2. STRUCTURE OF -PRE POST-
STUDY
GLOBAL
A
AKSHARDHAM City level
B
Impacts
CREATION
OF Impacts
LOCATION & SPECTACLE
SETTING C
Cwg village Site level
NATIONAL
D
E
F
CONCLUSION
SOCIO-CULTURAL/EVERYDAY ASPECTS STRUCTURE
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3. RED FORT
YAMUNA PUSHTA
AKSHARDHAM TEMPLE
NANGLA MACHI
INDIA GATE
PURANA QILA
SOCIO-CULTURAL/EVERYDAY ASPECTS JAGMOHAN’S VISION
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20. DID IT MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE TO YOU?
No No
No No
No No
No Yes No
No
No No
No
No No Yes
SOCIO-CULTURAL/EVERYDAY ASPECTS PEOPLE’S VIEW
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
This Pecha Kucha is on the Socio- Cultural and Everyday aspect of AKDM and CWG Village, considered Spectacles in the city to understand their influences across various levels and how these biggest changes in the city have effects on the smallest of relationships..
We have structured it as first – we look at the influences which led to the making of these spectacles and their impacts on the city and then after their creation their influences across the city , site an nation and finally arriving at a conclusion of what do they actually mean in the socio-cultural context
First Looking at the location, the Yamuna banks, this area was brought into focus as a tourist destination by the UD Minister Jagmohan during early 2000s envisioning it, as a place to connect the red fort puranaqila and august krantimaidan along a green link with promenades and arcades on the riverbank.Meanwhile November 2003 CWG games were awarded to Delhi and it was not long before court orders were passed to Beautify the River banks.
This meant that several of the informal settlements along the banks needed to be removed. Yamuna Pushta one of the oldest settlements was demolished people were moved to HolambiKalan and Bawana, amongst the latest were the settlers of NanglaMAchi in 2005 near the AKDM who were shifted to SAVDA Ghevda 30 km from the city. Into 12.5sqm plots without basic infrastructure throwing them out of their existing functional networks degrading their already low income by 50%
Nevertheless both the spectacles saw the light of day and were brought into global limelight with extravagant inaugural ceremonies and immense show of power and wealth in their setup.
Now let us see what influence have these spectacles made on the city. Whether deliberately or not AKDM has been able to give Delhi a Hindu identity that was till its coming always dominated by the Muslim images of the past like the qutub , humayun etc.
Secondly it brought new social image to the East Delhi which was till then again the place for most resettlement colonies and the not-so posh colonies of the east like Lutyens and golf links. The CWG coming adjacent to the AKDM only strengthened it.
Now looking at the Site level social influences:The site is bound by agricultural land towards west and south side and rail line towards north. Dense built fabric defines the east edge. Metro line acts as barrier between the spectacle and the built fabric on the other side. Also the elevated road blocks connectivity.The settlements along the edge include urban villages and LIG MIG housing societies.. Very strong urban fabric , densely populated and has no social or cultural tie ups with the spectacle. The road acts as strong divide between the two.
The area has been successful in accommodating large population of outsiders from different parts of the country. The social infrastructure within the settlements are so strong and evident that the settlement is self contained and doesn’t relate to the spectacle in any ways..
The area has a mix of population with people from lower and middle income groups staying in these areas.. The planned areas have working class population of the middle class, where as the urban villages have people of lower income group.. Metro acts as the anchor to the entire region as the prime transit point. The entire urban area depends on metro which is proven by the heavy activity on the metro stations. Rickshaw walas ply to take people to the inner regions. Half the influence zone lies in no activity zone of the yamuna flood plains
Now lets see the conditions on the other edge of the spectacleThe Yamuna flood plains are dotted by agro based settlements who are solely dependent on the farmlands and the crop( vegetables & flowers). They keep moving based on the flood levels. Intense network of these settlements dot the plains around the spectacle.
The agro settlements are cluster of 3 or four families dependent solely on agriculture and its products living along the plains. They depend on shakurbasti for their daily needs.. The floods will push them to outer areas depending on the level of rising water.. They are isolated entities but strongly interdependent on other such settlements. Spectacles disturbed their network
The play area used by the kids of the area in the rail yards contrast with the sports complex lying unused inside the complex which is of no use to the public as it is not open to them. And the forest. Their temples are those small shrines which are there within the settlements... The people offer daily prayers and pooja in these shrines and qualify as real temples with their simple beliefs..
EAST This edge is the most active edge because of the large residential settlements towards the east side. Metro station provides the much needed entry point to this area. The parking for manidr and the two entry points to the complex provides enough buzz along the edge. But totally cut off due to road. NORTH This edge is totally neglected as the rail way line comes along as a negative boundary.. Yet the mandir forms a backdrop for the people entering to the city thorugh the railway. No development as it is railway buffer zone.
WEST This edge is utilized by the CWG village in generating nice and calm views to market their property but totally cut off from the settlements within in terms of physical relationship. SOUTH: The edge is very definite and provides view to all the cars moving fast along the corridor. It has plain fields as the backdrop and hence the spectacle stands out. In that sense it is a positive seam in tis relationship
But in contrast what is interesting these spectacles themselves…In Akdm, it is the strategies of marketable spirituality adopted . Paid Tickets for a giant INOX screen shows, a Hindu cultural reminder through a 12-minute boat ride, the Garden of India showcasing Hindu greats and omitting any Muslim and above all the rule for respectable Dress code making it Almost comparable to a mall with its clubbed functions of entertainment only in the bkgrd of spirituality and CULTURAL package
Similarly The HIG housing coming in the CWG village came up displacing many poor from their livelihood. When open to market the complex will increase the real estate prospects of the entire edge and will eventually transform the entire urban edge into a different class. This transformation has already started with the rates shooting up and people rebuilding their properties.
These spectacles are still home to several workers but as we saw these spectacles have positive influences on the city and nation but on the site scale it is mostly negative influence, with the people specially the weak at its receiving ends. Of the various people who help build it they are the ones who are not provided for in the long run and with a city that is blind to the social needs such as affordable and legal Social Housing their life continues to be a part of a vicious cycle of helping build a spectacle and displaced by coming of another.
