…..

Starting from Zero

Conservation – a way of life?

“I'm not a teacher: only a fellow traveler of whom you asked

the way. I pointed ahead - ahead of myself as well as you.”
― George Bernard Shaw BINUMOL TOM
 T
H
E

A
T
T
I
T
U
Cutting stones?????
D
E
Building Taj Mahal
 Logic of building buildings!
• Creative craft of Architecture.
• Celebration of life
• Creation of conducive physical
environment
• Vitruvian principles – FUNCTION,
DURABILITY AND AESTHETICS
• Today’s principles – Ego and
illogic imitation
 The Economics of Architecture
• Architecture and its Construction are the most
conspicuous forms of economic activity
• Economy of India - seventh-largest in the world
by nominal GDP
- third-largest
by purchasing power parity (PPP).
• In India, construction is the second largest economic
activity after agriculture.
• Investment in construction accounts for nearly 11 per
cent of India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
• The Planning Commission of India has proposed an
investment of around US$ 1 trillion in the Twelfth five-
year plan (2012-2017), which is double of that in the
Eleventh five-year plan.
 ADVANTAGE I N D I A….
INDIA GROWING YOUNGER,
CHINA and OTHERS are
AGEING….

Demographic dividend – high

– great potential for
economic gains.

Education – crucial in
transforming the collective energy
of our youngsters into mature ideas,
well developed skills, and a sense of
confidence, hope and capability.

Architecture and its Education Source- ECONOMIC LIFECYCLE AND DEMOGRAPHIC DIVIDENDS:

– very imperative EVIDENCE AND IMPLICATIONS FOR INDIALaishram Ladusingh, Ph.D.

M.R.Narayana, Ph.D.
How are buildings constructed? – Indian Scenario

THE IRONY
 How to teach/ learn/ practise Architecture?
World view Vs Regional view
We teach them to draw inspirations from styles evolved
from the past that have addressed climate, local
materials, craftsmanship and culture….

What do they learn from the practitioner’s creation in

reality?
 Corruption and Architecture – A bad story… oops reality
• Architecture is a public
art - A DYNAMIC &
INSEPERABLE FUSION OF
ART &TECHNOLOGY

• WHO in our society

complains about the
corrupted architecture.
why?

• Is it due to lack of
design literacy: may be
they think that it has
little effect on his day
to day life, financially
out of reach,
intellectually irrelevant

• Relevance of
Architectural Criticism
Natural surveillance Vs Artificial Surveillance
 How to teach/ learn/ practise Architecture?
World view – no region can live and survive in isolation … respect
diverse cultures

Regional Context…
What lessons do we learn from the history of the site and of
the people who will occupy our structures?
How are we contributing to regional culture?
Or detracting from???
Aping the west!
Quite happy working in Air conditioned little boxes.
Aren’t we bombarded with false architecture… rather cut
and paste from the west
Bhutan experience
Conservation
“the act of conserving” especially wildlife, the
countryside, the environment, old buildings etc.
Conserve – “to keep from changing,being damaged or
lost, something preserved. (Chambers Dictionary)

“Conservation”is Associated with

– ECOLOGY MOVEMENT
– ENERGY CRISES
– MONUMENTS, HISTORIC LANDSCAPES as well
as FABRIC OF HISTORIC CITIES.
Ranges of interpretation
– OUTRIGHT PRESERVATION (ref: destruction of
rain forests of Silent valley /threat to Taj Mahal)
– SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (over use of non
renewable resources of nature)
– MANAGEMENT OF HISTORICAL CITIES (to
accommodate new economic activities
 WHY?

The PAST is our HERITAGE,

The PRESENT our RESPONSIBILITY,
The FUTURE our CHALLENGE....
 HERITAGE IS AN ASSET AND NOT A BURDEN

• THE PAST IS OUR MEMORY

• INDIVIDUAL MEMORY
• COLLECTIVE MEMORY

• IMMEDIATE MEMORY
• DISTANT MEMORY

• CITIES WITH A PAST ERASED ARE CITIES WITHOUT A

MEMORY – man without memory – our cities bear
centuries of memory / american cities

WHY?
• THE PAST GIVES US A SENSE OF IDENTITY

HISTORIC CITIES HAVE A DISTINCT IDENTITY THAT MAKE THEM UNIQUE

• THE PAST HAS ECONOMIC VALUE

HISTORIC CITIES ARE AND HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO BECOME MAJOR GENERATORS OF REVENUE

WHY?

HERITAGE IS AN ASSET AND NOT A BURDEN

• THE PAST IS A REPOSITORY OF KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS

• HERITAGE IS A NON RENEWABLE, IRREPLACEABLE ENTITY

• HISTORIC CITIES AS KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS HAVE MUCH TO OFFER TO

CONTEMPORARY CITY PLANNING
• RESPONSE TO NATURAL ECOLOGY
• HUMAN SCALE
• LOW RISE HIGH DENSITY
• MIXED LANDUSE
• GENDER SENSITIVE SPACES
• SUSTAINABLE BUILDING PRACTICES

RESPONSE TO NATURAL ECOLOGY

CLIMATE RESPONSIVE ARCHITECTURE

THE DIVERSITY OF OPEN SPACE SYSTEMS

HISTORIC CITIES ARE REPOSITORIES OF KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS
THE STREET AS OPEN SPACE
VERNACULAR HOUSING, SUSTAINABLE BUILDING FORM,
SUSTAINABLE BUILDING PRACTICES
URBAN CONSERVATION IS NOT ABOUT ‘MONUMENTS’ BUT ABOUT THE EVERYDAY
 CULTURAL TRADITIONS AND NATURAL HERITAGE

URBAN CONSERVATION IS NOT ABOUT ‘MONUMENTS’ BUT ABOUT THE EVERYDAY

 General Attitude
Should Jack the clever outsmart John the hones?
Word “ Conservative”

Criticism “Conservation” inhibits progress and

change.
“Social injustice” (resistance to change
provided by powerful groups preventing the
improvement of environment of the less
fortunate section of the community)

Conservation takes a disproportionate amount

of time, money, administrative and political
negotiations as compared with that normally
demanded by administration, planning and
building of new settlements.

Architects/ Engineers / Planners– emphasis

on new planning techniques, building
materials, form and function –considered as
inhibition to the creativity
Father of our nation, Mahatma Gandhiji’s
vision for India was rooted in its ethics,
culture and spirituality….
 Rationale!
Psychological need for all human beings
for permanence.

Scarcity of Energy and Materials especially

in a country like India.

Historic buildings are very much superior

in terms of material, craftsmanship and
aesthetics.

Conversion of old buildings are labour

intensive – creates employment for a
larger number.

Historical Justification – link from past to

future
 WHY?
It shall be the duty
of every citizen of
India to value and
preserve the rich
heritage of our
composite
culture.....
 Who owns "The Past“?

Who is entitled to speak

for past generations?

It is we no doubt, we
“The People”

The public should be

conscious of the Heritage
they inherit and its value,
which is only possible
through awareness
programs.
 Why trouble with the historic town/city?

• Cities with little/ no

architectural heritage
have to invent their
past.
• For us in most of our
Indian towns - past is a
living presence…..

Trivandrum, a bird's eye view; 1939. from royal collection.

 What is the quintessence of a historic town/ city?

Aspirations…..
• Transformation
• Phenomenal Urban
growth
• Distinguishable
identity it offers
• Historical stamp
• Quality of life it offers

City without old buildings is like a man without memory

 CHANGE IN HISTORIC URBAN AREAS
• Globalisation
• Rapid un controlled
development
• Demographic changes
• Economic Pressures
• Immigration and
population growth –
increased density in
historic areas
• living environments
that must change and
adapt to the needs
and aspirations of the
inhabitants
 What are the threats to a historic town/city?

• Devastation by natural/
manmade factors
• Old buildings – timber –
deterioration/ fire
• Increased prosperity
• Abandoned buildings
• Today, random demands
imposed by modern life
• Change in landuse
• Lack of public facilities
 What are the threats to a historic town/ city?

• Public services – water supply,

sanitation, Hygiene
• Private speculation
• New families – new homes/ jobs
• We expect a high standard of
living
• We have learned to swallow A city for hoardings????
concrete happily…. Ugly
Hoardings/ billboards
• ABOVE ALL
Motor vehicle…. Specific land
use generate traffic
When wealth is lost nothing is lost, but when health is lost,
something is lost…

• Is our city friendly for the

elderly?
• Do we have a health plan
for us as well as for the
buildings?
• Is the air that we breathe
in our city healthy?
• What is the quality of our
green spaces?
 When wealth is lost nothing is lost, but when health is lost,
something is lost…

• Are the old buildings safe? What happens while we renovate

them? Udippi case
 When character is lost everything is lost…..

Traditional temple town – Indo saracenic architecture – Modern architecture

 When character is lost everything is lost…..

SAY “NO” TO ARCHITECTURAL MONSTERS

Bhutan experience
 Planning and Conversation
Lewis Keeble’s Principles and
Practise of Town and Country
Planning – recognition for
conservation is just two
references:

• Building preservation orders,

Buildings, preservation there
of!!!
• A subject – on the edge of
land planning
 Planning and Urban Conservation!
Ambivalent in similar ways

Both are past and future

oriented at the same time

Planning – intended in the

production of a deliberate
future, but heavily influenced
by its ideological
inheritances.
 Urban Conversation
• Conservation in India has got a wide range
of interpretations starting from outright
preservation to sustainable development.

• SCALES

• Our mainstream conservationists are trying

to create almost overnight attitudes,
institutions and practices that took several
generations to evolve in European
countries.

• Two streams
 CONSERVATION PLANS - PURPOSE

A conservation plan is a succinct synthesis of the significance

of an historic place, its contemporary context, and policy
to guide the retention of heritage values through effective
interventions.

It is based on a simple thinking process that considers what

is there, why it matters, what is happening to it (or is
being contemplated) and the principles by which conflicts
between physical change and significance (heritage
values) are mitigated.

A conservation plan facilitates sustainable stewardship

decisions by requiring an understanding of what matters,
and why, BEFORE major decisions are made.
 STRATEGY

• Area based renewal approach specifying “Protected Areas”,

conservation / heritage zones – Delineation of areas

• Development of guidelines/ controls

• Application of Transferable Development Right (TDR) so that

the premises owners in the historic areas get enhanced
component of space in designated new areas.

• Private developers and co-operatives - encouraged to

undertake conservation of heritage and redevelopment
guided by planning and façade controls, but allowing
internal flexibility of space and use.
 STRATEGY
• FAR and Tax incentives for those who have to maintain the
architectural controls.

• When land is to be surrendered for widening of roads or any

other public facility, the equivalent FAR should be permissible to
the owner / developer either to use on same plot or added to the
TDR component.

• Pedestrianisation of specific areas

• Specifying pedestrian and vehicular streets, and undertaking the

preparation of road beautification / development plans.
 STRATEGY
• The overall fire fighting plan to dictate minimum road widths for vehicular movement.
• All heavy commercial vehicles to be prohibited.
• Underground parking lots to be developed at the peripheral locations.
• Animals and animal driven vehicles to be prohibited.
• Removal of encroachments would have double benefit (I) recovery of the right of way and
(ii) decongesting the areas of commercial activity and thus improving the environment.
• Augmentation plan for decentralized services with public-private partnership, including
solid waste management, telecommunication and I.T.
• A new set of Development controls for Mixed Use, enhanced FAR and TDR applicability.
• Noxious industries and hazardous trades to be shifted and the areas thus vacated to be
replaced by compatible uses.
• Municipal water supply and sewerage mandatory for all households.
 Should we call the pied piper to fix things again??

• Integrated Conservation Programme in development policy

• Tourism – a double edged sword… can we keep it at bay???

• Leadership of Town planners – bringing together the efforts

of historians, urban designers, planners, conservation
architects, ethnographers, archaeologists, sociologists,
engineers, geographers, transportation engineers etc

• It is a conscious striving for the interdisciplinary

collaboration between professionals
 How to bell the cat?

• Historic stock – present condition &

future capabilities
• Growth forces in the economy of the
city – analysed
• Controlled developments to prevent
large intrusive & out of scale
modern buildings in heritage
precincts
• Traffic issues – solved (ring roads)
• Issues of water supply & sewerage
of the city
• Prevention of unwanted traffic flow
of heavy goods vehicles within the
historic precincts – (charminar,
vettimuricha kotta … vibration
transmitted by road traffic)
 How to bell the cat?

Establishing the mechanisms for

operating area conservation
programme within the urban
development policy
 Advisory body
 Training planners, architects and
urban administrators
 Listing, Grading
 Designation of heritage areas,
linkages
 Design guidelines and controls
 Upgrading infrastructural
facilities
 Training building craftsmen –
historic ways of building
 How to bell the cat?

• Financial and other incentives

• Direct grant to the building owner
• Grants for preservation
• Tax relief
• Taxing the beneficiaries – part of VAT
collected can be used for
conservation activities
• Aid in kind – labour and materials for
the maintenance of listed buildings by
local authorities financed by
municipal taxes
• TDR
• Building owners – access to credit on
easy terms
• Cross subsidy
 Planning & Conservation
MAN & WOMAN
• Conservation is not husbanding
of resources, but a key tool for
controlled urban development

• Development policy with an

addition of the ‘element of
Heritage’

• But instead Conservation

oriented development policy
 METHODS AND INSTRUMENTS
• Planning for the conservation of historic towns and urban areas
should be preceded by multidisciplinary studies.
• Conservation plans must address all relevant factors including
archaeology, history, architecture, techniques, sociology and
economics.
• Let it not become an attempt to mummify the past but rather a
rebirth and growth of the past.... Re incarnation
• The principal objectives of the conservation plan should be
clearly stated as should the legal, administrative and financial
measures necessary to attain them.
• The conservation plan should determine which buildings must be
preserved, which should be preserved under certain
circumstances and which, under quite exceptional circumstances,
might be expendable.
 METHODS AND INSTRUMENTS
• Before any intervention, existing conditions in
the area should be thoroughly documented.

• The conservation plan should be supported by

the residents of the historic area.

• Continuing maintenance is crucial to the

effective conservation of a historic town or
urban area.

• New functions and activities should be

compatible with the character of the historic
town or urban area.

• Adaptation of these areas to contemporary life

requires the careful installation or
improvement of public service facilities.
 METHODS AND INSTRUMENTS
• The improvement of housing should be one of the basic objectives of
conservation.
• When it is necessary to construct new buildings or adapt existing
ones, the existing spatial layout should be respected, especially in
terms of scale and lot size.
• The introduction of contemporary elements in harmony with the
surroundings should not be discouraged since such features can
contribute to the enrichment of an area.
• Knowledge of the history of a historic town or urban area should be
expanded through archaeological investigation and appropriate
preservation of archaeological findings.
• Traffic inside a historic town or urban area must be controlled and
parking areas must be planned so that they do not damage the
historic fabric or its environment.
 METHODS AND INSTRUMENTS
• When urban or regional planning provides for the construction of
major motorways, they must not penetrate a historic town or urban
area, but they should improve access to them.
• Historic towns should be protected against natural disasters and
nuisances such as pollution and vibrations in order to safeguard the
heritage and for the security and well- being of the residents.
• Whatever the nature of a disaster affecting a historic town or urban
area, preventative and repair measures must be adapted to the
specific character of the properties concerned.
• In order to encourage their participation and involvement, a
general information programme should be set up for all residents,
beginning with children of school age.
• Specialised training should be provided for all those professions
concerned with conservation.
The tale of two cities!!!
 The tale of two cities!!!

1994 1998

2000 2011
The tale of two cities!!!
 We mercilessly destroy our valuable histories through our insensitive
interventions.
By the time we realize about it, most of them won’t exist.
We must learn from the Germans…..

It shall be the duty of every citizen of India to value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite
culture.....
SAVE ERANIEL PALACE, Marthandom, Kanyakumari
http://chn.ge/Y5hEpt
“Men need space, light and air just as he needs bread or a place to sleep”
(Le Corbusier)

Can man live by space, light and air alone?

Maybe he needs a dash of love, a touch of warmth and a sea of
friendship, which historic ambience can provide……..
Nature does not hurry, yet everything gets accomplished
 Bottom line

“Battle lines are being drawn up in India today; Secular

verses Religious, the light verses the dark. Better you
choose which side you are on.”

Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses……

Heritage Matters….. We should choose the right side!!!

Thank you