LAHORE: The Walled City of Lahore Authority (WCLA) would soon be starting the conservation of the Tomb of Mir Chakar Rind along with the walled city of Satghara in Okara, Pakistan Today learnt.

It was also learnt that the total cost of the project will be Rs100.03 million whereas administrative approval of the project has also been given by the Local Government and Community Development Department (LG&CD) of Punjab.

Satghara Walled City and the tomb of Mir Chakar Rind are situated in district Okara, spreading over an area of approximately 1,68,000 square feet.

The WCLA would be improving the infrastructure services of the area around the Satghara while open drains will be covered and replaced with an underground sewer system. The gates and the fortification wall of Satghara, as well as the tomb of Mir Chakar Rind, will also be conserved.

Talking about the history of the place and the tomb of Mir Chakar, Deputy Director Media WCLA Tania Qureshi said, “Satghara is a small walled city which is located near Renala Khurd a few kilometers away from the Multan road in Punjab. It precedes Mughal rule and served as Mughal headquarters in the region at some point. Archaeologists claim that coins found at Satghara reveal that it was inhabited in the time of the Kushan dynasty.”

“Mir Chakar Khan Rind popularly known as Chakar-e-Azam was a 16th-century Baloch poet/saint who was popularized in the Baloch epic Hani and is said to have aided Mughal emperor Humayun in his reconquest of the sub-continent. He finally settled in Satghara and died here,” she added.

Director Conservation and Planning WCLA Najamussaqquib said, “The model of conservation of the tomb and walled city would be similar to the pattern followed for the reconstitution of the royal trail in Lahore’s walled city.”