India’s heritage city races to save icons from polluted ruin 

India’s heritage city races to save icons from polluted ruin 

Context

• Traffic choked the centuries-old stone archway into Ahmedabad’s historic quarter as conservation experts warns Ahmedabad, one of the world’s most polluted cities, facing a huge task defending its newly won UNESCO status as its fragile cultural icon decay under neglect, traffic and trash.

What happened?

• The 600-year-old enclave was named India’s first ‘World Heritage City’ in July despite few warnings from UNESCO’s own experts that it lacked a convincing plan for protecting its ancient citadels, mosques and tombs.
• Ahmedabad hosts the towering Bhadra fort, the legendary stone latticework of the 16th-century Sidi Saiyyed mosque, and countless relics fusing the unique Hindu and Muslim architectural styles of its conquerors.
• Authorities hope the global recognition from the UN’s cultural body will restore community pride in the crumbling, garbage-strewn old city.

Hope of the moment

• Residents of Ahmedabad hoped that he UNESCO listing would bring standards in her dilapidated neighbourhood into line with newer areas beyond the old city’s walls.
• The chronic air pollution, crushing traffic and chaotic urban sprawl has resulted into as experts say are also rapidly eroding its cultural capital.
• The relentless congestion tears apart roads and fouls the air with fumes, streaking stone-carved monuments with black exhaust stains.
• Long-flouted laws banning construction near heritage sites have also hampered efforts to save Ahmedabad’s treasures from ruin.
• Ornate homes have been torn down and replaced by garish structures “totally incongruous” with history. The heritage listing would give teeth to those safeguarding Ahmedabad’s architectural heritage.

What are the challenges?

• The long-neglected quarters, sealed off from the outside world by intricate alleys, are well beyond restoration.
• Many traditional ‘pols’, clusters of settlements identified by UNESCO as bearing “enormous” historical value are all but abandoned, the iconic wooden homes collapsing from neglect.
• Ahmedabad’s conservation committee has three years to document close to 3,000 buildings of heritage value to strict UNESCO standards which is a monumental task for Ghosh’s small team.
• UNESCO could revoke or downgrade Ahmedabad’s listing to “heritage in danger” should the deadline be missed and the committee fail to show it has slowed the decline and destruction of the old city.