Beautified Istanbul Chowk reflects ties with Turkey
LAHORE: The divisional administration on Saturday inaugurated the newly beautified Istanbul Chowk near Town Hall, stating the project would reflect peace, brotherhood and harmony with Turkey.
The intersection has been beautified under the Lahore Beautification Project with expertise of the National College of Arts, Punjab University, University of Engineering and Technology, arts and urban development experts and the Lahore Biennale Foundation. It would be maintained daily and the Turkish government would also own it.
“Before this project, a boat was fixed on this intersection reflecting no message or artwork that could please passersby despite the fact that its name was Istanbul Chowk. After undertaking the assignment, we involved experts from various aforementioned institutions, groups who presented various models of the intersection,” Lahore Commissioner Abdullah Sumbal told Dawn after inaugurating the site.
He said after a competition among experts, a jury comprising leading urban planners, artwork experts Nayyar Ali Dada and Rashid Rana selected one design, giving the divisional authorities a go-ahead to build it.
“Thousands of pigeons fly by this intersection and people feed them. So the central place of the intersection now has a pole with hundreds of bird houses,” he explained.
He said the design reflected positive feelings among humans and birds, hence the site would leave positive impacts. Some other sites in the city had also been earmarked for beautification, he added.
Sightseeing Lahore”: Pakistan’s first double-decker bus service inaugurated
LAHORE (Staff report) – The Tourism Development Corporation of Punjab (TDCP) has finally launched the much awaited double-decker bus service in Lahore, as part of a project to promote the cultural and historical heritage of the city.
Initially two double-decker buses have been introduced for guided tour of the historical city under initiative called ‘Sightseeing Lahore”.
According to TDCP the buses will be plying on the roads of city from Saturday (today).
The main terminals of these buses will be, one at Gaddafi Stadium, while the other will be situated at the Food Street on Lahore Fort Road. Overall the route will cover almost every historical site located in Lahore.
As per of information available with Daily Pakistan Global, each bus has the seating capacity of 48 persons on the upper and 18 persons on the lower deck.
The buses will run along the metro bus service route and would be taking the enthusiastic tourists around the city while stopping at the tourist and historical places of the Lahore city.
The buses have been imported from China at the cost of US $188,000, and three more double-decker buses will join these two very soon.
Knowledge Park Lahore
