Model Town, Lahore - Model Town Then and Now

Model Town Then and Now

Following the economic liberalization of Pakistan in the post-9/11 era, Model Town has benefited from the remarkable proliferation of social elites in Lahore. Not too long in the past, Model Town was regarded as the establishment's residential dead zone. Taxis and rickshaws were reluctant to come to Model Town due to its distance from the main city, and many social elites dubbed the development "out of Lahore", given its distance from the heart of the city. However, in recent years Model Town has become a cultural center for the "nouveau riche" of Lahore's growing socioeconomic elite, many of whom who view a Model Town address as a vehicle for upward mobility in socially rigid Pakistan.

During the regime of President General Zia-ul-Haq, General Jilani (then Martial Governor of the Punjab) took extensive interest in rehabilitating Model Town, which had fallen into obscurity following the exodus of Lahore's non-Muslim elites after partition. An initiative to refurbish the image of Model Town to its former glory in colonial days was launched in the early 1980s.

Electric supply lines were relaid, street lights & sewage system installed, roads improved, and central Model Town park was developed per the original plan from the 1920s. Further modernizations, renovations of gardens, and the influx of large numbers of upper and upper-middle class Lahoris helped redefine the rundown development's image and status.

Many architects, developers, and town planners regard Model Town as the best place to live in the entire city of Lahore. Former Prime Ministers Nawaz Sharif and recently deceased Benazir Bhutto are said to maintain homes here.

Model Town is serviced by every major bank in Pakistan, several major retail chains, and is home to a growing Lahore intellectual elite. Major department stores include a special branch of Pakistan's Makro & Pace. New developments include the Zainab Tower, a commercial district.

Model Town is fast becoming a chic zone of Lahore, with demand for residences beginning to outstrip supply for the first time since the colonial era. Its large houses (8 to 16 kanals) consistently sell at up to 30 crore rupees. Model Town is famous countrywide because many political leaders live here, including former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Chief Minister Punjab Mian Shahbaz Sharif, former Mayor Lahore Mian Amir Mehmood, and many other MNAs and MPAs.