URBAN RENEWAL ISSUES A HINDUSTANI PERSPECTIVE

USAMA AZIZ KHAN (BA08ARC019) GUIDE : Mrs. SMITA KHAN

ABSTRACT Dynamism is intrinsic to the nature of a city and for survival, its evolution is inevitable.
How a city transforms itself to current and emerging demands determines majorly the life of a city. For Indian urban settlements, urban renewal is a new experience. The urban settlements here, have layers of centuries imprinted in their built physical infrastructure & social infrastructure. Also (unlike western counterparts) they did not go through the gradual industrial revolution phase, nor were reduced to as ruins of war, and have had to respond to the demands of globalization rather quickly & offguard , after the opening up of markets. Thus, the need for a comprehensive study in this arena.

INTRODUCTION Urban renewal can be defined as a comprehensive and integrated vision and action
which leads to the resolution of urban problems and which seeks to bring about a lasting improvement in the economic, physical, social and environmental conditions of an area that has been subject to change_ Roberts and Sykes (2000). An urban renewal programme broadly has components of- Physical renewal (improvement of infrastructure & amenities), Social renewal (improvement of community life), Economic renewal (generation of employment and revenue), Environmental renewal (balance ecological impacts & sustainable development), Cultural renewal (articulation of culture and traditions).Most programmes follow the western model without much thought to the existing scenario. The prevailing planning and development programmes (eg. JNNURM) have become a trade-off for future needs and development for the existing problems of these cities, and majorly involve acquisitions of land by dislocation, demolition, etc.

ISSUES (ref. JNNURM and individual city reports)

-Localised strategies are missing. Need for Local Renewal Materplans. For the programme to be more inclusive and have a real bottom-up approach, there has to be an increased element of community participation that articulates citizens voices. -Detailed and rigid Master Plans are static . Also our cities are organic and constantly evolving, therefore the need to move beyond a rigid , laid-down implementation which freeze how a city behaves. -Centralisation of activities bring their own set of problems for the city dweller.Implementation of western programme models bring in a western style of living which has negated the community life, so central to an Indian.

-Often upgradation of private housing has resulted into widespread displacement and loss of more affordable housing. -The programmes majorly emphasize on plans and developments, which keep future needs and problems in mind, and the present demands often get a raw deal. -Often such programmes are designed for benefitting the state or nation while ignoring the immediate benefits of the localites. -Problems are caused by uncoordinated and incremental intensification of land uses, with land in multiple and fragmented ownership. To address this issue of site assembly , often complete demolition & dislocation is adopted. -The Centre should prescribe a macro framework and let the state governments customize solutions according to ground realities.

AIM & OBJECTIVES

This is an attempt to build upon the ongoing urban renewal programmes in Indian cities, the issues that arise due to them, addressing those lacunae for immediate and future benefits. Allow a more thoughtful and integrated renewal of fragmented residential areas with good urban design outcomes. Analysing the proposed solutions to address these issues, especially the compact city and multimodal city To make the Processes and plans of renewal being citizen-centric being comprehensive creating convergence having continuity being relevant to the context involving conversations with stakeholders having connections with other relevant policies

SCOPE & LIMITATIONS

-Exploring the proposals for, and analyzing the different aspects of urban transformation. How to direct these transformations to get the best combination of benefits from renewal and redevelopment, as how to decide for the spatial sustainability as per its available potentials. A complete is yet to be done for the scope and limitations.

METHODOLOGY
-Shall involve study of urban pattern in India, historically and the current scenario. -Case studies of Indian cities response and their western counterparts. -Analysis of the various proposals for cities. -Implentation and the impacts of such programmes.

KEYWORDS Urban Renewal, Indian Context, Local, Impacts.

REFERENCES -ITPI JOURNAL, 5 : 2 (2008) 42-46, by Preeti Onkar -Socially Inclusive Urban Renewal in Low Value Suburbs: A Synopsis of Issues and anAgenda for Action, by Prof Bill Randolph -JNNURM report -Nizamuddin Basti Area Report - 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, by Aga Khan Development Network.