KARACHI: Yasmeen Bano stood on the edge of MA Jinnah Road, staring at the blackened remains of Gul Plaza, a shopping center that for decades had been a gateway to financial independence for small traders in Pakistan’s commercial capital.
For Bano, a 55-year-old businesswoman, the charred structure represents far more than a shopping mall. It held the labor of two decades, the savings of a lifetime and the fragile economic security of her family, all wiped out in a deadly fire that tore through the multi-story plaza last week.
Bano began her ladies’ undergarments business in the mid-2000s, gradually expanding to own three shops in the bustling market, a rare achievement in a country where women face steep barriers to entrepreneurship.
That progress vanished in hours as a blaze broke out on Jan. 17, trapping workers and shoppers inside and burning for more than 24 hours before being brought under control. Recovery operations are still underway as teams sift through unstable debris at the site, which housed over 1,200 shops.
“For 20 years, we worked day and night to build this business,” Bano told Arab News, standing near the wreckage. “I had three shops above, which were my own. All of them have been destroyed.”
