Denso Hall lane being transformed into landscaped walking street.

Byline: Shazia Hasan

KARACHI -- Even a particularly warm and sunny Sunday afternoon could not stop people from all walks of life to gather on Marriott Road to plant trees and shrubs there. The red clay pavement tiles led the way to the soon-to-be dense Miyawaki forest.

The lane, known as the 'Denso Hall Rahguzar Landscaped Walking Street', an initiative of the Heritage Foundation of Pakistan, is no longer open for traffic. There are Makli tiles on either side of the lane with clay disks here and there that carry superimposed sketches of the 12 historic buildings, reminiscent of the Victorian era, that happen to be famous landmarks of this area. And there are trees growing in the middle.

The event on Sunday, organised by the Heritage Foundation in collaboration with Rotary Club Karachi (New Central) and StarLinks, was the third of its kind here. They have already planted two more stretches of trees before this, first by the Heritage Foundation last year and then by shopkeepers of the area in February this year. The shopkeepers are quite excited about it all despite earlier resistance. 'They have taken complete ownership of their surroundings and have taken it on themselves to water and care for the plants and trees here,' said Shanaz Ramzi of StarLinks, the host for the event.

There will be a total of four urban forest stretches along the street. The project was initiated last year when in order to spread awareness about it the Heritage Foundation would hold street festivals.

Ramzi said that earlier, the buildings in the area were cleaned by the Heritage Foundation. 'That was also when the people of this area were made aware of the buildings of historic and cultural importance. The Heritage Foundation also made sure that the wires and cables hanging overhead were removed so that the trees are not hindered by them. The wiring and connections will all be laid underground here,' she said, adding that the city government, especially the Karachi commissioner's office, has really cooperated and supported their initiative.

About the clay tile pavements, she said that they have all been made by women, who used to be beggars...