An Attempt to Explore How Colonialism Has Influenced Peripheral Space: Rejuvenating the Paraphernalia of Western Punjab’s Districts in Pakistan

Abstract

During the last decades of the 1800s, British rulers colonized the western doabs (interfluvial lands) of Punjab with agricultural colonization through a network of canals, restructuring space (physical and social) to serve their imperial purposes of power and economy. The agricultural colonization, not only impacted the economy of this region through increased agricultural productivity and international trade but also the land grants favored certain classes, influencing the social and political basis of the Punjabi society[1]. The landscape of West Punjab was transformed forever by rapid urbanization,[2] as new districts and headquarters towns were established. This process of socio-economic development has been studied only partially, and never previously from the perspective of architectural, urban, and landscape history. The paper will address the reshaping of (physical) space at the district scale during British rule in Punjab (1849-1947), wherein new districts were created, and will discuss the changing role of the district headquarters towns. It will argue that the re-appropriation of space in the British Punjab should be understood by contemplating the imperial structure's political and economic requirements. While some old towns (including Sialkot, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Sheikhupura, and Jhang) were expanded in West Punjab, a few new towns (for instance, Lyallpur/Faisalabad, Montgomery/Sahiwal, Sargodha) was also laid out, to act as intermediate centres between the big cities and small towns. Focusing on selected examples, the paper will analyze primary resources including district maps, and architectural and urban documentation assembled through investigative information gathering.