Sarais of Agra

....

0

0\

•

•

N IX c:(

Rs300

:EI

z

c(

-,

ARCHITECTURE

DESIGN

LANDSCAPE

URBAN PLANNING '

FOCUSON

Urban Informal ity

--..,...

--..

-~--------· .:::r-----~~---

--

•••

- - -:s:::-

-:..r - -

-

-

--r.

ISSN 2455-2380 •

CONTRIBUTORS Vincenzo Centinaro

1vea - e "

INDIA

THE NETHERLANDS

Founders Shyam Khandekar Shashikala Venkatraman Publisher Shashikala Venkatraman

Dr. Alonso Ayala is an architect and spatial planner specialising in the fields of social housing and upgrading informal settlements. He \vorks at the IHS as lecturer, researcher and consultant.

Editorial Director Shyam Khandekar Editor Meera Joshi Executive Editor Vinayak t?ha rne Assistant Editor Amrita Kulkarni Edit-India Sa il esh Ghela ni (Content & Socia l Media) Cheta n Ku lkarni, Mumbai Yamini Kumar, Bengaluru Ashim Manna. Delhi Pritha Sardessai. Panaji Karna Sengupta, Bhopal Edit-International Laura Amaya, Colombia Amit Arya, USA Chongxian Chen, Chi na Bruce Echberg, Austral ia Prajakt a Gawde, Spai n Paola Huijding, Brazil Marina Khrusta leva, Russia Helene Leriche, France Shreya Malu, USA Buvana Murali, USA Menaka Sahai, England Zoya Sodhi, Canada Levi Wichgers, The Netherlands Yu Xia, China , Parya Pasha Zadeh , Iran

is a design strategist with a background in produet design, visual communication and design research at Gensler, Chicago. He combines qualitative and quantitative design met9ods to analyse, de-code and translate user insights into tangible solutions, design directions and business opportunities. Vincenzo holds a dual-Master's degree in Produet Service System Design from Politecnico di Milano and Tongji University of Shanghai and a bachelor's degree in industrial design from the Universita' di Palermo, Italy.

Dr. Maartje van Eerd is an assistant professor at the Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies.

A human Geographer by profession, she has extensive experience as a researcher, trainer and advisor on housing and social development issues. Her main expertise lies ,vith housing rights, resettlement and gender, and her focus is mostly Asia.

Eesha Bajaj is a graduate from Sushant School of Art & Architecture, Gurugram.

She has worked on projects in Leh, Delhi, Bengaluru 1 - -- - -- - - - - and parts of Uttrakhand Swagata Das is a and is passionate about practicing urbanist, traveling to new locations currently based in New to capture stories that Delhi. Sh.e has a Bachelor's reflect the community in architecture and a character. She is interested Masters in Urbanism in carrying out research & Strategic P]aoning on space appropriation (MaUSP). I-ler research an.cl urban i11formality in interests focus on the developing countries. interaction between social practices and spatialconfigurations in the context of rapid urbanisation.

Columnists JohnJung,Canada

Art Seema TaneJa

Marketing Team Sanjivan i Apte (Subscriptions, North India) Mita li Choudhary (Subscriptions) Marketing Queries Ad Sales: advertising.myliveablecity@gmail.com Subscriptions: su bscri pt ions. myliveablecity@gmai l.com Mob:+919820126505

Chongxian Chen is a

post-doctoral researcher at the School of Architecture, Tsinghua University, China. lvly Liveable City takes no responsibility for unsolicited photographs Chen's research interests or material. All maps and photographs, unless otherwise indicated, include the relationship are used for illustrative purposes only. between human health RNI No.MAHENG/2014/58295. Printed & Published by Shashikala and green space, low-cost Venkatraman (shashi.myliveablecity@gmail.com) for the Owner lronman Media & Advisory Services Pvt Ltd. Published design in underdeveloped at 1903 Polaris Tower, Vasant Galaxy Complex. Off New Link Road, countries and resilience Goreagon(W), Mumbai-400 104. Processed at Reproscan. design response to natura!

Printed at SiIverpoint Press Pvt Ltd. A403 TTC lndustrial Area, disasters and risks.

Near Anthony Motors, Mahape, New Mumbai 400709 Editor: Meera Joshi (meera.myliveablecity@gmail.com) All rights reserved worldwide. Reproducing in any manner without prior written permission is prohibited.

ISSUE DATEJan-Mar 2019, ISSUE NUMSER: Vol: 5, lssue 4 For editorial queries, email: shyam.myliveablecity@gmail.com 06 MY LIVEABLE CITY • Jan-Mar 2019 •

Imran Hossain Foishal is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Architecture of Khulna University, Bangladesh. He achieved an M .Sc. from the Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies of Erasmus University in 2018. His research thesis was based on ho\v resettled commu.n ities coped with the impact of spatial transformation in order to restore livelihoods.

For this he was given an honorary award by DAIDA.

Archana Gupta is an architect from the TVB School of Habitat Studies, New Delhi, with a Masters Degree in sustainable design. Currently based out of Delhi, Archana .,__ is Vice President - Projects for KPDK Buildtech Pvt. Ltd., \vorking on projects related to service arcl1itecture and infrastructure development.

•

www.myliveablecity.com

Cities We Like

@CitiesWelike

•

H ousing Transformation -1,idence from Bangladesh and India for planned -re.settlement

Rethinking Urban Villages Embracing urban informality

Collaboration Model Reinventing an urban plan

Danwei ?e.ople create their o,.vn spaces

Sarais of Agra fiistoric landmarks are hosts for informality

Regulating the Unorganised Informal pop-ups in an organised country

Change Agents

Provocateur

Meeting up with city lovers and organisations who are making a difference

A hard-nosed look at what makes cities liveable or unliveable! !

L 4)

Nihal Perera

The lnformal Community Sfreet art gains acceptance

!,_.•-4.,_.•

j

Urban Design Through Dance How a local festival can help shape urban design Jan-Mar 2019 • MY LIVEABLE CITY 09

URBAN BLUEPRINT India

Eesha Bajaj shows us how historie landmarks are also hosts for urban informality

• gra is home to one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Taj Mahal, as well as the ·conic symbol of the Mughal dynasty, The Agra Fort. But if we shift focus, it is also home to two other important historie structures - the sarais - located south of these monuments, hidden behind the canopy of roofs in the dense areas of Chipitola and Taj Ganj.

'The sarai is an institutionofresting places known as sattra, chavadi, dharmasala, caravan sarai and sarai for travelers, traders, pilgrims etc., on the trave) routes and has been one of the important features of India. They not only provided shelter to travelers, but also played a very important role in the growth of the commerce of the Mughal Empire. It was Sher Shah Suri who is said to have initiated the building of sarais on a large scale on the routes basically for the needs of the state and partially for the needs of wayfarers. But his reign was short and it was during the Mughal period that the work of building sarais was carried out on an extensive scale.

However, there was no uniforrnity in the structure and building materials.' (Anjum, 2010) Both sarai Chipitola and sarai Taj Ganj, situated near the Agra Fort and the Taj Mahal respectively, were located on the old trade route that went through Agra and were built as different typologies. The built form of sarai Chipitola suggests that it was a temporary sarai, built as a small square structure with charnbers for animals on the ground floor and rooms for people to rest on the first fioor with a central courtyard. Sarai Taj Ganj, however, was spread over a larger area with four divisions or katras.

Each katra belonged to people from a particular profession. Sarai Taj Ganj with its colossal gates and well-planned katras with central gardens suggested a sense of establishment and hence was a permanent sarai.

Chronologically, the Agra Fort was built first during Akbar's reign in 1573, which was fol lowed by t he construction of sarai Chipitola in 1620. During Shah Jahan's reign, the Taj Mahal was built in 1648 and sarai Taj Ganj was established thereafter.

Historically, these structures played an 70 MY LIVEABLE CITY • Jan-Mar 2019

important role in understanding the emergence of Agra as a city, however functionally, they play distinct roles. The monuments, home to the royal fami ly (Agra Fort), were built to establish power and were edifices symbolising the supremacy of the lvlughal dynasty. The vastness and grandeur of the Agra Fort suggests the widespread influence of t he Mughal Dynasty during Akbar's reign.

Historie Plan - Sarai Chipitola

Proportion Study

----J ' I I

I I

_____

I _,I

---------J

'J

Sarai Tajganj ■ Sarai Chipitola

1

Sarai Chipitola = 1116th Sarai Taj Ganj Historie Plan - Sarai Taj Ganj

li. . .

n

■ OCTOGO~AL PARK ■

Jalukh<1n Area • Sou1h

(In rronl <>fT•i Mahnl) -~ CHOV.' K (markct)

·1 MAIN GA1"ES OF

I.I TIIE KATRAS

■ 4 MAIN ROAl) S OF T HE 10\TRJ\S

■ KATRAS OFTAJGANJ

•

Thesarais aresymbols of variability, transience and urban informality, engaging with its inhabitants

MAPOFAGRA

Ne,v Trade Route ,

• • • •old'Trade Route

,

..

...

Source:Transfron1ations in Indian l-Iistory

••

Locating Sarai Chipitola and Sarai Taj Ganj along the trade route

Timeline of the Mughal dynasty, monuments and sarais

'#

r .-:.:.L--'t--' ' ...,

1556-1605 AD

1620AD

1628-1658 AD

1648 AD

AKB..<\R'S REIGN

SARAI CHIPITOLA

SHAH JAHAN'S REIGN

TAJ MAHAL BUILT BY EMPERORSHAHJAHAN

1652AD SARA! TAJ GANJ

Jan-Mar 2019 • MY LIVEABLE CITY 71

URBAN BLUEPRINT India

.

. ,,.,;,,···-:...t.:

72 MY LIVEABLE CITY • Jan-Mar 2019 •

Top: A stitched visual of the central courtyard being used as parking for auto rickshaws Middle: Ground floor of sarai Chipitola being used by fruit vendors for storage Bottom: First floor of sarai Chipitola being used as temporary accommodation by migrant families from rural areas

The informal spacesare settingthe ground for new laws of city planning

The expensive marble and detailed inlay work in semi-precious stones is evidence of the authority and riches of the dynasty during Shah Jahan's reign. The sarais were functionally relevant to the common man as they provided either temporary shelter (sarai Chipitola) or permanent housing (sarai Taj Ganj). These roles remain intact till date.

Today, the monuments (Taj Mahal and Agra Fort) makeup the static, permanent and formal part of the city, interacting in a very superficial manner with its visitors. On the other hand, the sarais are symbols of variability, transience and urban informality, engaging with its inhabitants.

They are being used as storage units, parking areas and housing by the informal sector of the urban realm.

The migrant population in Agra has created an interesting relationship of engagement with the sarais by using these historie structures as safe houses. A role similar to the one it (the sarai) played roughly 400 years ago during the N1ughal era. This engagement, constant transformation and appropriation of space has helped the sarais not only survive, but has made them a vital part of this continually evolving kinetic city.

"The city in our case (India) is not about the grand vision, but it is about grand adjustment."

(Mehrotra, 2010) The concept of a kinetic city, as Prof. Rahul Mehrotra states, is the result of the rapid growth of Indian cities like Agra and the government's constant struggle to keep up with this grovvth.

What has emerged as a result of this is what Prof.

Mehrotra categorically calls the 'kinetic city'. This term seeks to give away the underlying binary connotation of the term 'formal and informal' with respect to the urban built fabric and seeks to capture the essence of impermanence and the rich nuances of the growing urban India. The city is kinetic in a manner that demands a shift in the perception of the planner and urges him/her to view the impermanence as an opportunity instead of a setback.

Indian planners need to enable the static to meet the needs of the variable that represent this continually evolving city. Sarai Chipitola is a prime example of how this is carried out under the purvie\v of what is commonly known as 'urban informality'. Migrant families and people categorised under the 'informal sector' have fulfilled their needs of habitat and storage by making small adjustments and expanding the margins of the city. In a nearly 400-year-old historie structure, the central courtyard is being used as space to park three-wheelers ( autorickshaws ), the ground floor as storage space for wholesale fruit vendors and the first floor by the migrant families for housing.

In India, finding a low-cost solution to

any problem in an intelligent way is a culture commonly known as 'jugaad'. (Financial Times, n.d.). It is important to note that it is a culture that took birth in the territory of informality.

Expanding cities like Agra are voicing an urgent need for the city planners and governments to visualise and create a flexible and elastic future for the built fa.brie instead of creating gigantic monoliths catering to only a part of the city's growing inhabitants. The highly den.se areas of sarai Taj Ganj and sarai Chipitola may be examples of pressing issues of poor hygiene, a non-existent waste management system and illegal encroachment, but they demand radica1 solutions that identify and recognise the grey areas between the black and white of formal and informal.

"In the age of global urbanisation, the slum becomes a site for reform, intervention and even aspiration." (Roy) The informal spaces are setting the ground for new laws of city planning. Therefore, instead of viewing them as a problem, they must be respected and recognised as spaces that have emerged out of a need: a need for housing, for equal opportunity and, above all, for sustenance The kinetic urban India does not draw clear lines between the formal and informal, rich and poor.

Instead, it establishes a symbiotic relationship between the two. The wholesale vegetable vendor who stores bananas in sarai Chipitola is responsible for supplying fruit to the 'formal' areas of the city. The auto rickshaw driver who parks in the central courtyard of sarai Chipitola is dependent on the customers from the 'formal' sector to sustain himself and the 'formal' sector depends on him to move around the city.

A shift in perception and the spirit of collaboration is perhaps the need of the hour where we strive to create maximum impact through minimum intervention and retain a symbiotic relationship between sectors, the spirit of innovation and the culture of 'jugaad'.

References • Anjum, N. (2010) . "SARAIS" IN MUGHAL INDIA. Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, 71, 358-364.

• Financial Times. (n.d.). Retrieved from Financial Times: http:/!lexicon.ft.com/Term?term =jugaadinnovation • Mehrotra, R. (2010, August 23). Prof Rahul Mehrotra, Head of Department of Planning and Urban Design, Harvard University.

• Roy, A. (n.d.). Governing the slum.

Jan-Mar 2019 • MY LIVEABLE CITY 73