Anarkali ( ur, انارکلی‎) is a

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be c ...

station serving the Orange Line of the

Lahore Metro Lahore Metro is an automated rapid transit system in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan and the first driverless metro in Pakistan. Three metro lines have been proposed, of which the Orange Line is operational. It is also Pakistan's first metro line sys ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. It is one of the two underground stations on the Orange Line.

History

The Anarkali station was opened after the completion and inauguration of the Orange Line on 25 October 2020. The construction of the station is reported to have displaced a large number of people, and caused damage to a number of community and heritage sites.

Etymology

The Anarkali station serves the

Anarkali Bazaar Anarkali Bazaar ( Punjabi, ur, ) is a major bazaar in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. Anarkali also serves as a neighbourhood and union council of Data Gunj Buksh Tehsil of Lahore. It is situated in the region that extends from the south of Lahor ...

, which is one of the oldest surviving markets in the

Indian Subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

, dating back at least 200 years. It derives its name from the nearby

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be consid ...

thought to be that of a

courtesan Courtesan, in modern usage, is a euphemism for a "kept" mistress (lover), mistress or prostitute, particularly one with wealthy, powerful, or influential clients. The term historically referred to a courtier, a person who attended the Royal cour ...

named Anārkalī, who was chased out of town by the order of the Mughal Emperor

Akbar Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...

for having a love affair with his son, Prince Salīm, who later became Emperor Jahāngīr.

Station layout

Anarkali station has different layout than most metro stations on the Orange Line. Its design is inspired by

Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...

and Mughal architecture which have helped in transforming the station building into a landmark in the city centre. The station is located underground, and is 16 meters wide and 121.50 meters long.

Platform layout

Connections

The Orange line connects to the

Lahore Metrobus The Lahore Metrobus is a bus rapid transit service operating in Lahore Punjab, Pakistan. Lahore Metrobus service is integrated with Lahore Transport Company's local bus service to operate as one urban transport system, providing seamless transit ...

via an underground walkway from the Anarkali Station of the Orange Line to

MAO College Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College ( ur, Madrasatul Uloom Musalmanan-e-Hind, italics=yes) was founded in 1875 by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, initially as a primary school, with the intention of taking it to a college level institution, known as Muhammed ...

Station of the Lahore Metrobus.

References