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The Forgotten Gardener - Pakistan Today PDF
The Forgotten Gardener - Pakistan Today PDF
The Forgotten Gardener - Pakistan Today PDF
To find Ali Mardan Khans tomb, travelling east on G.T. Road, you should turn right (south) on Mughalpura
Road (formerly Wheatman Road or Vetman Road as it is locally called). As you approach the railway tracks,
you need to keep a lookout for a small sign saying MET-1 on your right. Immediately after the sign is a small
gate (presently painted green) for pedestrian entry.
The gate is normally locked and is open only on Thursdays. Although it is said that it is open on other
weekdays between 10:00 and 12:00 noon as well, if you wish to visit this remarkable structure, it is advisable
to contact the Department of Archaeology so that the relevant guard is instructed to open it.
This elaborate arrangement is due to the surrounding area being under the jurisdiction of Pakistan Railways,
who have allowed the Department of Archaeology an enclosed walkway for access to the tomb. Be prepared
for a 300 meter walk on a bare earth floor (there is no paving) through this narrow walkway, relieved by an
interesting pattern of light and shade filtering on the enclosing bare brick walls through a steel lattice roof.
Surprisingly, this complicated arrangement is not for the security of the magnificent tomb, but to ensure
inaccessibility to the expensive railway stores of the Railway Carriage Workshop on adjacent land.
Approximately 3/4 of the way through, a passage veers on the left, and leads to a large enclosure with a
shrine and historical mosque. The shrine belongs to Ghous-al Azam Dastgir, Hamid Shah Qari, who is much
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