SHC issues notices on plea for upkeep of Sukkur's iconic bridge

SUKKUR: A Sukkur circuit bench of the Sindh High Court (SHC) took up a constitutional petition seeking directives for the authorities concerned to take measures for the upkeep of Sukkur’s iconic Lansdowne Bridge.

An SHC bench headed by Justice Aftab Ahmed issued notices to the Pakistan Railways secretary, the Divisional Superintendent Railways, Sukkur, the provincial heritage secretary and the city’s deputy commissioner to submit their response to the petition by next hearing.

The case was postponed until January 12.

Advocate Sohail Memon, a resident of Sukkur, moved the petition stating the bridge that is constructed over the River Indus and connects Sukkur with Rohri is part of the country’s historical heritage but unfortunately, in shambles at present due to years of neglect.

“The historical heritage site has been turned into a fish market,” the petitioner said. Neither the Sindh government nor the railways is taking responsibility for its maintenance, he lamented.

Judge Aftab Ahmed asked why don’t the federal and provincial governments own the bridge? “Was this bridge built by celestial beings?” he questioned.

Built in 1887, the Lansdowne Bridge is considered an exceptional piece of British engineering.