

Dr Daniyal Nagi
The city of Lahore, grieves on the loss of another of the Lahore’s Grand Old Men.Birjees Nagi B.A.LLB was brutally murdered in his home in Johar Town on 8th Dec 2009.He was 77.Born in Amritser to Maulvi Ibrahim Nagi District & Session Judge, who had opted for Pakistan in 1947 despite lucrative offers and brother of Capt Jirjees Nagi Shaheed of 1965 war. Mr Nagi always upheld the traditions of his family,of integrity, boldness and truthfulness. Educated in Central Model School, Government College and Law College, he was a true intellectual and a true lahorite to the core. The generation of Ravians of 1950s might remember him as one of the Nagi brothers who were on the forefront in all sports and literary activities.

Lahore Bombings: Witness Audio Interview

Cross-posted from my personal blog

My cousin Usman was at ‘Moon Market’ in Iqbal Town last week when twin explosions went off. I asked him to narrate what he saw, heard and felt on that horrendous night. This interview is completely in Urdu, so I apologize if you can’t follow it. It meant a lot to me, since I was asking Usman to dig up the most troubling moments of his vibrant, youthful life so far, but I commend and salute him for being brave and recounting the events for the sake of sharing.

I’ll try doing an English transcript sometime. Excuse the slight sounds of kids playing in the back- my nieces are visiting.

AUDIO LINK: Interview with Usman Ghauri on the Moon Market Blasts

A ‘rescued’ statue on Cooco’s terrace

A ‘rescued’ statue on Cooco’s terrace, originally uploaded by Jahane Rumi.

courtesy: Beena Sarwar

Kucha Pir Shirazi, old Lahore

Kucha Pir Shirazi, old Lahore, originally uploaded by Jahane Rumi.

Once again, many thanks to Dr Daniyal Nagi

A decaying haveli in Lohari

A decaying haveli in Lohari, originally uploaded by Jahane Rumi.

Lahore Nama is grateful to Daniyal Nagi, a true Lahori for alerting us of this haveli. Raza Rumi

Save Lahore Canal – sign this petition

Please sign this petition

To:  Citizens of Lahore

As you may have heard, The Punjab government is planning to widen the road on both sides of the Lahore Canal, from Thokar Niaz Baig to Dharampura, as a so-called solution for the congestion on the canal road due to the rapidly increasing automobile population. The Punjab Chief Minister had announced that the project would begin immediately after Eid-ul-Azha, however, Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry took suo moto notice and effectively restrained the government from commencing work on the project on 27 November 2009. The government has not fulfilled its legal obligation of carrying out an EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment)for the project and the lack of transparency of the program is depriving the citizens of Lahore from having a say in this change.

It is the consensus of a great number of organizations and groups of concerned citizens that the Rs 3.15 billion project violates basic principles of traffic design and will not only prove ineffective in countering traffic congestion, but also lead to an outstanding number of problems related to the well-being of the public and the environment. Widened roads have historically proven to only end up attracting more traffic, and the government’s focus on providing for the car-owning citizen over the abounding majority (which requires public transport, sidewalks, public toilets, phones and drinking water) is entirely against the principles of equity. The project also means the cutting down of several thousand old trees and losing over 50 acres of the green belt, which is sure to lead to a staggering number of environmental problems including rising temperatures and carbon and toxic content, not to mention the loss of ancient species of trees and shrubs that provide shelter to a variety of birds and small animals. The historical, environmental, recreational and aesthetic value of this green space cannot be stressed enough.

We demand that our voice be heard to address these critical issues and help preserve the beauty and grandeur of our city.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

Lahore tragedy strikes again – an eye witness account

I am grateful to Khurram Siddiqi for his timely and rather chilling account of what Lahore underwent this evening. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of Lahore tragedy. Raza Rumi

Today, two bombs struck Allama Iqbal Town’s ‘Moon Market’- a place that I remember from my childhood when our family used to visit Lahore- many members of which, at the time, lived close to. My cousin Usman was actually at a store in the market when the blast went off, and survived by some miracle. He came home shocked and changed from a full grown man- into a tepid young boy again; he said that he had just witnessed hell itself. I was taking a nap since I’ve been sick over the last few days- and woke to the sound of a cacophony of ambulance sirens; I now live almost across Jinnah Hospital. The bomb went off in Iqbal Town; I’ve tried to illustrate where all of this happened on the map here:
View Moon Market Blasts in a larger map

Bradlaugh Hall, Lahore

Bradlaugh Hall, Lahore, originally uploaded by Jahane Rumi.