o Table 25: Comparative analysis of both the slums

2.Analysis of the case studies

Life in slums is always not simple. It is sometimes full of struggles and trepidations. But there are some moments that are vibrant always. That is where the quality of life is measured. Parameters that seemed significant for the context of slums that are studied, (list below) were chosen for analyzing the quality of life in it.

- Environment - Housing - Access to infrastructure and public services - Access to amenities and accessibility - Livelihood and cost of living - Stability and safety - Sense of place - Degree of independence - Social relationships - Social recognition and participation

2.1 Comparative studies between the 2 areas

Table (25) gives the comparative analysis of both the slum settlements.

Figure (31: b) shows the streetscape of the slum.

2.2 How are people feeling

2.2.1People of Ponniyamman Koil Kuppam

2.2.1.1 A lack of amenities and facilities

Due to the peripheral location of the site, access to amenities as education services or health centres has been disrupted. People find it hard to travel long distances to work and other facilities. “About 30% of children are school dropouts. They were affected due to the constant fear of eviction from their place.” From the table above, it is clear that accessibility is a major cause of concern. People feel that the location should be where there is a lot of job opportunities, based on their occupation and also.

2.2.1.2 A lack of space and privacy

Considering the accommodation facilities, people find it difficult to live in very limited and confined enclosures. People emphasize the very little space available to them to live. Regardless of the size of the family, slum dwellers face a harsh reality when it comes to housing terms. Nalini a resident says “Not even two persons can sleep comfortably inside the tenement. The real problem arises when relatives come for visits. I have to rearrange all my furniture mostly shove it outside to accommodate them.”

2.2.1.3 A lack of open space

As much as good housing is important, the quality of street life and open spaces are also indispensable. In the slum, the visible margins between exterior and interior spaces seem looser and lighter. In fact, slum dwellers spend most of their daily life outside their little tenements – be it work or their household chores, they are always seen outside encompassing a strong vital community in contrast to apartments that are built with an intention to create one under false pretence.

2.2.2 People of Ambedkar colony

2.2.2.1 The increase in the cost of living

The situation of the cost of living in Ponniyamman Koil Kuppam is very low. Located on the outskirts of the city, the area is more under an urban-rural context of developments. Vegetables and groceries are sold wholesale and the livelihood are meagre. On the contrary, Ambedkar colony is right at the heart of the city surrounded by major public transportation systems and bustling energy. There is no place for wholesale markets as the area is urbanized and there is a mixed land use linking the commercial sector with the residence. There are very less grocery shops owing to big supermarkets and restaurants.

2.2.2.2 A lack of space and privacy

The People of Ambedkar colony thrive amidst bustling energy and vitality. People nestled in the perfect place of thriving entrepreneurship giving meaning to an actual community. How much ever there is vitality sustaining, the need for spaces within and outside the premises still continues to linger in the desires of slum dwellers. People lead their life inside in a single space that does not have any partition for the kitchen and living room\. The house is designed as one single room including the bedroom, kitchen, and living room. There is a shortage of light and ventilation in their home. Moreover, there are some places in the area where the sanitary condition is very poor! Also, people desire to have a community ground to gather during events and meetings. Malaisami a resident of Ambedkar colony says “we would very much like to have an open ground surrounded by houses if our place is resettled or redesigned. We would like to gather there during meetings and events as we find it hard to conduct them in this cramped area and densely placed houses. Also, our children could play there during normal days. This ensures that we have an open space to gather and also our children can play under their elders’ watchful eyes.

2.3 Solution to the limitation of their quality of life

The quality of life in a slum is affected by deprivation of interaction of living spaces, evolution in the job opportunities, quick access to amenities. The space in which they live together is a community of heroics where there is support and flexibility towards each other and to their place. They find themselves unknowingly and perhaps unwillingly accepting the transformation of a small area from a living space to a workplace! They quickly adapt to the surrounding conditions of a place. There are lots of houses where people despite having a small place in itself, have allocated a small part to someplace that could be used for work. A man has partitioned his house to set up a small grocery shop while another woman has a small flower shop selling flowers from her own little garden. What could possibly be the solution to improve their quality of life without disrupting their heroic entrepreneurship?

2.3.1 Resettlement policies by the government

Almost a quarter of urban inhabitants live under impoverished clandestine settlements and slums in India. This is because of the migration to urbanised areas in search of jobs and livelihood. Nevertheless, the opportunity has been accompanied by a degraded quality of life, fear of eviction and deplorable health, making slums and slum dwellers vulnerable to the core. The Government of Tamil Nadu has embarked on a policy of meeting the demands of shelter which is one of the basic needs of human beings. Various resettlement policies and schemes have been introduced in recent years hoping to satisfy the housing needs of slum dwellers. However, a PUCL report states that “Although policies may mention inclusiveness in their objectives, they generate new forms of exclusion, especially through eligibility criteria including cut-off dates of arrival in the settlement”22. If the resettlement policies indubitably imply the provision and improvements in terms of physical infrastructure, quality of environment and guarantees the rights of occupation of the land for the residents, then the difficulties still faced by the residents in

terms of location, the planning of housing and access to facilities along with the cost of living is undeniably visible. The TNSCB claims people are unsatisfied with the schemes and policies but the real problem lies in a mixture of many issues such as change of livelihood, deprivation in the comfort provided by their original area, most importantly – their community. It seems to dissolve into thin air in the verticality provided to them. They feel disconnected from their environment and surrounding.

2.3.2 Best possible way to retain vitality?

Though TNSCB’s main idea was to provide housing for the economically weaker section of the society, the vision was not considered to be a long-term initiative. This clearly owes to the fact that people are missing their community! This is because the projects carried out by TNSCB do not help in evolving the settlement to a maximum extent. So the possible measure for the physical condition to meet with the emotional satisfaction is to provide them with both. Perhaps this is where an architect’s role comes to play!

As nebulous as it may seem, architects are not just designers of buildings but also creators of a sense of place. The buildings are perceived to be “ a statement” that is supposed to create benchmarks in the field. But the real evolution lies in a place where the building residing in a space creates sense!

As the famous proverb “first impression is the best impression” suggests that marks though undeterred and automatic should be prominent enough to leave marks that delve deeper to feel the sense of space. Each typology of building unravels in its own space that tries to create sense. After all sense of place has an impact on the occupants and inhabitants. For example, an office building would probably try to unravel the stress undergone by all the employees and to provide comfort whereas a hospital or a healthcare building will look into service-oriented spaces to comfort employees to access them quickly to attend patients.

“A sense of place is an extension of the building type, and it’s the job of the designer to identify and develop what’s needed for the demographic that is going to occupy it. It means creating adaptable and flexible spaces that best

support the activity thebuilding is meant to host, but it also means looking at the whole site for possibilities in reinforcing the message trying to be sent with the architecture.” – HMC architects.

The very sense of place is the key to comfort. This evokes multiple touchpoints that help reveal the deepest desire to go beyond that. Architects play an important role in creating that sense of space. Their main aim is to provide a connection between people and the space with comfort, vitality, identity and aesthetics.

As an architect, the job is not done with designing and constructing. It is also to ensure that the space created is a beautiful place to live in. one of the innermost consciousness of human beings is to be comfortable. That functions well outside only when the surrounding is sustainable to provide comfort vitally.

In slums, there is no architect to create such space. Still, comfort exists substantially because of the vital community that is prevailing. Their spaces live along with them. This is because the surrounding is sustainable providing comfort. Slum-dwellers spend most of the days outside their little tenements. They work part-time, set up temporary shops, gossip sitting outside and create a bustling livelihood. A slum is therefore a better example to be put forth for a community living rather than a gated community or row houses where the doors remain closed most of the time!

The socio-economic life of slums is still hanging by a thread. Slum-dwellers though relocated to new housing still face barriers in opportunities such as

Information about sources Isolation or geographical enclave Transport Lack of access to education Lack of access to health facilities Lack of access to employment Lack of social network

LIG

Social life

Daily wage

EWS

The social life in slums thus becomes a congregation of EWS, LIG, and daily wage earners figure (28). People are unable to access formal employment to maintain their livelihood in their new homes. Thus, the resettlement and relocation fail as a system to provide housing comfortably to slum dwellers. Slum-dwellers find a way either back to their hood or start their hood in the given place itself!

The reason why many people from the fisherman community near marina beach set up their kitchen and laundry on the ground floor in the openness rather than in the homes provided to them! The below figure (29) shows the mapping of social life in terms of the economy of slum dwellers.

Figure 29: Map of socio-economic life of slum dwellers

2.3.3 An Architect’s contribution to the heroic entrepreneurship

Considering the requests put forth by residents of the community, there are ways to improvise the living conditions of slum-dwellers. I firmly believe that resettlement policies and schemes do not live up to provide community satisfaction. A slum serves to be a heroic entrepreneurship amidst the chaotic urban sprawl. This is because slum-dwellers strive to keep their community intact while thriving amidst the bustling urban fabric. Resettlement policies break those treasured values by providing housing not suitable to them. Thus, the best way is to provide them with the community which helps them serve a heroic entrepreneurship in a better way. “We are okay with the government providing housing for us, but we need them to look into our demands and then to provide us with what we need. ” , says Ms. Meena. “It is best if they provide housing in our area itself without relocating us to another completely strange area. We will find it difficult to find new jobs as most of us are daily wage earners. We will find it hard to travel to our workplace from far. We will be completely unaware of the neighbourhood and the quick amenities available. It will be like starting our life in the city from the start. We have built our lives here and we don’t want to change it. It will be helpful if there is a way to retain our community at our hood itself.”

Figure 30 a: Module no 1

The best possible way is depicted in figure (30: a) above. There is also another module in figure (30: b) Proposed housing Module where space is provided without any partition except for a bathroom and a balcony lookout. The kitchen is open and provided in a raised platform unlike the stove used in most of the slums is on the floor.

Figure 30 b: Module no 2

The balcony serves as a lookout and that changes the place and position at alternate levels. As for the whole area, the floors may go up to G + 2 and help in collecting the ground space for open community gatherings and the children’s play area. In this way, the community remains intact in their own area and a possible solution for satisfying their housing needs.

Figure 30 c: a possible way to change a cramped space

Figure 30 d: a possible way to change a cramped space with less openness to a freer space with good possibilities to carry out the vitality

Also, the people are okay with verticality. “As long as our residents get to have an open space for community gathering and for our children to play, we are happy to welcome changes in our hood that are good.” Says Mr. Guna a senior resident of the Ambedkar colony. The above figure (30: c and d) cites out a possible way to change a cramped space with less openness to a freer space with good possibilities to carry out the vitality

As long as there is a consideration on how the area influences the slumdwellers and their inhabitation and authority’s consideration of people’s needs, slums will continue to be a vital community emerging as heroic entrepreneurship amidst the urban sprawl.