Mainstreaming heritage & urban informalities: Re-looking people’s agendas in planning

Built Heritage in developing and G20 countries is looked at within the boundaries of architecture. The land specificity of heritage and its identification as built reduce the focus on the people’s agenda and overlook a vital link that created it and kept it alive. With organisations working on urban archaeology and heritage building delineation, their isolation, no-use, and non-inclusivity in the urban agenda are outcomes that lead to what we see in the disconnects of urbanisation today

Built heritage in the developed world stands alone. It is separated from the people. While planning is trying to define the new world from the world of informalities, heritage is actively being isolated, without realising that isolation is disconnected, and a disconnected mass of buildings could perish more easily than one that connects with people or one that is an extension of people’s lives. Heritage cannot thus ever be separated from people.

Built-heritage is never stand-alone. It has people who are descendants of that age. They are living along or around it. The practise of trades, crafts, economies, social structures, dialects, and formalised and non-formalised knowledge systems are all present in the communities around them. Oral histories, as opposed to verified knowledge and accepted academic or political history, and stories of happenings, of families, of people, of national events, and intangible maps of areas, exist in the lives of people. This mass of communities, often called informalities or urban villages in the context of modern life, needs to be recognised as essential extensions of the built environment. Heritage needs to be viewed through the lens of people to keep it alive, not just as a building or as architectural or structural systems. People’s heritage is inclusive of the built environment and the communities that carry the living linkages down the generations.

It is important to understand that the heritage of cities, engulfed by informalities, is what has kept them alive despite high land rates and rising population densities. It would remain safe if its connection with people and living systems was maintained. Stories around them, customs, and the local histories keep them safe and intact. Their walls and minarets remain intact because they still belong to their Kings, Lords, Saints, Gods, and sufis. Urban villages are also part of people’s heritage. They contain communities and living systems that are heritage of the new urbanised worlds. Almost all of them are repositories of local culture. To protect the built heritage, we must also protect the people who feel a sense of belonging to it.

Heritage Urban Villages in Europe and Southeast Asia

Over the past century, there have been unprecedented changes in the urban environment with globalisation, rapid urban developments, and demographic universalisation. The rural areas are either getting converted into urban villages or imitating the urban. This is a concept that is gaining prominence across Australia, the United Kingdom, Western Europe, and much of the developed world. The rural population is migrating to cities in the hope of getting a better standard of living. However, the conception and perception of urban villages are very different in the context of a developing country like India. Urban villages in Indian cities are urbanised villages, that is, original villages that have conformed themselves to the urbanisation around them. In India, they exist as pockets of old villages that have gotten cramped among the rapidly rising cities around them; in certain western countries, they exist as downtowns and heritage neighbourhoods.

Built heritage in such areas is part of the resident’s sense of place. Even though it is often taken for granted by the citizens, it is in the subconscious of people living there and provides a daily sense of belonging and security. The residents quickly notice any major change in their built environment, and they protect it, work with it, and go along with it. In many cases, it becomes part of their economic cycle.

Built heritage is a tangible manifestation of the town’s epitome of architectural identity and an expression of the town’s people’s cultural heritage. They link the history and culture of the nation and particular towns. Very often, the built heritage provides a suitable background, or home, for the cultural life of a town. Local histories, names of places, products, and businesses are all woven around their identities. Many studies reveal that a continued sense of community in the vicinity gives a sense of belonging to the residents. Their sense of ownership is better, and they have better wellbeing than in the new urban anonymity.

Built environment contributes highly to the way people interact with society as well as the way they perceive spaces and that heritage is able to influence both psychological aspects of individuals in an urban development. There has been for some time a requirement for situating heritage conservation work, especially that relating to monuments in urban villages, effectively within the community where such monuments are sited and enveloped by the growing urban fabric. Such work is ideally to be so directed that the local community is the primary driver of the efforts on the ground, thus becoming in due course the prime mover for maintenance and conservation of the assets so created.

One such unique example of this is Fort Kochi and the spice market with the historic synagogue. People have been living next to the shipping port. Despite the low built heritage, the people and the people’s heritage are interwoven. It is perfectly blended with religion and the trading communities in the region. The essence of the building survives through the living trades and the institutions. With the recognition and strong identification of the people with their character, the complete settlement is woven as one. There are not many built heritage landmarks, but there is an essence of completeness because the community, the built environment, and the sea port co-exist. This was done because the complete zone was put under one integrated plan, and the plan comprised not just the people and the built environment but also the natural heritage, flora, and fauna. So the conservation outline is successful in keeping the essence intact. Such a holistic approach has kept the balance of cuisines, lifestyles, property outlines, road character, and old urban footprints alive in the lives of the visitors. If the guidelines had been a built-in approach, then this would have been lost.

Another example of a community-driven approach is the Phool Walon Ki Sair festival in Mehrauli, which is primarily an urban village with numerous built heritages in and around the village area. Phool Walon Ki Sair is an anchor of community expression and a representation of the settlement’s mythology; the intervention idea was based on the route of the festival procession. This route ties together the most important monuments in Mehrauli. It is noteworthy that the festival of Phool Walon Ki Sair is still celebrated every year in Mehrauli. As described by an anthropologist who has been living in Mehrauli for the last nine years, “Phool Walon Ki Sair is a festival unique to the extent that practises and agents, which often remain separate, are combined. Phool Walon Ki Sair is an event that combines both: it is a civil society effort (the Anjuman and its organisational contribution) that invites the participation of the state and addresses and involves others from a wider public. In a sense, then, this appears to be a practical realisation of a democratic process that creates a set of participatory publics, each involved in the individual expression, reception, and representation of a significant message, in communal harmony.

The festival procession starts from the Shamsi Talab, which is next to the Jharna. Symbolically, a water source is the starting point of an urban settlement. The end is marked by important heritage structures, like the Yogmaya Mandir, the wall of Qila Lal Kot, the wall of Qutab Complex, St. John’s Church, and Adam Khan’s Tomb, as well as important civic institutions such as the Bus Terminal and the Tehsil headquarters.

Heritage, Urban Informalities, and Schemes in India

Cities are the result of the layering and intertwining of cultural and natural values over time, including the broader urban context and its geographical setting. India is home to one of the oldest civilizations in the world, and most of the Indian cities are enriched with multiple layers of history. Though India is progressing and evolving with the rest of the world, we cannot forget our deep historical roots; hence, developing a scheme that helps create a bridge between our past and future is a must. Over the years, the government has brought in schemes for urban development and modernization. The Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission scheme launched in 2005 (for a period up to 2012), the Smart City Mission (2015), and the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)—Housing for All (2015) are some of the notable initiatives. Although these initiatives have shown progress, they have not been able to transform the liveability of Indian cities in a hasty manner. Important reforms visualised under JNURRM, like the enactment of the community participation law, transfer of water supply, city planning functions, reform in rent control, etc., have been implemented only patchily by the States.

Understanding the importance of culture and heritage, schemes focusing on improving the built heritage of the country were also introduced by the government, namely HRIDAY (Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana), PRASAD (Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive), AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation), launched in 2015, and Swacch Iconic Places under Swacch Bharat Mission, launched in 2016, and Adopt a Heritage Scheme in 2018, which majorly focused on improving the physical infrastructure of the Heritage Precincincincincincincts to make them more visitor-friendly. It is the need of the hour to look at heritage through the eyes of people. Comprehensive heritage zone guidelines, in place of schemes that are too micro in focus, must be adopted across to preserve the overall variety of urbanisation, lest cultural learning dies to commonalities across geographies.

Mainstreaming People in the Heritage Agenda

Heritage sites and buildings can have a positive influence on many aspects of the way a community develops. Regeneration, housing, education, economic growth, and community engagement are examples of the ways in which heritage can make a positive contribution to community life. The historic environment is a proven source of benefit to local economies, particularly through tourism. An attractive heritage environment assists in attracting external investment as well as maintaining existing businesses of all types, not just tourism-related ones. People are proud of their local history, but they don’t always express how much they value a place until it’s threatened. Because it adds character and distinctiveness to an area, heritage is fundamental to creating a ‘sense of place’ for a community. The heritage places are excellent local educational resources for people of all ages. Learning about the history of a place is a good way of bringing communities together through a shared understanding of the unique cultural identity heritage places give to an area. Areas where heritage is understood and valued tend to be better looked after than those where heritage items have no link with the community. Such links help foster civic responsibility and citizenship and contribute to everyone’s quality of life.

‘Culture’ and ‘heritage ‘are often mistaken as an expendable resource as administrators look for ways to tighten their budgets. They are far from expendable; initiatives using the two have often assumed key roles in boosting local economies, renewing urban areas in decay, and promoting the type of active citizen whose pride and self-esteem are an asset to any community. Committing to these activities as an economic and social strategy is a smart form of investment for a nation-state. The regeneration of human settlements is at the core of India’s future. It is part of a long-term strategy where business, technology, and heritage interact with one another.

Based on the above notion one such initiative was formulated by Aga Khan Trust for Culture for the project Urban Renewal of Nizammudin Basti. The project focused on the conservation, cultural revival, environmental development, urban planning, education, livelihoods, and Health of the people of Nizammudin Basti. The project provided a platform for Arts and Culture by creating an event called APNI BASTI MELA which showcases the cultural identity of the Basti, construction of community toilets, development of neighbourhood parks which created a community interface, Creating several self-help groups, and providing free education to the children of the Basti are few of the highlights of this project.

“Reviving history, rebuilding communities” The Trust’s support to historic communities demonstrates how conservation and revitalisation of the cultural heritage – in many cases the only asset at the disposal of the community – can provide a springboard for social development. The argument through these examples summarize that as a focus of the G20 U20 summit, the mainstreaming of people’s agenda should carry the Heritage dialogue. It has been proven piecemeal through the discussion of select examples.

Heritage Laws within Urbanisation

Establish a governance structure or management system for the World Heritage Property that coordinates across agencies and institutions in relevant sectors, including heritage conservation, urban development, regional development, infrastructure development, transport, tourism, energy, waste, water, and housing authorities as well. Its coordination role should include everything from legal frameworks and regulations to development plans and projects.

Discussions through Cases

South-West Asian Countries are full of examples of how a built heritage and people have coexisted

Religious heritage and people: Kumbh

Kumbh is one of the biggest examples of a religious festival that is part of our heritage. It has preserved communities, the cultural focus of people, and the lives of many riverside dwelling villages and clans. Culture and architecture in a place have evolved in harmony with each other. Heritage and heritage gatherings have been lying undiscussed in the memory of our societies. Their values need not be told. They become a traditional continuity, ever changing, adopting, and absorbing the new realities of time. Traditions keep cultures alive through genetic time memory. Place and people, when they intermingle with memory over time, create overlapping layers of traditions. Thus, cultural traditions are functions of space, time, and mind. Despite Kumbh getting a focus through the delineation of the river Riparian buffer and outline for its purpose, its overall focus in the master plan or facilitation of other natural geographic Pradakshinas is missing in master plans of cities. They are yet to be intrinsic to planning policy.

The Case of Ajmer Sharif

Ajmer Sharif hosts the six-day annual festival of Urs, commemorating the death anniversary of the Sufi saint Moinuddin Chisti. It’s a huge cultural event in Ajmer; devotees and pilgrims from all over the world come to pay their respects during the festival of Urs. Hence, the Ajmer Sharif and Dargah Bazaar area is one of the urban spaces where many schemes are being implemented with the vision “To develop Ajmer as a global religious and heritage destination offering high-quality living to citizens using technology-based solutions.”

Moreover, the lack of communication between the implementing bodies, the heritage bodies, and the local stakeholders made it nearly impossible for proper implementation of these schemes. The schemes talked about improving the street furniture, providing uniform shop fronts, directional and informative signage, and preserving the heritage of important structures on Dargah Street. Under the HRIDAY scheme, in Heritage Zone 3, Dargah Bazaar Precinct, partial underground wiring was done. Street lightings were put up by the Ajmer Municipal Corporation, but they did not consult with the local stakeholders as most of them were against it, and ultimately they were removed as they hindered the huge influx of footfall the Daragh Bazaar Street gets, wasting huge amounts of money, first for placing the street lights and then for removing them. Hence, making it important for everyone to understand the involvement of various stakeholders at every planning stage is essential for any project to succeed.

Way Forward: A Holistic Approach

Heritage and the informalities that surround it must form a composite focus in planning policy. Over recent years, as the regeneration and renewal of our town and city centres have gathered pace, it has been noticeable that careful integration of historic buildings and areas has played an increasingly important and successful role in major regeneration schemes and in creating significant benefits for local economies and communities. An increasingly fuller understanding of how places change and how such buildings can present an opportunity to create a development that adds to urban character and distinctiveness. This is now seen as fundamental to successful and sustainable regeneration. Using the historic environment as an asset and giving it new life has been one of the cornerstones of the economic and social revival of our towns and cities.

Hence, the way forward is to use urban development positively to impact the quality of space and affordability of local communities and other users with the integration of a nature-sensitive approach and urban heritage conservation strategies for enhancing the quality of the human environment. Recent experience has demonstrated that integrating historic buildings and areas within urban regeneration schemes can create popular, successful urban quarters with character where people enjoy working, living, and indeed visiting. Such regeneration represents an opportunity for conservation and development to work together to transform the built environment and public realm for the communities that live and work there. Indeed, it is only by all sides working together and being prepared to seek pragmatic and creative solutions that balance new uses with the need for conservation that we can turn heritage into a positive advantage for everyone.

The new cities cannot be explored just on account of the availability of land and resources. Government support, systems, aid, and policies are not enough. Private sector participation has economic limitations considering cost-efficiency. The citizens are more watchful and alert nowadays. They expect good governance, ease of traffic flow, and public amenities. The people not only require parks, amusements, entertainment, and shopping malls but also need attachment and love for the city and should feel like they belong to it.

Addressing continuity needs requires improved management of change to mitigate the potential negative impacts on the heritage economy and enhance the significance of the people’s continuity in the historic urban environment. To do this, the people’s and built values of the city need to be identified in relation to heritage mechanisms for their protection, management, establishment, and integration into the overall planning framework. If dealt with adequately, urban heritage, nature, and culture will act as catalysts for socioeconomic and environmental development through tourism, commercial use, and higher land and property values, thereby providing the revenues out of which to pay for maintenance, restoration, and rehabilitation. People and their day-to-day socio-economics are the only refuge in planning processes, not the isolation of heritage by looking at it as built and by clearing off spaces around it.