Text: Zarminae Ansari
Photography: Courtesy of Zarminae Ansari & AKCSP
Sensitive, elegant, relevant
Seven years ago the humming of an AKDN helicopter lulled me to sleep and I missed seeing Nanga Parbat and the stunning, snow-capped mountains on the way from Islamabad to Shigar Valley in Baltistan. This time though, I took the daily morning flight to Skardu from Islamabad on PIA and did not miss the view. I had gone to see the conservation work that had begun on the Shigar Fort (or “Fong-Khar”, palace on the rock, as it is literally built on a rock) at 2,250 meters, and 30 km from Skardu.The Raja had bequeathed the property to his people and the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC) and the Aga Khan Culture Services-Pakistan (AKCSP) had been working methodically on the strategy for this ambitious conservation project. Since there was no major tourism here, Shigar was a palimpsest, an opportunity which they availed beautifully. First community development and uplift projects were carried out such as water channels, drinking water plants and distribution to 3 villages, the bazaar area was also improved. Thus, they made sure that as the work progressed and eventually the adaptive reuse of the conservation project- a hotel run by the Serena Hotels chain, was established, tourism would not impact the area negatively and strain its resources. On the contrary, there were various vocational training workshops that helped the villagers in the surrounding area to truly benefit from this project. Seven years later, the increased prosperity of the area is a testament to that vision. The project was also funded by the Government of Norway, who have supported AKCSP work in this and other projects over the last two decades.
