Presentation is an attempt to bring out issues hampering the identification , preservation and management of valuable heritage in India and suggest options for preserving and valuing it for posterity

1. Strategy and
Options for
Preserving Indian
Heritage
J.K.Gupta
EX- Director COA-IETBhaddal,
Jit.kumar1944@gmail.com
M- 90410-26414

2. IntoductionI

3. INTRODUCTION
• Cities reservoirs of skill & manpower.
• Cities also repositories of heritage.
• Heritage -reflects personality of a community.
-- provides information about culture, way
of life, art & architecture
-creates vital link between past & present with role in
shaping our future
--- leverages development, employment, urban and
rural regeneration,
-- promotes tourism, leisure and recreation, cultural and
community development,
-- good urban design and town planning;
-- development of skills, and sustainability of a
community/ state/ country
• During 5000 years of history, India inherited enormous
wealth of built environment.
• Heritage needs conservation & preservation - carefully

4. INTRODUCTION
• Built heritage under enormous threat due to :
- lack of identification of heritage
-Rapid urbanisation
- Low priority to heritage as asset
-constant neglect & misuse.
- haphazard & uncontrolled development.
-large scale subdivision of land/ buildings
- - Change of land use/structure
--Rapid commercialization.
-rapidly rising real estate prices.
- Poor maintenance/dilapidating buildings
- lack of capacity at local level
• Preserving heritage requires appropriate strategies &
policy framework.

5. .
Strategies- Redefining

6. REDEFINING /MAPPING HERITAGE
• --Majority of heritage lost due to lack of identification
• -Indian legal framework links Heritage to time scale;100 years.
• - major cause of exclusion of large Heritage buildings,.
• -Heritage needs re-definition with precise / detailed guidelines
• -- well defined process and machinery for identification
• --involving trained manpower
• -- Need Capacity building at national/state /local levels
• ---Indian heritage largely building specific
• -- Scope needs to be widened to include;
• -- urban spaces, bazaars, complexes, cities.
• --Concept of heritage zones needs inclusion
• --Concept of modern heritage needs consideration- Capitol of
Chandigarh
• -- walled cities pan India declared as heritage zone

7. Strategies- making Heritage
part of urban planning process

8. Making Heritage Part of Planning process

9. Making Heritage Part of Planning process
• existing heritage suffers from haphazard/ unplanned
development
• Lack of focus on Heritage conservation in urban planning
process
• Effective heritage management -- requires conservation
made integral part of settlement planning.
• Regional Plans Master plans/ Development Plans to;
• -- identify heritage areas/zones/buildings in planning area
• -- prepare inventory of urban heritage
• -Make in-depth study and analysis and
• -- suggest strategies to preserve, conserve/
promote/manage heritage
• --framing dedicated schemes for heritage areas for
rational development
• Enlarge scope of Town Planning laws to provide for
Heritage conservation as priority area
• Each Regional /Master Plans to have dedicated Chapter

10. Involving communities

11. Involving Communities• Ignoring communities/ public participation-root-cause of
damage/ destruction of valuable heritage
• - Making preservation/conservation of heritage people centric--
remains central to success
• - People legitimate owners/community sees heritage as a “good
thing to have”- need active involvement
• Involving communities through
• -- Holding public meetings
• -- making people part of discussions
• --‘listening to’ and giving a voice to people
• --Holding workshops/ Heritage Exhibitions/using print media
• -Organizing Heritage Marches/ competition/ asset mapping
• - bringing out leaflets, maps / brochures, highlighting heritage
• --Involving local students in heritage management
• -- training local inhabitants as tourist guides

12. Involving Communities•

13. Involving Communities•

14. involving academic/
professional institutions

15. Involving academic/ professional institutions
• - Heritage has suffered due to inadequate trained manpower
• --low priority to heritage-- in institutions imparting education in
Architecture/ Planning /engineering
• -Architects/ Planners/engineers role critical in heritage
conservation
• -- few institutions run specialised courses in heritage
• --Need to make heritage integral part of study in school/
colleges/technical institutions
• --mandating starting of undergraduate/Master level courses on
heritage preservation/management in IIT’s/SPA’s/NIT’s
• -- Involving institutions– IBC/ IIA/ITPI/ Institute of
Engineers/INTACH/ Voluntary agencies/NGOs/ civil
society/pressure groups-- in safeguarding/promoting heritage.
• -Sensitizing in-service /professionals-architects/ planners
/engineers by making heritage part of study curricula/holding

16. INV0LVING EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

17. Redefining Legal
Framework & Development

18. LEGAL FRAMEWORK & DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS :
• Existing legal framework related to planning, development
and management of human settlements - done more harm
than good to the heritage management.
• Town Planning laws to be reviewed and redefined on
priority to make them heritage friendly
• Master Plans and Regional Plans must focus on heritage
conservation
• All town development schemes must define agenda for
heritage conservation
• Considering critical role of development control, zoning
regulations & bye-laws in heritage conservation
• .-- -- Special controls sensitive to heritage
• -- based on detailed study/ analysis
• -- required to be framed for protecting heritage building.
• Concept of Listed buildings to be included in legal

19. COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE
GATEWAY OF INDIA
HOTEL TAJ MUMBAI
Constituting Heritage
commissions/committees

20. CONSTITUTING HERITAGE COMMISSIONS/ COMMITTEES :
• States to constitute heritage commission and
heritage committees at the state/local levels
• Heritage commission should aid, advise, guide the
state government and
• - evolve policy framework for identification,
notification, preserving and managing the areas of
heritage importance in state
• Heritage Identification to be on the concept of listed
buildings.
• Heritage Committee should aid, advice, assist &
guide the ULBs on all issues related to heritage & its
conservation and management
• Creating a state cadre of heritage experts in all
planning & development authorities/agencies/ town
planning/PWD and architecture should be made
mandatory

21. JAIN ARCHITECTURE
DILWARA TEMPLE
Creating a dedicated
Heritage Fund

22. Creating Heritage Fund
• Heritage management- a resource intensive activity.
• Heritage Suffered- Non-availability of dedicated resources
• Generating resources for heritage by-- Creating dedicated
heritage fund at National/State / Local level.
• - Actively involving Corporate Sector, CII,PHDCC for
collecting funds for heritage .
• --Involving Artists / Professionals for organizing exclusive
shows for for raising funds for promoting heritage.
• - -Making available Part of tourism earning
– Starting Heritage lotteries/ levying heritage cess on
tourists
– earmarking part of budget of ULB,s/ Dev. Auth
– Promoting public –private partnership.
– involving industries in maintenance / upkeep

23. MADURAI TEMPLES
MEENAKSHI TEMPLE
16th
Century
Dedicated to Parvati
Capacity Building

24. Capacity Building
• Poor capacity –major cause of heritage mismanagement
• For effective heritage management-- create appropriate
capacity at the local, state and national levels by;
• - identification/conservation.
• -- Promoting Research and Development
• -making available appropriate literature
• -- learning good practices,
• -- imparting hands on training,
• -- learning from case studies/ communication tools
• - engaging local stakeholders – owners of heritage
houses,
• -- teaching institutions, artists and craftsmen
•

25. CAPACITY BUILDING

26. Heritage City Development and
Augmentation Yojna- HRIDAY

27. Heritage City Development and Augmentation
Yojna- HRIDAY
•
•
HRIDAY strategizes efforts like;
-- planning, development, implementation and management of heritage
cities
-- in partnership with State Governments
-- to Preserve and revitalise soul of heritage city
-- to reflect city’s unique character by encouraging
-- aesthetically appealing, accessible, informative & secured environment.
-- undertaking strategic / planned development of heritage cities
--improving overall quality of life with specific focus
-- on sanitation, security, tourism, heritage revitalization / livelihood
-- retaining city’s cultural identity.
Duration of HRIDAY scheme --- 4 years starting December 2014
Scheme will focus on development of twelve heritage cities namely;
1. Ajmer 2. Amravati 3. Amritsar
4. Badami 5. Dwarka 6. Gaya
7. Kanchipuram 8. Mathura 9. Puri
10. Varanasi 11. Velankanni 12. Warangal
Hriday should be extended to all the historic cities in India

28. COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE
VICTORIA HALL KOLKATA
SECRETARIAT- MODERN HERITAGE
Evolving Comprehensive
Conservation Heritage Strategy

29. Evolving Conservation Heritage Strategy

30. Evolving Conservation Heritage Strategy
• Comprehensive Conservation Heritage Strategy should
stand on four distinct pillars of
• -- promoting Understanding, -- Ensuring Positive Action,
• -- Developing Partnerships and-- Promoting Best Practice.
• Conservation / Heritage Strategy should essentially revolve around;
• Creating efficient/efficient/ friendly legal framework for
identification/conservation of heritage
• Making heritage management people centric
• Promoting partnerships between different stakeholders
• Creating awareness / appreciation of value of heritage assets
• Making heritage management part of planning /development process
• Incentivising conservation /promoting / monitoring/reviewing
heritage sites on regular basis..
• Organising exhibitions/conferences /workshops at Heritage sites
• Synthesising historic resources with economic development
strategies.

31. Evolving Conservation Heritage Strategy
• Leveraging heritage for generating employment and reducing poverty.
• Promoting institutional capacity buildings -in heritage planning/
management
• Promoting re-use of heritage buildings
• --for larger public use / making value addition to human living
• -- generating resources for its maintenance and upkeep.
• Promoting best practice regarding preservation , conservation and
management of heritage sites
• -- Promoting partnership between public, private and voluntary
sectors
• - Promoting actions / initiatives -- to ensure preservation /
enhancement of heritage assets
• --Fostering continued use/ enjoyment /access to diverse historic
assets
• - ensuring contribution to quality of life present / future
generations.
• Developing short, medium / long term targets-- within available
resources

32. Evolving Conservation Heritage Strategy
• Creating a dedicated fund for heritage management at local/ state and
national level.
• Creating large reservoir/pool of trained manpower for heritage
conservation.
• Improving communication/ developing partnerships-
• Making heritage integral part of teaching- learning process
• Making people believe that development and heritage are positively
co-related -- for promoting
• -- economy
• -- quality of life,
• -- removing poverty
• Promoting participative governance by empowered local
communities in the planning / implementation /promoting vigilance of
the heritage sites
• Creating local sense of ownership among communities by holding
festivals / cultural .
• Making rational choices of combining-- restoration, rehabilitation/
preservation for promoting valuable heritage.

33. Evolving Conservation Heritage Strategy
• Identifying heritage using mechanism of listed buildings.
• Creating appropriate group/committee/cell of experts
• -- in all planning/development agencies
• -- for identification of heritage.—
• -- to aid, advice, assist & guide the development agencies
on issues related to heritage & its conservation.
• integration of efforts made by all stake-holders including-
• --- parastatal agencies, individuals, institutions &
associations-- for preparing comprehensive vocabulary of
heritage
• Making India globally recognized resource/ repository of
religious ,art, cultural, architectural leader and preferred
tourist destination -- with high degree of sensitivity /
commitment to deciphering Indian heritage
• .