Being a gateway to Indo-Pakistan subcontinent with nearly 3, 000 years old history, Peshawar has a unique geographical location, historical buildings and archaeological heritage sites for the foreign and domestic tourists to explore. Chowk Yadgar is among one of the key historical monuments at Peshawar City that drawn foreign tourists in the past due to its political and cultural significance besides Mughal-British architectural design.
Built in the early 20th century near the historic Balahisar Fort and Mohabat Khan Mosque, the visitors would be disappointed now to see piles of garbage, encroachments and traffic mess in its surroundings that marred its original beauty.
“Chowk Yadgar is the identity of Peshawar, and reclaiming of its encroached lands, shifting of washrooms and road would help restore its original grandeur and prestige,” said Misal Khan, a former Information Officer while talking to APP on Sunday. Almost in every election campaign in Pakistan since 1947, Chowk Yadgar and Jinnah Park were center of political activities in Peshawar where top political leadership had addressed Peshawarties and informed them about their party manifestos,” he said.
He said it was highly regrettable that the iconic square has been encroached by traders, currency dealers, vendors and shopkeepers after the change of its historical design. He said the past governments had paid a deaf ear to address its poor road engineering and building design issues. “The historic monument had witnessed the vigour of Afridi tribesmen and British army after the former tried to expel the latter from Balahisar fort,” said Bakhtzada Khan.—APP
