Analyzing the impact of jnnurm funded slum redevelopment on children across india ace 2013

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children Across India Action for Children’s Environments (ACE)

Supported by:


Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children Across India

May 2013

Principal Researcher and Lead Author: Sudeshna Chatterjee, PhD

Action for Children’s Environments (ACE)

Supported by

Bernard van Leer Foundation

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

Acknowledgements This project was made possible by the generous contributions and encouragement of many people. Bernard van Leer Foundation believed in us and supported this research. A special thanks to Huub Schreurs for commissioning this project, to Selim Iltus for working with us on finetuning the proposal and to Dharitri Patnaik for her patience and encouragement. International experts on the subject of children living in urban poverty, Sheridan Bartlett and Lalitha Iyer, reviewed the research tools and provided methodological inputs early on in the process. Later they gave detailed feedback on first drafts of case studies. Lalitha Iyer had been a pillar of support throughout the process and was always ready to provide guidance and advice. Other experts such as Willem van Vliet, Director of Children, Youth and Environments Center at University of Colorado, Boulder and Jagan Shah, Director of National Institute of Urban Affairs, New Delhi provided valuable criticism of some drafts. Pallavi Supriya, Rashi Sarawgi, Damini Datta, Harleen Sidhu, Preeti Venkatram, Adnan Khan and Shreemun Singh, the wonderful research team at ACE made this fieldwork intensive research possible; additionally they produced wonderful visual documentation of all the case studies. We are fortunate to have a wonderful board of trustees who opened doors, set up appointments with both public and private sector stakeholders and even got into the field to help us conduct interviews in local languages. Trustees Ravi Kaimal and Manisha Chatterjee saved us valuable time by translating and transcribing data in Malayalam and Bengali respectively when the translators failed to turn up! We also appreciate the translation inputs of Rahul Patnaik, Umeed Khan, Benoy Chandra and Sumana Banerjee. Associate Professor of Planning, Sheuli Mitra, and her team comprising fellow faculty member Anand Wadekar and student interns Nivedita Fadnis, Rashmi Bharadwaj and Neha Saxena at the School of Planning and Architecture in Bhopal; Professor Souvanic Roy, Head of the Department of Architecture, Town and Regional Planning at Bengal Science and Engineering University in Howrah and his team comprising graduate students Shalini Nag, Suchandana Deb and Abhishek Chatterjee; Leena Buddhe, Director of the Centre for Sustainable Development in Nagpur and her staff; and urban designer Abhijit Kondhalkar and social worker Donna D’Souza of Pune were our local partners for the Bhopal, Kalyani, Nagpur and Pune case studies respectively. They helped us in selecting the BSUP projects in these cities, collecting secondary data, identifying key stakeholders and conducting interviews and focus groups in partnership with ACE researchers. They also drafted field reports on the respective case studies which contributed to the final ACE report.

Sudeshna Chatterjee CEO Action for Children’s Environments May 13, 2013

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

Table of Contents Executive Summary

vi

List of Abbreviations

x

List of Figures

xiv

List of Tables

xvi

Preface

xviii

Chapter 1 - Introduction

2

Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

13

Chapter 3 - Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala

25

Chapter 4 - Jat Trodi, Nagpur, Maharashtra

58

Chapter 5 - Kalpana Nagar and Madrasi Colony, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

87

Chapter 6 - Gandhi Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra

122

Chapter 7 - Mother Teresa Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra

147

Chapter 8 - Kongar Nagar-I, Kalyani, KMA, West Bengal

170

Chapter 9 - Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar, Odisha

201

Chapter 10 – Integrative Analysis of Eight Case Studies

229

Chapter 11 – Rating Case Studies on Child Centered and Child Friendly

273

Outcomes Chapter 12 – Recommendations for Promoting Community and Children’s

280

Wellbeing in Slum Redevelopment Annexure 1 - FGDs and Interviews conducted in Karimadom,

284

Thiruvananthapuram Annexure 2 - FGDs and Interviews conducted in Jat Trodi, Nagpur

285

Annexure 3 - FGDs and Interviews conducted in Kalpana Nagar and Madrasi

286

Colony, Bhopal Annexure 4 - FGDs and Interviews conducted in Gandhi Nagar and Mother

288

Teresa Nagar, Pune Annexure 5 - FGDs and Interviews conducted in Kongar Nagar – I, Kalyani

290

Annexure 6 - FGDs and Interviews conducted in Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar

291

Annexure 7 - The Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS)

293

Annexure 8 - Thiruvananthapuram CDP’s Vision for Children

295

Annexure 9 - Community participation including children’s participation in

297

different phases of redevelopment across BSUP case studies Annexure 10 - Rating BSUP Housing on Child Related Outcomes

302

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

Executive Summary There is an unprecedented policy focus on slum redevelopment and creation of slum free cities in India ever since the launch of the landmark Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM) in 2005. Slums, which represent a default living environment for majority of the urban poor, affect children’s well-being and deny children living in poverty a range of rights as laid out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child linked to nutrition, water and sanitation facilities, access to basic healthcare services, healthful housing, education, social participation and protection among others. Action for Children’s Environments is concerned that the policy thinking around slum redevelopment and slum free cities in India assumes that improved living conditions for the community positively affects everyone including children. As there is little understanding of the implications of not considering children’s needs and rights in processes leading to improved living environments in slums, currently there is little scope for including children and youth and their concerns in inclusive planning processes. The sub-mission of JnNURM, Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) promotes integrated community development through participatory processes in affordable housing and slum redevelopment. BSUP when reviewed from a child rights perspective upholds several of the rights enshrined in the UNCRC implying that if BSUP achieves its stated goals resultant projects would improve opportunities for survival and support healthy development of children in slums. Additionally if BSUP effectively integrated social security measures as per its mandate through improved education, health, play and recreation opportunities, and other social services and through income security of parents, critical protection concerns of slum dwelling children would have been addressed in urban development. Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India takes a close look at local practices of BSUP (JnNURM) funded projects to investigate how children’s concerns and wellbeing have been addressed in urban renewal programs particularly in slum redevelopment initiatives. Adopting an embedded case study design, the research focuses on 8 slum redevelopment projects across 6 cities and examines how children’s lives are affected by the redevelopment process. The slum redevelopment projects include: Karimadom in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala; Jat Trodi 2 in Nagpur, Maharashtra; Kalpana Nagar and Madrasi Colony in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh; Gandhi Nagar and Mother Teresa Nagar in Pune, Maharashtra; Kongar Nagar-I in Kalyani (Kolkata Metropolitan Area), West Bengal; and Nayapalli in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The case studies represent completed projects or partly completed projects where new houses have been allocated to families and where some innovation in process or product has been tried out. The case studies discussed in this report present a wide range of distinctive characteristics ranging from custom transformations of each kutcha house to a pucca house in Mother Teresa Nagar in Maharashtra to people being unaware about new dwelling units being constructed for them in Kalpana Nagar, Madhya Pradesh. The main objective of this research is to understand the potential of the BSUP mission to deliver safe and healthy housing and contirbute to children’s wellbeing. A rights based approach is used to evaluate the performance of BSUP in fulfilling children’s rights as categorized in the 3Ps: protection, provision and participation. In addition a housing rights vi


Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

and sustainable develoment framework have been adopted for evaluating the provisions created under BSUP. ACE created a simple rating system to rate the selected BSUP housing projects based on these parameters. The key findings of the research include: 

CDPs and DPRs that underpin the planning process for implementing a project are not supported by accurate surveys and comprehensive information about the target communities particularly children. The monitoring systems such as the proposed MIS for BSUP and RAY does not include indicators for all stages of childhood or indicators capturing children’s protection, wellbeing and development concerns and rights at the community/slum and family level.

Barring the CDP of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, no other CDP in the five cities had any meaningful focus on children. The Thiruvananthapuram CDP incorporated several strategies for imrpoving well being of children keeping in mind their protection and provision rights. Thiruvananthpuram is also the only city in the ACE study that had proposed a formal structure for children’s participation in urban development. However the slum redevelopment project in that city did not include children in decision-making despite existing children’s neighborhood networks.

A child's world-space gradually evolves from the home to the neighborhood and gender affects this evolution from childhood. All the DPRs suffered from lack of understanding the spatiality of childhood in urban slums and thus failed to adequately provide for provisions and spaces children require at different stages of their development. The only focus of most projects was to convert kutcha houses to pucca ones at great speed to meet stipulated ULB targets. Even tokenistic provisions for children such as Anganwadis, community centers, parks and gardens typically were left unbuilt.

As a direct consequence children especially girls have no safe opportunities for play and recreation within the housing area and are forced to be indoors or just outside the house with no respite from their household work. The streets outside the new houses are dirty and the new flat terraces are either inaccessible or used by adolescent boys for drinking or taking drugs. Both these spaces could have provided safe places for small children and girls.

The designs of housing in the case studies were often inadequate using materials and technologies that resulted in thermally uncomfortable homes in some cases. None of the new houses were adequately able to promote health and safety of the family and particularly young children. Basic shortcomings included no mosquito nets for doors and windows or security grilles for windows; inadequate storage inside the houses, unprotected staircases to roof and failure to remove or mitigate environmental hazards at the site level.

BSUP by and large failed to provide security of tenure in the new housing. Families do not have the right to rent or sell their properties for a few years in some cases and never in others. Only where people had land rights was secure tenure possible in the housing. Providing security of tenure ensures a secure base for children to grow up without fear of evictions and with social and emotional stability. vii


Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

BSUP housing irrespective of typology, flatted vs. plotted in-situ housing, was typically unaffordable for the urban poor in the case study projects. The cost of the house varied from 3-10 times the annual income of the household. Families found it difficult to repay the beneficiary share and in fact took more loans at high interest rates to make houses habitable after completion of construction. Banks had little information on the ISHUP scheme and refused to pass on interest subsidies to beneficiaries of BSUP. In the process children dropped out of school and contributed to family income as did women who had to take on additional work.

No convergence of social security measures such as the various pension schemes, health schemes targeting women and children, scheme for prevetion of alcoholism and substance abuse, employment and livelihood schemes, food security schemes, education schemes including adult education and vocational training were attempted through BSUP in any of these projects to protect the urban poor from the heavy costs of procuring a new house under BSUP. In addition no provisions were made for home based work which killed small businesses.

BSUP typically failed to improve or mitigate the environmental hazards in untenable locations and to promote green strategies in redevelopment to decrease the community’s reliance on expensive conventional energy sources and paid water. No Environmental Impact Assessments were done. In many projects redevelopment contributed to further deterioration of the environment through incorrect planning and design strategies directly contributing to unhealthy living conditions and erosion of play and recreation opportunities for children outdoors.

Even with regular water supply upper floor flats need to store water due to low water pressure. Flatted redevelopment did not provide for individual water tanks and arrangements made by residents pose structural threats to buildings. The individual piped water connections have increased household expenses. As a result families still use public stand posts for drinking water or washing needs to cut down on water bills.

Flatted redevelopment projects provided a combined bath and WC which in large households increases the wait time for toilet use. Children are sent outside for peeing. The grey water from toilet and kitchen has not been separated from the foul water in most cases. Even when source separation has occurred as in Karimadom, the grey water has not been reused for flushing and gardening.

Across case studies even with a system for daily garbage collection, there are no provisions for adequately disposing the collected garbage.

All BSUP projects studied by ACE failed to create a barrier free environment. In the flatted typology of BSUP housing, it is not easy for many groups such as the elderly, pregnant women, disabled persons, women with young children, and adolescent girls carrying heavy loads of water to walk-up four floors.

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

Wherever a typical house layout had been used without consulting with the family, culturally inadequate houses were created. The projects that involved people in a participatory process to design houses produced layouts and spaces that were more in tune with the community and family preferences.

Few contractors and NGOs are willing to bid for BSUP implementation mainly due to a lack of escalation clause in the contract which freezes rates for construction at the start year rate for the entire duration of the project with no accounting for inflation.

Though the case studies promoted women’s role in planning and implementation of slum upgrading and redevelopment, women’s savings groups do not have adequate capacity to fulfil this role without training.

Slum redevelopment projects which typically achieved better child related outcomes such as Gandhi Nagar in Pune (however this top rated project only achieved this sub-optimally because of a lack of direct focus on children) had the following stakeholders who played important roles: o o

o o o

Local leadership capable of mobilizing the community including shaping consensus around community interests over individual interests Sustained community engagement with the problems of local physical environments and development of long-term plans locally for improvements to be realized incrementally and in convergence with government programs and schemes Involvement of committed and competent NGOs in community mobilization and advocacy for community-centered development including provisions for children Involvement of technical experts who understand housing and infrastructure problems in slums and are capable of producing contextually relevant and cost effective solutions An open-minded ULB committed to community centered development and not afraid to make mid-course corrections based on community feedback.

This report provides recommendations for making slum redevelopment more child-centered and child friendly to achieve better child related outcomes through BSUP and other future government programs. Recommendations are provided at policy, program and project level for each case study as well as for each of protection, provision, participation rights and sustainable development across the case studies. It ends with guidance on inclusive, integrated planning for improving children’s lives in cities and for strengthening participatory processes inclusive of children and youth in slum redevelopment.

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

List of Abbreviations ACE ADS APL ASCI ATM AUWSP AW BDA BDP BDPA BHEL BMC BMC BMC BP BPL BSUP BVL BWC BWMC CBO CC CCA CDP CDP CDS CDS CEO CESCR CHC CHF CLHI CLTS CM CMMO CMPO CMU COSTFORD CPIM CRISIL CSIP CUDP DDP DFID DHO DLHS DPDC DPR DU DWCUA

Action for Children’s Environments Area Development Society Above Poverty Line Administrative Staff College of India Automated Teller Machine Accelerated Urban Water Supply Programme Anganwadi Bhubaneswar Development Authority Basic Development Plan Bhubaneswar Development Plan Area Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation Bhopal Municipal Corporation Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation Blood Pressure Below Poverty Line Basic Services to the Urban Poor Bernard Van Leer Foundation Bustee Working Committee Bustee Works Management Committee Community Based Organization Concrete Convergent Community Action City Development Plan Comprehensive Development Plan Community Development Society Center for Developing Studies Chief Executive Officer UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Community Health Center Cooperative Housing Fund Community Led Health Initiatives Community Led Total Sanitation Chief Minister Chief Municipal Medical Officer Calcutta Metropolitan Planning Organization Change Management Unit Centre of Science and Technology for Rural Development Communist Party of India Marxist Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited Calcutta Slum Improvement Programme Calcutta Urban Development Project Draft Development Plan Department for International Development District Health Officer District Level Household and Facility Survey District Planning and Development Committee Detailed Project Report Dwelling Unit Development of Women and Children in Urban Areas

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

EAG EIA ESAF EWS FAR FGD FIRE FSI GDP GI GIS GoI HCR HH HIG HIKES HUDCO ICDS ICPS ID IDSMT IEC IHSDP IL&FS ILCS IMR INC IPP ISHUP IYCF JLL JNNSM JnNURM JSY KMA KMDA KMPC KN1 KRWA KSHB KUSP LAY LIG LISP LOBS LPG MAPP MASHAL MDG MFI MGD

Empowered Action Group Environmental Impact Assessment Evangelical Social Action Forum Economically Weaker Section Floor Area Ratio Focus Group Discussion Financial Institutions Reform and Expansion Floor Space Index Gross Domestic Product Galvanized Iron Geographic Information System Government of India Head Count Ratio Household High Income Group Healthy Living, Income Generation, Knowledge, Environmental Sensitivity and Socio-cultural Development Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited Integrated Child Development Services Integrated Child Protection Scheme Infrastructural Development Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns Information, Education and Communication Integrated Housing and Slum Development Programme Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Integrated Low Cost Sanitation Scheme Infant Mortality Rate Indian National Congress India Population Project Interest Subsidy Scheme for Housing the Urban Poor Infant and Young Child Feeding Jones Lang Lasalle Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission Janani Suraksha Yojana Kolkata Metropolitan Area Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority Kolkata Metropolitan Planning Committee Kongar Nagar 1 Karimadom Resident’s Welfare Association Kerala State Housing Board Kolkata Urban Services for the Poor Lok Awas Yojana Low Income Group Low Income Group Shelter Programme Livelihood Oriented Business Schools Liquefied Petroleum Gas Municipal Action Plan for Poverty Reduction Maharashtra Social Housing and Action League Millennium Development Goals Microfinance Institutions Millions of Gallons per Day

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

MHADA MIG MIS MLA MLALAD MM MMR MMRDA MoHUPA MoUD MPUSP MR&TP MSK NABARD NAC NBO NBSU NCPCR NFHS NFWF NGO NHC NHG NIT NMC NMSH NOC NSDF NSDP NSG NSSO NUHHP O&M OBC ODF OHCHR OSDF PCMC PH PHC PMC PPP PVC PWD RAY RCC RCH RCV REC RR RTE RWA

Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority Middle Income Group Management Information System Member of Legislative Assembly Members of Legislative Assembly Local Area Development Fund Mahila Milan Maternal Mortality Rate Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Ministry of Urban Development Madhya Pradesh Urban Services for the Poor Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act Madhyamik Shiksha Kendra National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development National Advisory Council National Building Organization Newborn Stabilization Units National Commission for Protection of Child Rights National Family Health Survey National Fishermen Welfare Fund Non-governmental Organization Neighborhood Committees Neighborhood Group Nagpur Improvement Trust Nagpur Municipal Committee National Mission on Sustainable Habitat No Objection Certificate National Slum Dwellers Federation National Slum Development Programme National Steering Group National Sample Survey Organization National Urban Housing and Habitat Policy Operation and Maintenance Other Backward Classes Open Defecation Free Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Odisha Sum Dwellers Federation Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation Physically Handicapped Primary Health Center Pune Municipal Corporation Public Private Partnership Polyvinyl Chloride Public Works Department Rajiv Awas Yojana Reinforced Cement Concrete Reproductive and Child Health Resident Community Volunteer Remedial Education Centre Refugee Rehabilitation Right to Education Residents’ Welfare Association

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

SC SCALE-UP SESI SHFM SJSRY SLNA SPARC SPPL SRA SRD SRS SSEP SSK SSNS ST STEP-UP SUDA SUN SUP TAG TB TDR TMC U5MR UADD UBSP UCD UDRC UIDSSMT UIG UK ULB UNCRC UNICEF USAID VAMBAY VAT WBM WC WHO

Scheduled Caste Slum Communities Achieving Livable Environment with Urban Partners Slum Environment Sanitation Initiative Split Hand/Split Foot Malformation Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana State Level Nodal Agency Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centers Shivshahi Punarvasan Prakalp Ltd. Slum Rehabilitation Act Slum Redevelopment Scheme Slum Rehabilitation Scheme Small Scale Enterprises Programme Shishu Shiksha Kendra SPARC Samudaya Nirman Sahayak Scheduled Tribe Skills Training for Employment Promotion amongst the Urban Poor State Urban Development Agency Slum Up-gradation Nagpur Slum Upgradation Program Technical Advisory Group Tuberculosis Transfer of Development Rights Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation Under 5 Mortality Rate Urban Administration and Development Department Urban Basic Services for the Poor Urban Community Development Urban and Development Resource Centre Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns Urban Infrastructure and Governance United Kingdom Urban Local Body United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child United Nations Children’s Fund United States Agency for International Development Valmiki Ambedkar Malin Basti Awas Yojana Value Added Tax Water Bound Macadam Water Closet World Health Organization

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

List of Figures 1.1 1.2 2.1 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13

Map of India showing location of case study cities for ACE research Eight case study projects and their typology Institutional arrangements for implementing JnNURM Location Map of Karimadom Organizational Structure of Kudumbashree Facilities near Karimadom Current Status of Redevelopment in Karimadom Proposed Site Plan of Karimadom Redevelopment showing the Phases of Construction Improvements to Housing through Gardening, Adding a Washing Platform and Creating a Clothes Drying Area The area around Razia and Sumaiya’s Block A cricket tournament is underway in the clearing next to the community hall, June 2012 The clearing next to the community hall, November 2012 Uneven Open Spaces Location Map of Nagpur Children playing near transit houses, a girl playing next to her house, a young girl playing in the space between houses in the building Young girls playing near their building, boys play outside their house Girls in the building, boys playing in Bhure Maidan Old houses in Jat Trodi Transit houses in Jat Trodi New DUs in Jat Trodi Current State of Development at Jat Trodi Proposed layout for Jat Trodi Typical Plan of a Dwelling Unit From left to right: Leaking roof, incomplete pipe lines leading to dampness and mold on the walls, unfinished terrace of Building B, paan stains on the stairs. Inside a BSUP Flat The transit camp along the defunct railway track next to existing slum houses in Jat Trodi 2, Nagpur in September 2012.

5.1

Location Map of Kalpana Nagar

5.2

Location Map of Madrasi Colony

5.3

Kalpana Nagar Base Map

5.4

Redevelopment of Kalpana Nagar on adjacent vacant land to free up expensive land next to a National Highway

5.5

Facilities near Kalpana Nagar

5.6

Central Courtyard

5.7

Blocked Common Corridors

5.8

Madrasi Colony before and after Redevelopment

5.9

Madrasi Colony Base Map

5.10

Facilities near Madrasi Colony

5.11

Children in Courtyard

5.12

Open Drains filled with Garbage

5.13

Daily Needs Shop in Madrasi Colony

5.14

Kitchen adjacent to Toilet inside the Flat

6.1

Location Map of Gandhi Nagar

6.2

City Level Facilities near Gandhi Nagar

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

6.3

Community Facilities in Gandhi Nagar

6.4

Play Areas of Children inside Gandhi Nagar

6.5

Proposed layout of Gandhi Nagar in-situ Redevelopment using BSUP funds

6.6

BSUP Houses in Gandhi Nagar

6.7

Status of Infrastructure in Gandhi Nagar

6.8

Mild Steel Staircase and Condition of the walls

7.1

Location Map of Mother Teresa Nagar

7.2

Major Religions Practiced in Mother Teresa Nagar

7.3

City Level Facilities near Mother Teresa Nagar

7.4

Physical Infrastructure in Mother Teresa Nagar

7.5

Anganwadi and John Paul Hall

7.6

Play of Younger Children

7.7

Interlocking House Design

7.8

Base Map of Mother Teresa Nagar showing BSUP houses

7.9

Custom designed houses in Mother Teresa Nagar showing BSUP houses

7.10

Mild Steel Staircase and Open Landing

8.1

Location of Kongar Nagar-I

8.2

Deteriorating environmental conditions of the fields outside KN-I

8.3

Facilities around KN-I

8.4

Girls Play in Local Streets

8.5

Extent of BSUP housing in KN-I

8.6

BSUP house is an additional structure on beneficiary owned plot in KN-I

8.7

The self built family home of Sarkar family who are ineligible in BSUP due to the land criteria prescribed for each household

8.8

The self built family home of Das family who are ineligible in BSUP due to the land criteria prescribed for each household

8.9

Typical BSUP housing with few windows

8.10

Documentation of gendered spatiality of BSUP houses

9.1

Location Map of Nayapalli

9.2

Status of BSUP Redevelopment at Nayapalli in November 2012

9.3

Common play spaces of children within the community

9.4

Play of Younger Children in Nayapalli

9.5

Status of Infrastructure in Nayapalli, November 2012

9.6

Mrs. Naik’s old house where the family prefers to stay instead of the new BSUP house

9.7

Mrs. Naik’s new BSUP house

11.1

Rating BSUP housing on child related outcomes

11.2

BSUP Redevelopment at Gandhi Nagar

11.3

Places outside the slum that children of Gandhi Nagar commonly seek out for play and recreation activities

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

List of Tables 1.1 1.2 2.1 2.2 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 10.7 10.8

Health Parameters of Urban Children Project Fact File Reform Components under BSUP Charter BSUP and RAY Social Indicators of Thiruvananthapuram Fact File Karimadom Profile of Urban Poor in Thiruvananthapuram Community Profile Karimadom Education Levels in Karimadom Typical Occupations in Karimadom Location Analysis of Karimadom Analysis of Physical Environment prior to Redevelopment Social Indicators – Nagpur Urban Population Key Findings of Slum Atlas, Nagpur Fact File Jat Trodi Demographic Profile of the Jat Trodi Community Livelihoods of the Jat Trodi Community Incomes of the Jat Trodi Households Physical Environment of Jat Trodi Prior to Redevelopment Social Indicators – Bhopal Urban Population Access to Services in Bhopal BSUP Projects in Bhopal Fact File Kalpana Nagar Fact File Madrasi Colony Social Indicators – Pune Urban Population Fact File Gandhi Nagar Typical Occupations of Gandhi Nagar Residents Location Analysis of Gandhi Nagar Analysis of Physical Environment Prior to Redevelopment Fact File of Mother Teresa Nagar Typical Occupations of Mother Teresa Nagar Residents Education Levels of Mother Teresa Nagar Residents Location Analysis of Mother Teresa Nagar Analysis of Physical Environment Prior to Redevelopment Social Indicators – KMA Urban Population Fact File Kongar Nagar-I Location Analysis of Kongar Nagar-I Analysis of Physical Environment prior to Redevelopment Social Indicators – Bhubaneswar Urban Population Fact File Nayapalli Community Profile of Nayapalli Description of Nayapalli slum environment before BSUP funded slum upgradation Five Phases of Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment Status of Security of Tenure of BSUP Housing Across ACE Case Studies Comparing Affordability of housing across case studies Tenable vs. Untenable Locations from an environmental perspective Play and recreation opportunities for children across case studies Provision of basic services-water supply, sanitation, drainage and garbage disposal Impact of basic services on children’s wellbeing Recommendations for basic services to improve children’s wellbeing Provisions for community facilities across case studies xvi


Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

10.9 10.10 10.11 10.12

Provisions at house level to make flats/houses habitable Structural and other Hazards due to Design Failures Accessibility of housing for different vulnerable groups Cultural adequacy of redeveloped housing

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

Preface Slums are an integral part of India’s urban reality mainly due to lack of adequate affordable housing in Indian cities. By definition slums lack adequate basic services and healthful living environments at the house and community level. Fortunately policymakers have awakened to this urban reality. There is an unprecedented policy focus on slum redevelopment and creation of affordable housing across the country today through government sponsored programs of integrated planning and inclusive development particularly through the flagship national urban renewal mission (Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal MissionJnNURM) which is seeking to make India slum free in the future. Action for Children’s Environments (ACE) realizes that this focus on affordable housing for the urban poor and slum redevelopment presents an unprecedented opportunity for improving the lives of children living in urban slums. However ACE is concerned that the policy thinking around slum redevelopment and slum free cities assumes that improved living conditions for the community positively affects everyone including children. As there is little understanding of the implications of not considering children’s needs and rights in processes leading to improved living environments in slums, currently there is little scope for including children and youth and their concerns in inclusive planning processes. “Analyzing the impact of JnNURM funded slum redevelopment projects on children across India” is a study conducted by ACE with the support of Bernard van Leer Foundation to show the impact of current practices of JnNURM funded slum redevelopment on children’s lives through eight primary case studies of implemented projects in six cities across India. For the purpose of this research a child is someone who is under 18 years of age. ACE believes:  It would be possible to improve the living conditions and well being of children and young people living in slums and non-slum urban poverty conditions in cities across India through future practices of JnNURM and other slum development and affordable housing programs for the urban poor.  Involvement of children and young people in addition to women and other community members in planning and implementation of projects funded by JnNURM may lead to creation of child and women friendly environments.  Building the capacity of local government actors, planners, architects, NGOs and other stakeholders to integrate child rights, best interests of children and inputs from children’s participatory processes will lead to better child related outcomes in projects. This research report is presented in twelve chapters: Chapter 1 introduces the research and establishes the context of slums as per Census 2011 and the vulnerabilities and deprivations of slum dwelling children in India. It then introduces JnNURM and its sub-mission Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) which is responsible for affordable housing and slum redevelopment in Indian cities. It reviews the objectives of BSUP from a child rights perspective to show a convergence of goals. It then proceeds to discuss the research design and methodology for selecting cases, methods and tools for

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Analyzing the Impact of JnNURM Funded Slum Redevelopment Projects on Children across India

data collection, and introduces local partners. The chapter ends with an introduction to the eight slum redevelopment projects selected for this research. Chapter 2 discusses in detail the history, structure, processes and prospects of JnNURM. It also describes BSUP objectives, processes, its potential for improving children’s lives, and the reforms and monitoring systems associated with it. It then proceeds to discuss the future of BSUP and slum development in India in the context of the just launched Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-2017) that provides a new vision for JnNURM-II which is to unfold from 2014. Chapters 3-9 discuss the primary case studies in eight BSUP funded slum redevelopment projects: Karimadom in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala; Jat Trodi in Nagpur, Maharashtra; Kalpana Nagar and Madrasi Colony in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh (these two case studies are presented together in Chapter 5); Gandhi Nagar in Pune, Maharashtra; Mother Teresa Nagar in Pune, Maharashtra; Kongar Nagar-I in Kalyani (Kolkata Metropolitan Area), West Bengal; and Nayapalli in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. All the case studies follow a common structure of reporting and analysis. Chapter 10 presents an integrative analysis of eight case studies to understand child related outcomes of the BSUP funded redevelopment in each. It uses a rights based approach to do a comparative assessment of the performance of each slum redevelopment project in fulfilling children’s rights as categorized in the 3Ps: protection, provision and participation. It establishes the parameters for assessment by elaborating on each of the 3Ps and uses a housing rights framework to expand on the provision rights under BSUP and a sustainable develoment framework to understand the sustainability of project outcomes. Chapter 11 discusses the results of rating the eight case studies using a simple rating system (See Annexure 10 for details) based on the parameters established in Chapter 10. It analyzes how Gandhi Nagar achieved better child related outcomes than others as suggested by the rating system and explores how similar communities and projects had different child related outcomes while dissimilar communities and projects had similar child related outcomes. It then analyzes the case of Gandhi Nagar in detail to show how Gandhi Nagar could have made the process of BSUP funded slum redevelopment more childcentered to achieve better child related outcomes and created a more child friendly neighborhood. Chapter 12 suggests if future slum redevelopment programs building on the BSUP experience such as Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) has to be accountable for children’s improved health and wellbeing, then the practice has to be improved through better guidance, capacity building and through creation of new local level structures for participation of children and youth. It then offers recommendations for inclusive, integrated, participatory processes including children and youth in slum development.aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

xix


Chapter 1 - Introduction


Chapter 1 - Introduction

1. Introduction Growing up in slums is a reality for millions of children living in Indian cities. 31.16% of India’s population of 1.21 billion (Census 2011) live in urban areas. India’s urban poor1 comprise a substantial proportion of India’s urban population living in adverse physical environments such as pavements, improvised shelters at construction sites and vacant land, and in slums. The Census of India 2011 shows that 38% of households in India’s million plus large cities live in slums whereas for other cities 61.9% of households live in slums. The Child Population in the age group of 0-6 years comprise 13.1% and 0-14 years comprise 31.1% of total population respectively (Census 2011). The Planning Commission estimates the slum population in India in 2012 as 94.98 millioni. This means about 12.44 million young children and 29.54 million children under 14 years are living in slums/slum like habitats across India now. For children living in urban areas of India, survival issues, health and well being are often directly connected to aspects of the physical environment such as the availability of decent housing, adequate education infrastructure, the provision of water and sanitation, the quality of space for play, the levels of traffic and pollution and many others. Among the slum dwellers, children from the poor and marginalized families pay a disproportionately high price in terms of frequent illness, morbidity and mortality. Leading causes of under 5 deaths in India include: neonatal conditions (33%), pneumonia (22%) and diarrhea (14%)ii. Children are most susceptible to diseases and injuries caused by adverse living environments as typically found in many slums across India. Census 2011 of India has defined a slum as residential areas where dwellings are unfit for human habitation by reasons of dilapidation, overcrowding, faulty arrangements and design of such buildings, narrowness or faulty arrangement of street, lack of ventilation, light, or sanitation facilities or any combination of these factors which are detrimental to the safety and healthiii. For the purpose of identification of slums in census, slums have been classified as notified slums2, recognized slums3 and identified slums4. 34% of slum households in India do not have a latrine in their premises; 65.3% of slum households in India get drinking water from a tap that is from a treated source and 56.7% slum households have this facility available within their premises (Census 2011). Children of the urban poor have a dismal school attendance record: 61.3% (6-17 years, male) and 59.2% (6-17 years, female)iv. This is in contrast to the attendance record of other non-poor urban children in the same age group: 83.7% (male) and 83% (female) respectively v. Table 1.1 illustrates how deprivations which are otherwise basic rights of children impact urban poor children vs. other urban children in Indiavi:

1

Households’ (HHs) and persons’ economic status is computed based on a set of assets owned, and housing characteristics. Areas notified as ‘Slum’ by State, UT Administration or Local Government under any Act including a ‘Slum Act’. All areas recognized as ‘Slum’ by State, UT Administration or Local Government, Housing and Slum Boards, which may have not been formally notified as slum under any act. 4 A compact area of at least 300 populations or about 60-70 households of poorly built congested tenements, in unhygienic environment usually with inadequate infrastructure and lacking in proper sanitary and drinking water facilities is identified as slum. 2 3

2


Chapter 1 - Introduction

Table 1.1 – Health Parameters of Urban Children Parameter Urban Urban Poor IMR (per 100 live births) 55 42

When basic amenities are absent, children are denied the right to an adequate standard of living as well as the right to a healthy and productive life. Deaths of children living in Anemia in children (6-59 months) 71% 63% Underweight children (below five 47% 33% adverse environments such as in city years) slums of low-income countries are Source: Urban Health Resource Centre (2010) often the direct result of contamination of water, inadequate sanitation and lack of solid waste disposal due to diarrheal and related diseasesvii. Further, children in crowded urban areas with high vehicular traffic are susceptible to road traffic injuries. Lack of consideration to children in urban and transport planning contributes to the problem. Globally in 2004, road traffic injuries were the leading cause of death among youths aged 15–24 years, and the second leading cause of death for those aged 10–14 yearsviii. In addition children in deprived urban settings have higher rates of psychological and behavior problems and lower educational and occupational expectations than those from rural areas. 1.1 JnNURM and BSUP According to recent research evidence, more children want for shelter and sanitation than are deprived of food, education and healthcareix. In India today, one urban program—the Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM), has the potential to address issues in children’s physical environments and make the lives of children living in urban slums better, safer and healthier. The dream of creating better cities for children was almost unattainable in India as urban local bodies (ULB)5 had no real power over city development processes. JnNURM launched by the Government of India in 2005 across 65 mission cities6 and several hundred nonmission cities, for the first time empowered the ULBs to fast track planned urban development to create more equitable cities. JnNURM enables cities to adopt city development processes in a participatory, transparent manner to meet the emerging needs of rapid urbanization including improving living conditions of the urban poor through better infrastructure, housing, and services. Two sub-missions called Urban Infrastructure and Governance (UIG) and Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) are implemented in 65 mission cities whereas two sub-schemes called Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT) and Integrated Housing and Slum Development Programme (IHSDP) are designed for nonmission cities. Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) is responsible for submission UIG and sub-scheme UIDSSMT while Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (MoHUPA) is the nodal agency for BSUP and IHSDP.

5

Local governments of cities have been recognized as closest to children and their communities and hence ascribed the role of protector, provider and facilitator acting on behalf of children’s rights, needs and concerns. 6 Mission Cities - As per the JnNURM guidelines, only 65 select cities/Urban Agglomerations (UAs) as per 2001 Census have been chosen for the implementation of the programme, based on following criteria: cities/UAs with million plus population; all state capitals and other cities/UAs of religious/historic and tourism importance. 3


Chapter 1 - Introduction

Addressing the concerns of urban children is not a policy focus of JnNURM. However it does have the potential, given its emphasis on improving living conditions of people living in poverty and concern for creating inclusive and equitable cities through participatory processes, to create better living environments for children particularly through the slum improvement projects. In particular, sub-mission BSUP is in fact a unique and superior policy than previous policies and programs attempting slum development as it promotes integrated community development. The positive aspects of BSUP are:   

An integrated approach to slum development through community participation. Recognizing that slum development requires not only improved houses and basic infrastructure but also improved local environments and new community facilities. Convergence of health, education and social security with housing to improve standard of living.

1.2 Review of BSUP from a Child Rights Perspective The sub-mission of JnNURM—the Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) focuses on integrated development of basic services in slums through: • security of tenure at affordable price • improved housing • water supply and sanitation • convergence of services in fields of education, health and social security • as far as possible providing housing near the place of occupation of the urban poor • effective linkage between asset creation and asset management to ensure efficiency • scaling up delivery of civic amenities and provision of utilities with emphasis on universal access to urban poor • ensuring adequate investment of funds to fulfill deficiencies in the basic services to the urban poor. As per BSUP guidelines the implementing agencies will have to prepare the Detailed project Reports (DPRs) for securing funding under the Mission. DPRs should include specific project components of health, education and social security even though these components will be funded through convergence of schemes and utilizing funds available under the programmes of respective sectors (Health, Human Resource Development, Social Justice, Empowerment and Labor, etc.). Such convergence is to be monitored by the Ministry of Urban Employment & Poverty Alleviation. In January 2007, the United Nations General Assembly adopted its first definition of child poverty acknowledging that while poverty harms everyone, children experience poverty differently. “Children living in poverty are deprived of nutrition, water and sanitation facilities, access to basic health-care services, shelter, education, participation and protection, and while a severe lack of goods and services hurts every human being, it is most threatening and harmful to children, leaving them unable to enjoy their rights, to reach their full potential and to participate as full members of the society,” according to the General Assembly in its annual resolution on the rights of the child.x

4


Chapter 1 - Introduction

“The UN General Assembly has recognized the special nature of poverty for children, stating clearly that child poverty is about more than just a lack of money, and can only be understood as the denial of a range of rights laid out in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.” UNICEF’s comment on this decision.xi BSUP when reviewed from a child rights perspective uphold several of the principles enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).  Commitment to security of tenure (articles 16, 20 and 27)  Improved housing (article 27)  Water supply and sanitation (article 24)  Education (articles 28 and 29)  Health (articles 6 and 24)  Employment near housing (articles 18 and 27)  Civic amenities and utilities (16, 19, 31, and 34)  Converging social security services (articles 2, 7, 8, 14, 16, 18, 19, 20, 22, 24, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37) This means that if BSUP achieves its stated goals in slum development projects where all the above converge seamlessly, then indeed the resultant projects would improve opportunities for survival and support healthy development of children in slums. If social security measures such as improved education, health, play and recreation opportunities as well as income security of parents that protect children from abuse, neglect, exploitation and cruelty are converged with BSUP, then JnNURM would have mainstreamed critical protection concerns of children living in poverty in urban development. See Chapter 10 for detailed discussion on this issue. An important dimension of JnNURM/BSUP is the mandatory citizen participation in the process which is a key right accorded to children (articles 12, 13, 15, and 17, UNCRC) today particularly in local area development following Agenda 21 that advocates advancing the role of youth and actively involving them in the protection of the environment and the promotion of economic and social development; the Habitat Agenda that advocates engaging children and youth in participatory processes dealing with the shaping of cities, towns and neighborhoods to secure the living conditions of children and of youth and to make use of their insight, creativity and thoughts on the environment; and most recently in the child friendly cities movement. 1.3 Research Narrative This research adopts a multiple case study methodology to understand current practices and identify the possibilities in BSUP under JnNURM for incorporating child friendly processes in the future. As the focus of the study is JnNURM funded slum redevelopments and impact on children’s well being, the study relies heavily on empirical data collected from real life contexts of several Indian cities. The research strategy adopted is an embedded case study design with multiple cases. The embedded case study is an empirical form of inquiry appropriate for descriptive studies, where the goal is to describe the features, context, and process of phenomenon. This strategy is often used in evaluation research to describe and explain the real-life context in which an intervention has occurred. In this particular instance, 5


Chapter 1 - Introduction

the study seeks to describe and explain the impact of slum redevelopment on children’s well being in the context of cities improved through India’s National Urban Renewal Mission. 1.4 Key Research Questions A. Questions with emphasis on planning process related to child focused slum redevelopment: 1. Have the needs and rights of boys and girls in different life stages been considered at the level of city development plans and during detailed project planning for slum redevelopment? 2. What processes have been established to include children and youth in planning? 3. What accountability mechanisms are established in the monitoring and evaluation processes to ensure that the project upholds the principles of BSUP, especially for integrating the education, health and safety needs of boys and girls? 4. What are some of the challenges in implementing slum improvement projects across India? What are the factors responsible for successful implementation projects? 5. Who is involved with the implementation process and how? What roles do nongovernmental professionals play in planning and implementation: urban planners, architects, engineers, contractors, developers, CBOs and NGOs? B. Questions with a focus on children’s well being in slum improvement projects: 1. Has JnNURM/BSUP funded projects been able to improve living conditions of families living in slums? Have children’s needs and rights played any role in developing slum improvement projects? 2. How have these projects affected children’s well being? What are some of the provisions that benefit children and their care givers? 3. Have children participated in developing plans, program implementation/reviews? Is there scope for revision of DPRs and plans through local level consultations with children’s/women’s/community groups in slums? 4. How do children perceive their improved slum environments? 5. Are there cases where successful slum improvement (which did not include children in participatory processes or where children were not explicitly the focus of development) also benefited children? 6. What lessons can be derived for making the planning, implementation and monitoring of processes under JnNURM child centered and inclusive of children’s participation? 1.5 Data Collection Methods 1.

2. 3.

Review of CDPs and DPRs of the selected cities and projects to understand processes, extent of citizen participation, provisions for children and to establish context. Secondary data from other studies, reports related to the case cities and projects. Visit to the project sites in the different cities across India to study the physical environment of slums that have undergone improvements. A standard format was used to collect maps; photographs; physical environment information; social and

6


Chapter 1 - Introduction

4.

5. 6.

7.

8.

economic information; political, legal and cultural information; and historical information, based on the tool developed for Growing Up in Cities (UNESCO 2002)xii. Interviews with municipal officers and wherever possible with state and central government officials were conducted to understand:  the institutional mechanisms and roles of city, state and federal authorities in planning and governance,  policy guidelines,  monitoring mechanisms,  budgetary provisions,  actual flows of resources,  communication channels with communities,  expertise available to different levels of government;  level of skills and knowledge available at the ULB,  prospects for technical assistance,  participatory practices adopted,  Review mechanisms of CDPs and DPRs of projects following citizen feedback etc. (See annexure 1-6 for details) Interviews with key non-governmental actors in the process: planners and architects, local NGOs, civil society groups (See annexure 1-6 for details). Workshops/ Focus Groups Discussions (FGDs) with children and parents in the project communities in partnership with local NGOs, university partners, women’s groups, schools, urban local bodies etc. The numbers of participants in each FGD was not more than 10 (See annexure 1-6 for details). Informal hanging out and interviews with children at project sites. Emerging themes from FGDs were probed further with individual children in addition to collecting some more in-depth personal life data. The individual interviews were based on a convenience sample (See annexure 1-6 for details). Community mapping with children: to develop an in-depth environmental resource map of the neighborhood with children documenting place preferences and place knowledge.

1.6 Data Collection Tools Three sets of open-ended questionnaires have been developed for working with the community. These were peer reviewed by Sheridan Bartlett, an international expert on children’s environment research, and Lalitha Iyer, an international expert on child-centered programming, before field testing. A standard format has also been developed to systematically collect planning data related to the city and project. The tools were piloted in Delhi with the community in Nizamuddin Basti which represents an environment undergoing rapid change due to environmental improvement activities. The parent’s questionnaire was piloted with women relocated from Nizamuddin to a far off site as a result of these improvements. At all the project sites local research teams were trained to use these tools for data collection: 1. Children’s Perceptions about their New Living Environments 2. Semi-Structured Interview Guide to Explore Perceptions about the Community and Local Area with Adolescents (13-18 years) 3. Questionnaire for Parents 7


Chapter 1 - Introduction

4. 5.

Housing Quality Evaluation Planning Data Checklist

1.7 Local Partners To help us select case studies and assist in conducting fieldwork in multiple cities and languages, we partnered with several organizations and professionals who are experts in urban development and related issues. The following are our local partners who assisted the ACE team in providing access to target communities, urban local bodies and in data collection: 1. Abhijit Kondhalkar, a Pune based urban designer and Donna D’souza, a Pune based social worker teamed up to provide local support to ACE in Pune. 2. Centre for Sustainable Development, Nagpur. Director of CSD, Leena Buddhe, led the local team comprising CSD fieldwork staff. 3. In Trivandrum and Bhubaneswar, ACE enlisted interns from local colleges to assist with fieldwork, transcription and translation of data. 4. Prof. Souvanic Roy, Head of Department of Architecture and Town Planning, Bengal Engineering and Science College, Shibpur, Howrah, West Bengal, led the local team for the Kalyani case study. 5. School of Planning and Architecture, Bhopal. Associate Professor of Planning, Sheuli Mitra, led the local team comprising Assistant Professor, Dr. Anand Wadekar, and three student interns from the PhD program in planning and the Bachelor of Planning program. 1.8 Case Studies Criteria for selecting projects and cities as case studies: a. Cities that are earmarked as mission cities in JnNURM and have utilized BSUP funds for slum improvements. b. The project has been implemented, families have been allotted houses, and families have moved in. c. Friendly local governments open to new ideas with access to institutions with planning and design expertise, and to NGOs capable of mobilizing communities around community development issues. d. Slum improvement projects have evolved through a participatory framework. e. Stakeholders are engaged with children’s issues or have expressed interest in working with children as stakeholders in community development f. Project is considered a best practice. All selected projects satisfy the first two criteria and at least two more of the above criteria. 1.9 Introduction to Case Study Projects Eight projects spreading over 6 cities in 5 states (see Figure 1.1) were selected for this research. The selected projects fall into two typological categories: in-situ flatted building typology and in-situ plotted housing typology (see Figure 1.2).

8


Chapter 1 - Introduction

BHOPAL

KALYANI

BHUBANESWAR NAGPUR

PUNE

TRIVANDRUM

Figure 1.1 - Map of India showing location of case study cities for ACE research.

Figure 1.2 - Eight case study projects and their typology

9


Chapter 1 - Introduction

Table 1.2 - Project Fact File Project

Population

Nodal Agency

Implementing Agency

Status

State Housing Policy

Karimadom

2341

Kudumbashree

Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation

2 Phases out of 4 have been built.

Draft available

1250

Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA)

Slum Rehabilitation Authority

33 DU’s out of 279 have been built by 2012.

Available

1060

Directorate of Urban Administration and Development

Bhopal Municipal Corporation

All 164 DU’s have been built.

Available

1055

Directorate of Urban Administration and Development

Bhopal Municipal Corporation

All 180 DU’s have been built.

Available

3926

MHADA

Pune Municipal Corporation

All 87 DU’s have been constructed.

Available

2550

MHADA

Pune Municipal Corporation

500

Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation

Urban and Development Resource Center

29 out of 76 houses have been built by 2012.

1440

Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority

Kalyani Municipality

3 Phase of project is ongoing.

City: Thiruvananthapuram State: Kerala Jat Trodi City: Nagpur State: Maharashtra Kalpana Nagar City: Bhopal State: Madhya Pradesh Madrasi Colony City: Bhopal State: Madhya Pradesh Gandhi Nagar City: Pune State: Maharashtra Mother Teresa Nagar

Available

City: Pune State: Maharashtra Nayapalli City: Bhubaneswar State: Odisha Kongar Nagar I City: Kalyani in Kolkata Metropolitan Area

rd

Draft available

No such policy

State: West Bengal

10


Chapter 1 - Introduction

1.10 References i

Planning Commission (2013).Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-2017) Economic Sectors Volume II. Retrieved from http://planningcommission.gov.in/plans/planrel/12thplan/pdf/vol_2.pdf ii

Lahariya, C. & Paul, V.K. (2010). Burden, Differentials and Child Deaths in India, Indian Journal of Pediatrics, 77(11): 1312-21. iii

Chandramouli, C. (2011). Housing Stock, Amenities and Assets in Slums – Census 2011. Retrieved from http://censusindia.gov.in/2011-Documents/On_Slums-2011Final.ppt iv

Urban Health Resource Centre. (2010). Health of the Urban Poor in India Key Results from the National Family Health Survey, 2005 – 06. Retrieved from http://www.uhrc.in/downloads/wall-chart.pdf v

Ibid.

vi

Ibid.

vii

World Health Organization and United Nations Human Settlements Programme. (2010). Hidden Cities: Unmasking and Overcoming Health Inequities in Urban Settings. Retrieved from http://www.hiddencities.org/downloads/WHO_UN-HABITAT_Hidden_Cities_Web.pdf viii

World Health Organization. (2007). Youth and Road Safety. Retrieved http://www.who.int/management/programme/ncd/Youth%20and%20Road%20Safety.pdf

from

ix

UNICEF. (2012). The State of the World’s Children 2012 – Children in an Urban World. Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/sowc/files/SOWC_2012-Main_Report_EN_21Dec2011.pdf x

UNICEF. (2007, January 10). UN General Assembly adopts powerful definition of child poverty. Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/media/media_38003.html xi

Ibid.

xii

Driskell, D., Growing Up in Cities (Project), & UNESCO. (2002). Creating better cities with children and youth: A manual for participation. London: Earthscan.

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Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

12


Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

2. Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM 2.1 Birth of JnNURM Soon after the liberalization of India’s economy in 1991, another landmark event unfolded in 1992, the 74th Constitutional Amendment, that decentralized governance to recognize and respect “local voice, local choice and local accountability”i by creating an elaborate system of elected rural and urban local bodies (ULBs) to enable people’s participation. For almost a decade after this, the Planning Commission dragged its feet on adequately promoting decentralization in the urban sector over the Eighth Five Year Plan (1992-1997) and Ninth Five Year Plan (1997-2002) periods. The Tenth Five Year Plan (2002-2007) for the first time clearly articulated the need for moving away from large centrally sponsored schemes that allocated resources in an uneven and inadequate manner and strengthening the autonomous functioning of ULBs. This plan called upon state governments, parastatal and urban development agencies that were performing the functions that should rightfully be discharged by ULBs, to take adequate steps to empower and enable ULBs to be self reliant. This policy directive gave birth to the National Urban Renewal Mission in 2005 that for the first time involved the three tiers of government—the central, state and local in urban development and made central assistance to cities conditional and contingent upon mandatory reforms in governance at the local level. JnNURM promised to invest Rs. 100,000 crores1 (50% of which will be spent by the central government) to improve 65 existing cities across India. This is by far the largest financial investment by the Indian government in the history of independent India in city development. 2.1.1 Description of JnNURM JnNURM comprises two sub-missions that focus on 65 mission cities:  Sub-Mission on Urban Infrastructure and Governance (UIG)  Sub-Mission on Basic Services for the Urban Poor (BSUP) Typically projects involving but not restricted to construction of roads, improving public transport, water supply, sanitation, solid waste management and storm water drains, construction of multilevel parking lots and city beautification had been taken up under the UIG component of JnNURM between 2007 and 2012. UIG also focused on improving urban governance to make ULBs financially sound with enhanced credit rating and ability to access capital market for undertaking new projects. JnNURM funding for infrastructural development (ID) and reform in governance in the 65 select cities accounted for over 60% of the total stipulated funds.ii Critics suggest that the stated objective of JnNURM is to make cities “investor friendly” and not “people-friendly”.iii BSUP, the sub-mission that focuses on the urban poor in 65 mission cities by providing access to basic services and housing with tenurial security account for about 40% of the total funds directed to these 65 cities.

1

1 crore = 10 million 13


Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

JnNURM also has two sub- schemes that focus on non-mission towns and cities and states are encouraged to select urban centers for spending these funds based on state of existing infrastructure, and population of socially and economically disadvantaged groups.  Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT)  Integrated Housing and Slum Development Programme (IHSDP) These sub-schemes replaced existing programmes such as Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (IDSMT) and Accelerated Urban Water Supply Programme (AUWSP) by subsuming them under UIDSSMT. Similarly the existing Valmiki Ambedkar Awas Yojana (VAMBAY) and the National Slum Development Programme (NSDP) were subsumed in the IHSDP. Budgetary allocations for non-mission cities under JnNURM appear to be biased as indicated by the funding share of UIDSSMT and IHSDP which are 12.8%, and 8.9%, respectively. About 80% of JnNURM funds are directed towards the 65 mission cities. JnNURM’s big city bias is also reflected in the per capita spending by the central government between 2005 and 2009: about Rs 220 per capita per annum in the mission cities as compared to Rs 119 for the non-mission cities.iv 2.1.2 Institutional Arrangements for JnNURM Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) is the nodal Ministry for the UIG Sub-Mission and UIDSSMT, while the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (MoHUPA) is the nodal Ministry for the BSUP Sub-Mission and IHSDP. The Mission is led by the National Steering Group (NSG) that provides policy oversight and makes policies to facilitate the achievement of the Mission objectives. The NSG is chaired by the Minister for Urban Development (MoUD) and co-chaired by the Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA). In the tier beneath the NSG, are two Sub Mission Directorates – one for Urban Infrastructure and Governance and the other for Basic Services to the Urban Poor. Each of these Sub-Missions has separate Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committees. These committees are responsible for sanctioning and monitoring of projects and associated reforms (See figure 2.1). At the State level, State Level Steering Committees would screen and prioritize identified projects. The projects would be implemented by State Level Nodal Agencies (SLNA). At each of the three tiers of governance, i.e. Central, State and Local, advisory assistance and support is provided by expert groups and agencies and the Technical Advisory Group (TAG). The TAG is headed by a Technical Advisor drawn from Civil Society with proven experience in mobilizing collective action for reforms in urban governance.

14


Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

Figure 2.1 - Institutional arrangements for implementing JnNURM (Source: http://www.indiaurbanportal.in/images/structure.jpg)

2.1.3 Process for Fund Release The cities eligible for seeking financial assistance under JnNURM are compulsorily required to formulate a City Development Plan (CDP) indicating policies, programmes, strategies and financial plans. The CDP should also be linked to the Reform Agenda. The Reform Agenda would include the strategy to implement reforms, in a phased manner. The CDPs would facilitate identification of projects and ULBs are required to prepare Detailed Project Reports (DPRs). The funds for identified projects across cities would be disbursed to the ULB/ Parastatal agency through the designated SLNA as soft loan or grant-cum-loan or grant. The SLNA/ULB in turn, would leverage additional resources from other sources. CDPs have been criticized for failure to include spatial planning strategies for the city by limiting themselves to providing a project based contextv. 2.2 Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) The goal of Basic Services for the Urban Poor (BSUP) is to provide basic services (including water supply and sanitation) to all poor including security of tenure, and improved housing at affordable prices and ensure delivery of social services of education, health and social security to poor people. The policy premise of BSUP and the National Urban Housing and Habitat Policy (NUHHP) of 2007 is the same. At the end of the 10th Five Year Plan (2002-2007) period the housing shortage was estimated at more than 24.7 million units across India. About 99% of the 15


Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

housing shortage was in the lowest income categories of EWS and LIG. The Policy thus supports sustainable development of habitat with a view to ensuring equitable supply of land, shelter and services at affordable prices to all sections of society. The Policy seeks to promote various types of public-private partnerships for realizing the goal of “Affordable Housing for All” with special emphasis on the urban poor. NUHHP 2007 in the spirit of the 74th Constitutional Amendment emphasized district and metropolitan planning to facilitate housing within a planned context. Housing related projects under BSUP were strategized as part of the City Development Plan which had a planned urban perspective for a period of 2025 years. A key objective of the government is to guarantee that all citizens equally benefit from national economic growth. Poverty reduction and urban development that benefits all is also a key goal under JnNURM. Within this larger mandate, BSUP also enables the Government of India to achieve a key MDG goal of reducing by half the number of people living in slums and urban poverty by 2011. A hidden benefit of BSUP is the possibility of improving child health and welfare. Evidence from a global study estimating absolute poverty among children in developing countries shows that the most severe deprivations affecting the greatest numbers of children were those relating to shelter, sanitation and water vi. Unsafe and insufficient water, lack of sanitation facilities and overcrowded and unsanitary dwellings cause disease and facilitate its spread. The key goals of BSUP being improved, affordable and secure housing with water supply and sanitation and integration of social welfare programs, thus provide an opportunity for millions of children living in urban poverty to have a better life. 2.2.1 Admissible Projects under BSUP • Integrated development of slums, i.e., housing and development of infrastructure projects in the slums in the identified cities • Projects involving development/ improvement/maintenance of basic services to the urban poor • Slum improvement and rehabilitation projects • Projects on water supply/sewerage/ drainage, community toilets/baths, etc • Houses at affordable costs for slum dwellers/ urban poor/EWS/LIG categories • Construction and improvements of drains/storm water drains • Environmental improvement of slums and solid waste management • Street lighting • Civic amenities, like community halls, child care centers, etc • Operation and maintenance of assets created under this component • Convergence of health, education and social security schemes for the urban poor 2.2.2 Beneficiaries of BSUP Targeted beneficiaries of BSUP are slum dwellers/urban poor/EWS/LIG categories. As per Government of India guideline, beneficiary of BSUP housing has to make a contribution in order to get a house termed as committed contribution of beneficiary to inculcate a sense of ownership among beneficiaries. This is around 12% of project cost for general category and 10% for urban poor belonging to Special Category such as SC/ST/BC/OBC/PH and other weaker sections. 16


Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

2.2.3 Reforms Linked to BSUP JnNURM requires implementation of certain mandatory and optional reforms to be undertaken by states and cities before central funding was made available. Out of the 23 reforms envisaged to be implemented at the State and ULB levels, three reforms, including the 7-point charter of BSUP are stipulated by MHUPA for BSUP: 1. Internal earmarking of funds within local body budgets for services to the urban poor so that adequate funds are made available for undertaking development programmes for the poor. There are three main aspects/components to this mandatory reform – a. Adoption of clear, affirmative policy at state and ULB level for earmarking (allocating) certain amount (MHUPA recommended norm is 25 % of municipal budget including funds flowing from higher level governments) of funds for urban poor by the State and each municipal body of the State. b. Constitution of ‘Basic Services for Urban Poor Fund’ and setting the rules/modalities for contribution to and disbursement from funds. c. Creation and operation of appropriate budgetary mechanism to ensure that funds allocated for urban poor get spent on urban poor. The mandatory reforms primer on internal earmarking of funds for services to the urban poorvii provides a detailed guidance on budget heads following the 12th schedule of the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act of India that specifies the domain of work of ULBs. The BSUP internal funds may be allocated for welfare of children under budget head of Urban Poverty Alleviation and Social Welfare, provision/maintenance of parks, gardens and playgrounds under the budget head of Urban Forestry and Recreational Infrastructure. Internal municipal funds can be spent on total 8 functional areas including the above two budget heads. These budget heads:  General Administration and Tax Collection  Planning and regulations  Urban Poverty Alleviation and Social Welfare  Water and sewerage services  Health  Sanitation and Waste Management  Public Works and Civic Amenities  Public Education  Urban Forestry and Recreational Infrastructure  Other Services and Support Functions 2. Implementation of Seven-Point Charter i.e., the provision of basic services to urban poor including security of tenure at affordable prices, improved housing, water supply, sanitation and ensuring delivery of other already existing universal services of the Government for education, health and social security within the Mission period as per agreed timelines. The reform components include:

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Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

Components 1. Housing

Table 2.1 – Reform Components under BSUP Charter Details of BSUP mandatory reform components Housing for the poor must be found close to their work places and preferably within the city limits. This will ensure that poor people are able to get work, earn an income, and meaningfully contribute to city development. Housing for the poor must be planned with:  In-house metered water connection and a lifeline tariff with payments in easy installments both for connections and user costs. Poor may also be charged a minimum user charge as determined by the ULB.  In-house toilets linked to underground sewerage/septic tanks.  Metered power supply with minimum tariff for use of one light and one fan based on level of affordability and easy payment plans.

Housing must also be affordable. The poor must be linked to formal banks for credit at low interest rates that allow them to repay loans in easy installments.  Community stand-posts where in-house connections are not possible to 2.Basic Municipal provide. Norms laid down by GoI for such services must be adhered to. However, Services based on city resources, these could gradually be improved from common standposts to large group/small group metered connections to private connections.  Community toilets where private toilets cannot be provided. Norms laid down for toilet provision must be adhered to. Community toilets must be planned and operated in partnership with the slum community.  Regular and efficient solid waste management with door-to-door waste collection and regular disposal from the community to the waste collection site of the municipality.  Drains concrete and covered with proper gradients/connected with city networks/underground drainage systems for wastewater disposal.  Roads (RCC) connected to city roads with an efficient public transport system that improves connectivity and enables poor people to participate in sustainable income generating activities.  Legal/metered power supply with affordable lifeline tariffs and easy payment plans for connection/user costs. 3. Social These include access to schools, health centers/hospitals, and social programmes for Services the poor (widow and old age pensions, schemes for people with disabilities, girl child schemes, etc.)  Access to schools with good quality education facilities close to slum/low income settlements.  Access to health care services (health posts) close to slum areas with doctors, medicines, facilities for testing, etc.  Social Security  Support for livelihoods (skill development, access to micro credit). Source: JnNURM Primers: Provision of Basic Services to Urban Poor - ULB Level Reform

3. Earmarking 20-25% developed land in all housing projects (by both Public and Private Agencies) for LIG/EWS category with a system of cross subsidization: This reform is aligned with the goal of “Affordable Housing for All” in the National Urban Housing and Habitat Policy, 2007 (NUHHP) that mandates reservation of “10-15 percent land in new public/ private housing projects or 20-25 percent of FAR (whichever is greater) for EWS/ LIG housing through appropriate legal stipulations and special initiatives”. This is an optional reform.

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Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

2.2.4 Convergence Agenda of BSUP One of the key goals of BSUP is convergence of social services with housing and basic service delivery. Currently it is understood as provision of:viii  Access to schools with good quality education facilities close to slum/low income settlements.  Access to health care services (health posts) close to slum areas with doctors, medicines, facilities for testing, etc.  Social Security (widow and old age pensions, schemes for people with disabilities, girl child schemes, etc.)  Support for livelihoods (skill development, access to micro credit). Currently the aspect of convergence in BSUP is undermined by the fact that health, education, employment are all handled by different ministries at the central level and executed in isolation at the local level. Social security policies and programs are similarly promoted by different ministries with no comprehensive listing available at the local level which makes convergence with BSUP difficult. Most importantly there is little understanding of social security related to all children from a right based protection perspective. In addition, following the objective of integrative planning, BSUP needs to merge other existing policies and programs related to basic services such as water supply and sanitation. For example, JnNURM needs to integrate the newly formulated National Urban Sanitation Policy and schemes such as Integrated Low-cost Sanitation Scheme (ILCS) that seeks convert/construct low cost sanitation units through sanitary two-pit, pour flush latrines with super structures and appropriate variations to suit local conditions. 12% of urban households in India still have mud/dung floors and in 55% of urban households in India more than 3 people sleep in a room (NFHS-3, 2005-06). Further the inadequacies of dwellings of the urban poor make integration of National Mission on Sustainable Habitat (NMSH 2010) with JnNURM urgent. NMSH seeks to develop sustainable habitat standards and robust development strategies while addressing climate change related concerns. Experts committees have set up Sustainable Habitat Standards for municipal solid waste management; urban storm water management; urban water supply and sewerage; and urban planning. 2.2.5 Monitoring Systems The National Building Organization (NBO) is designated by Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation (MoHUPA) as the nodal agency for coordination of appraisal, sanction, monitoring and review of projects under Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) and Integrated Housing & Slum Development Programme (IHSDP) components of JnNURM. NBO is supporting MoHUPA with creation of databases, MIS and collection, tabulation and dissemination of statistical information on housing and building construction, slum development, urban poverty alleviation and related activities. Formulation of DPRs for slum redevelopment required detailed socio-economic surveys to understand the reality of the slum before planning and also to prepare a list of beneficiaries

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Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

based on certain pre-set criteria adopted by the ULB. BSUP projects started rolling out in Indian cities since 2008. NBO who is entrusted with the role of guidance in data collection, only came up with a manual for urban local bodies for “Online monitoring System for Slum/household/Livelihood Surveys” in 2011. NBO provides the following rationale for this document: Socio-economic surveys are being conducted by the State Governments and Urban Local Bodies to formulate a plan for the improvement of the conditions of slums and slum dwellers. The statistical data thus collected from surveys is being maintained in their respective databases. However, it is found that the survey data collected is not in a uniform format making it difficult to collate and analyze the data at a single source e.g. Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation. Therefore, it becomes essential that for administrative reasons, the data collected through surveys is maintained in a central database following a uniform format and accessible from anywhere. The uniform format for conducting Slum/Household/ Livelihood surveys was unfortunately provided by NBO at the end of JnNURM-I in 2011. The Management Information System (MIS) for this survey is designed as an e-tool by Centre for Good Governance in Hyderabad on behalf of MoHUPA and also maintained by them. This data is supposed to be collected by ULBs who will also have to input the information in the e-tool. Such data once collected from all urban local bodies is supposed to build a robust MIS on infrastructural facilities available in slums and the socio-economic conditions of the slum-dwelling population across India. The data will be made available to central and state governments for  Informed decision making for Planners & Policy makers  Identification of the livelihood needs like primary education, training, employment etc. in each slum area. Decision can be taken on the needs or area of focus for development of individuals as well as slums. Had this been available earlier, BSUP would have benefitted considerably from improved quality of DPRs and better slum development proposals. However, this document is not only too late, but also too little from children’s rights perspective. Drawbacks of the MIS: the greatest drawback of the slum survey is that it does not count children properly. The only children that the survey counts are “numbers of child labourers” under “Population and Health”. Besides the fact that children under 5 years, school going children, children out of school, or girl children (all of which are categories which could benefit from different government schemes which merit convergence under social welfare in BSUP), working children 14-18 years are not counted. If the goal of the MIS is to facilitate informed planning and policy making, children’s concerns have little chance of being addressed if children are not even counted in slum surveys. Similarly survey section on “Social Development and Welfare” while taking stock of “Availability of Facilities within Slum” does not include child care centers or any other children’s facilities other than “Street children rehabilitation centre”. The household survey while collecting information about family members do not input age information thus again making children invisible in the family. The only information it collects on children from families is about a child 6-14 years of age, who is not attending school.

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Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

2.3 Future of BSUP and Slum Development in India The year 2012 marks the end of JnNURM-I and BSUP. The just launched Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-2017) provides a new vision for JnNURM-II which is to unfold from 2014 after the general elections. Till that time all unfinished projects under BSUP have an extended deadline. The rationale provided by the 12th Plan to discontinue BSUP in its current format is because only about 1.6 million dwelling units were sanctioned under BSUP in the first edition of JnNURM (2005-2012) as against the estimated current urban housing shortage of 18.78 million. The Technical Group on the Estimation of Urban Housing estimated that 73 per cent of the shortage in self occupied housing is in bottom 40 per cent of the urban households. The Government now realizes that given the huge investment required to bridge the gap between demand for affordable housing and its availability, all the costs cannot be borne by the Government. The key strategy adopted by the 12th Plan is to attract private investment and to enable the beneficiary to increase his/her contribution. The 12th Plan suggests the following multi-pronged strategy to meet the need for housing of the urban poor: 1. A facilitative environment must be created by reviewing the regulatory processes governing land use to augment the supply of affordable housing with private capital. 2. Encouraging contributions from beneficiaries of the slum—rehabilitation schemes are required for increasing the ownership of the programme. For this, the flow of institutional credit to the urban poor should be ensured. 3. Urban poor should be organized in suitable societies and self-help groups. These measures would improve the capacity of urban poor to afford a decent shelter either through incremental improvement of their existing dwelling units or take up shelter on rental basis or new units on ownership basis. 4. The Government should continue to undertake and expand the slum rehabilitation programme under the overall umbrella scheme of Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY). 5. Innovative approaches to facilitate the creation and maintenance of rental housing stock including dormitories should be expressly undertaken to serve the needs of the floating and migrant urban poor. And lastly innovations aimed at low cost housing must be encouraged. 2.4 Components of JnNURM-II 1. Urban Infrastructure and Governance (UIG) 2. Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) 3. Slum rehabilitation in cities not covered under RAY 4. Capacity building The Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT) should be merged with the sub-mission on UIG under JnNURM-II. Further, while BSUP and IHSDP should be discontinued, RAY should be a sub-mission under JnNURM-II for engaging with issues related to slums. 21


Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

2.4.1 City Coverage of JnNURM-II Under JnNURM-I, a ‘Mission city’ approach was followed. About 70% of the central assistance was provided to 65 Mission cities and that too bigger cities received more funding. In the Twelfth Plan, adequate attention is being paid to encourage the medium and small town to realize their full economic potential. Hence under JnNURM-II, the limiting concept of ‘Mission cities’ is being dispensed with and while all cities should be eligible to participate, a fair system of selection of cities to be covered under the programme should be put in place. 2.4.2 Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) RAY was announced in June 2009 and launched in 2010 with a vision of making the country slum free. Between 2010 and 2012, 30 cities across 16 states were chosen for the ‘National Slum Free City Campaign’ and for implementing model pilot initiatives. BSUP and IHSDP should be discontinued under JnNURM-II as per the policy directive of the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-2017). Instead RAY will become a sub-mission under JnNURM-II with a mandate to bring existing slums within the formal system by mapping all slums and formulating a citywide plan for rehabilitating all slums and enabling them to avail of the same level of basic amenities as the rest of the city; also prevent creation of new slums by mostly constructing enough affordable housing to stay ahead of the projected demand in 20 year perspective plans. The discontinuance of BSUP and IHSDP and launching RAY without allowing learnings from the other two to strengthen policies over JnNURM-II have been criticized.ix In a way the government considered BSUP and IHSDP to be pilot projects for RAY. Table 2.2 lists the similarities and dissimilarities between RAY and BSUP. Table 2.2 - BSUP and RAY Similarities

Dissimilarities

1. As in the case of BSUP, RAY is operationalized by the provision of conditional central support for slum redevelopment and construction of affordable housing to make Indian cities more inclusive. Central assistance is the same in both cases—upto 50% of the project cost.

1. RAY adopts a more holistic planning approach by first engaging in slum surveys using the templates provided by NBO. These templates which were produced in 2011 could not benefit BSUP but will be used in RAY. Thus the lack of focus on children and their concerns continue in the RAY survey tools as well. Using the data collected through the surveys developing a web-enabled Slum MIS system that will provide baseline date on all slums in a city. This is to be followed by development of City Base Maps and Slum Maps using GIS with CARTOSAT I/CARTOSAT II/ Latest images. This base information will enable the preparation of Slum Redevelopment/ Rehabilitation Plans, Zonal Plans and City level Slum Free Plans of Action.

2. RAY is reforms led like BSUP. In fact it includes and continues the three pro-poor reforms of BSUP: internal earmarking within local body budgets for basic services to the urban poor; implementing the 7 point charter of basic services to the urban poor; and earmarking at least 20-25% of developed land in all housing projects for EWS/LIG. In addition RAY has included one more reform of giving property rights to slum dwellers by suitable enactments at the State level.

2. Phase-II of RAY that will unfold 2013-2017 will have an additional focus on creation of social/rental housing for migrant populations. 3. RAY promotes slum-upgradation as the solution of 22


Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

3. Similar to BSUP, RAY too seeks convergence with health, education and social security schemes for the urban poor and connectivity infrastructure for duly connecting slums with city-wide infrastructure facilities/projects 4. The minimum size of housing unit on ownership basis would continue to be as mandated under BSUP, 25 sq m carpet area, including, two rooms, balcony, a water sealed toilet, bathroom, individual potable water connection, and space for a kitchen. 5. RAY too encourages community participation to develop customized approaches for slum rehabilitation related to local needs.

choice and a transparent process for tenability of slum rehabilitation. It asks both GOI and state governments to evolve clear policies on in-situ slum upgradation including redevelopment and resettlement/relocation. 4. RAY provides for measures to improve the flow of institutional credit to the beneficiary. These measures are expected to incentivize banks and other lending institutions to provide credit to slum dwellers. 5. RAY encourages using accredited NGOs and CBOs to be engaged in community mobilization, participation, social audits and evaluations. 6. RAY has a strong focus on developing affordable housing through Public-Private-Partnerships by providing different incentives to private developers.

2.4.3 Funding Pattern of RAY Under RAY, 50% of the cost of provision of basic civic and social infrastructure and amenities and of housing, including rental housing and transit housing for in-situ redevelopment in slums would be borne by the Centre, including operation & maintenance of assets created under this scheme. For the North Eastern and Special Category states, the share of the Centre would be 90% including the cost of land acquisition, if required. The remaining 50% has to be raised by the state, ULB and beneficiary subject to the following advice:  That provision of infrastructure and civic amenities will be treated as a State Good, and no cost will be passed on to the slum dwellers.  That state share should come to a minimum of 20% of the cost of provision of infrastructure and civic amenities, to ensure their financial and monitoring stake in the works. The flowing caveats/advice are provided with regard to housing: A minimum beneficiary share of 12%, (10% in the case of SC/ST/ BC/OBC/PH and other weaker sections) of the cost of the shelter is recovered from the beneficiary, so that it has value to him/her; and where the beneficiary is a vulnerable female-headed household, a household with one member physically or mentally handicapped, etc., the state may not ask for more than the minimum contribution  From other beneficiaries, asking for a larger contribution will be a state decision, but in such cases, there will be a ceiling on beneficiary share so that the EMI burden created on him is in no case more that 25% of his/her monthly household income.  States / ULB may reduce their budgetary outgo further by using PPP models innovatively to generate resources or to cross subsidize slum housing through land use concessions, etc to the private industry partners, and use of the central share as viability gap funding. States which demonstrate an innovative use of PPP models resulting in utilization of less than the specified central share of 50% in any project shall be incentivized by allowing them to use this saving in other projects in the city.

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Chapter 2 - Prospects of Slum Development through JnNURM

The RAY guidelines make it clear that the beneficiaries will have to pay more than they did for BSUP for the same entitlements. The only assured guarantee that RAY provides is legally secure tenure. Since RAY is the future policy on slum redevelopment post the general elections in 2014, and BSUP is considered its pilot phase, the current research evaluates the experience of BSUP from the ground up in eight implemented slum redevelopment projects to understand how children and their families fared under BSUP and what lessons could be derived for future processes including RAY.

2.5 References i

Sivaramakrishnan, K. C. (2011). Re-visioning Indian Cities: The urban renewal mission. New Delhi: SAGE Publications India Pvt. Ltd. ii

Kundu, D. & Samanta, D. (2011). Redefining the Inclusive Urban Agenda in India. Economic and Political Weekly, XLVI (5): 55-63. Retrieved from http://indiancities.berkeley.edu/2013/docs/Debolina_Kundu_epw%20article.pdf iii

Sivaramakrishnan, K. C. (2011). Re-visioning Indian Cities: The urban renewal mission. New Delhi: SAGE Publications India Pvt. Ltd. iv

Kundu, D. & Samanta, D. (2011). Redefining the Inclusive Urban Agenda in India. Economic and Political Weekly, XLVI (5): 55-63. Retrieved from http://indiancities.berkeley.edu/2013/docs/Debolina_Kundu_epw%20article.pdf v

Rao, K. V. (2013, April 12). Kamal Nath: We intend to future-proof our cities from unplanned chaos. Mint. Retrieved from http://www.livemint.com/Opinion/rs8ELY9taBpiZ9jch6c3fO/Kamal-Nath--Weintend-to-futureproof-our-cities-from-unpla.html vi

Gordon, D. et al. (2003). Child Poverty in the Developing World. Retrieved from http://aa.ecn.cz/img_upload/65636e2e7a707261766f64616a737476/Child_poverty.pdf vii

Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India. Internal Earmarking of Funds for Services to Urban Poor -ULB Level Reform. Retrieved http://JnNURM.nic.in/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Mandatory_Primer_5-IEFSUP_2.pdf

(n.d.). from

viii

Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India. (n.d.) JnNURM Primers: Provision of Basic Services to Urban Poor - ULB Level Reform. Retrieved from http://JnNURM.nic.in/wpcontent/uploads/2011/01/Mandatory_Primer_6-PBSUP.pdf ix

Debroy, B. (2012, January 16). Not Quite a RAY of Hope. The Economic Times. Retrieved from http://blogs.economictimes.indiatimes.com/policypuzzles/entry/not-quite-a-ray-of-hope

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Chapter 6 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment at Gandhi Nagar

Chapter 3 - Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

3.1 Introduction Karimadom, the largest and most illreputed slum, is located in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala and one of the mission cities for JnNURM. It is currently being redeveloped under BSUP/JnNURM. This project contributed to Kudumbashree1, the state nodal agency for BSUP, winning three prestigious national awards. Like the story of Kerala, Karimadom redevelopment also presents a paradox. Figure 3.1 – Location Map of Karimadom (Source: ACE 2013)

On the plus side, BSUP in Kerala enjoys the presence of the best possible institutional structures for inclusive decentralized planning at the state level, with the possibility of participatory decision making enabled by active women’s neighborhood groups (NHGs) and newly formed children’s neighborhood networks (Bal Sabhas) at the local level. The BSUP projects are backed by the only pro-child city development plan in India. Additionally BSUP at Karimadom engaged proactive politicians capable of mobilizing the community and the expertise of a renowned non-profit implementing agency, COSTFORD2. Yet Karimadom redevelopment promoted an in-situ redevelopment next to a city level sewage pond without mitigating the ill-effects of its hazardous and degraded environmental context, failed to secure people’s participation in planning and design including complete exclusion of children in decision-making processes. ACE analyzes this case study with the view of highlighting the missed opportunities that could have made Karimadom the most successful child friendly slum redevelopment project in India. The observations will be useful for making slum redevelopment truly inclusive in Karimadom where the 3rd phase of implementation is still under progress while the neediest are awaiting the construction of the 4th phase as well as for other similar projects in Kerala under BSUP and RAY. 3.2 Kerala: A Snapshot Kerala’s health and social indicators are the best in the country and on par with many developed nations. This is due to a vast network of infrastructure enabling access to institutional care. Kerala is the only state in India where almost all births (99.9%) take place in a health facility.i High literacy and education levels also contribute to people utilizing public 1

Kudumbashree is an innovative women-centered poverty eradication program operational in Kerala since 1998 in rural areas and since 2000 in urban areas. It was conceived as a joint programme of the Government of Kerala and National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and implemented through Community Development Societies (CDSs) of Poor Women, serving as the community wing of Local Governments. See Figure 3.2 for Kudumbashree organogram. 2 COSTFORD, which stands for Centre of Science and Technology for Rural Development, is a Kerala based voluntary organization, promoting low-cost, eco-friendly building technology, developed by architect Laurie Baker, and approved by the government system. COSTFORD is also engaged in a number of rural development programmes. It took three decades for this alternative way of building to be accepted by the government, even though its application is mainly in local level development work. COSTFORD is famous for its work in low-cost housing. It seeks to empower the poor by improving their living conditions. 26


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

health services thereby reducing infant and overall mortality rates, raising life expectancy and marriage age for girls, changing couple’s attitude to family size and promoting effective family planning programmes. Kerala despite its human development and governance success is a developmental paradox: it has high levels of social development with low levels of economic opportunities leading to one of the biggest problems in the state — educated unemployment. This is a leading factor in the state having a high suicide rate3 and the highest alcohol consumption in the countryii. Kerala while celebrated for its low levels of mortality, records high levels of acute and chronic morbidity. Acute respiratory infections, asthma and tuberculosis are higher in Kerala than in many other Indian states but the accessible healthcare network of the state keeps the fatality rate for diseases like tuberculosis the lowest in India.iii 3.2.1 History of Housing in Kerala Kerala pioneered the Land Reform legislation in 1971 and brought the issue of housing for the poor under the public policy realm. Under this:  Landless agricultural laborers were given the right to retain and own 10 cents (4355 sq ft) of land belonging to landed households for whom they worked.  Those not covered under the above point were provided houses under ‘One Lakh Housing’ programme.4 Since then, many schemes for providing housing security to landless scheduled caste (SC) and economically weaker sections (EWS) have been initiated. Some of the special efforts which have been undertaken are:     

Giving money as grants to purchase land and to put up a home. Giving grants to construct homes to BPL families possessing land. Construction of houses with tiled/concrete roofs, improving houses with bathroom, electrification, installation of smokeless kitchen in the already constructed houses. Extending financial assistance to electrify the houses, maintain houses, repair wells etc. of persons belonging to Scheduled Tribes (ST). A number of Govt. Departments/Agencies like Fisheries Department, SC&ST Development Departments, Rural Development Department, Revenue Department, Kudumbasree, Local Self Government Institutions, Kerala State Housing Board (KSHB) etc. are also active in providing shelter to EWS.

Despite the above efforts, the urban population of Kerala went up from 25.96% in 2001 to 47.72% in 2011, an unprecedented growth of 92% over the decade. It promoted Kerala to the 2nd position in the list of most urbanized states of India from 11th. Urban planners and policy makers worry about the future of affordable housing in the state due to escalating land prices as an outcome of this fast paced urbanization.iv 3

The latest figures from the National Crime Records Bureau show that 8,431 people killed themselves during 2011 with Kerala accounting for 6.2% of the total number of suicides in the country. Though Kerala’s percentage share has come down, there has been an increase in the rate of suicide from 24.6 per lakh population in 2010 to 25.3 per lakh population in 2011. National Crime Records Bureau. (2011). Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India - Annual Publication. Retrieved from http://ncrb.nic.in/CD-ADSI2011/table-2.2.pdf 4 See CDS-UN (1975) Poverty, Unemployment and Development: a Case Study of Selected Issues with reference to Kerala, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations for more details. 27


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

3.3 Thiruvananthapuram: Emergence of Karimadom Slum Thiruvananthapuram essentially developed as a temple town. The city derived its name from the famous Vishnu temple of Padmanabhaswamy that was built by the Population 752,490 Maharajas of Travancore around the 16th Child Population (0-6 years) 61,619 century. Several festivals are associated with Sex Ratio 1,064 the temple and devotees throng the temple Child Sex Ratio (0-6 years) 978 from different parts during those times. To Literacy Rate 93.72 Religion Hindus - 65% create a better sanitary environment for the Christians – 18% visiting devotees, the Maharaja (king) Muslims – 15% created a drainage system where a pond Others – 2% was created in a nearby low lying area to Source: Census of India 2011 drain the surface water from the temple area. Over time Brahmins settled around this pond. This area came to be known as Karimadom. Table 3.1 – Social Indicators of Thiruvananthapuram Social Indicators Thiruvananthapuram

Table 3.2 - Fact File Karimadom Location Manacaud Ward, Thiruvananthapuram Area 9.73 hectares (1047328.48 sq ft) Population 2341 Population Density 677 persons per hectare Land Ownership State Water Authority Number of Dwelling 140 Units built under BSUP TMC’s Internal 0-10% Earmarking of funds for Urban Poor Source: Thiruvananthapuram DPR

The transformation of Karimadom from a settlement near the temple to an undesirable slum is explained by Karimadom Colony Baseline Survey (2010) by COSTFORD. The pond at Karimadom deteriorated over the years, resulting in the Brahmins leaving the area for better locations. A 300 years old market known as Chalai market is located very close to Karimadom, which attracted new migrants to find odd jobs and set up small businesses in the market. A lot of jobs in the market are at odd hours: a head load worker has to reach the market around 2am every day and get off work by 9am; a woman vegetable vendor may work during regular hours selling vegetables but she has to spend additional hours early in the morning procuring vegetables from wholesale merchants. Karimadom offered cheap and convenient accommodation near the work place. The pond is part of the drainage system of the city even today. About 100 families lived on the banks of the sewage pond prior to redevelopment. The land lies 60cm below the existing road level, resulting in frequent flooding prompting frequent pumping out of water. The pond over the years has degenerated into a sewage pond as it serves as the overflow tank of the sewage treatment plant at Kuriathi. There is a drain built through Karimadom, from the MLA Fund.5 The drain connects to the Parvati Puttanaar Lake, and then to the sea.

5

MLALAD fund is the Members of Legislative Assembly Local Area Development Fund. It provides funding up to Rs.1crore for development work in the constituency of each MLA to benefit the public directly through community based projects which could lead to asset creation in public interest. 28


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

3.3.1 Slums in Thiruvananthapuram Table 3.3 - Profile of Urban Poor in Thiruvananthapuram Average Household (HH) size 4.4 Average (annual) HH Income Rs.10,155 Diarrhea 2005 (%HH) 2.05 No legal tenure (%HH) 15.75 No pipe water (%HH) 49.77 No private toilet (%HH) 14.22 Open defecation (%HH) 6.77 Flooding problem (%HH) 16.20 Source: City Development Plan Thiruvananthapuram (2006)

Due to the concerted efforts of the state government through its various departments and programs, the slum population of Thiruvananthapuram steadily declined over the years from 29,681 in 1996 as reported in the status of Urban Slums in Kerala by the Town Planning Department, to 11,817 as reported in Census 2001.

The City Development Plan (CDP) estimates slums and slum-like habitats in the city to be around 355 covering an area of 141.74 sq km. The panchayats included in the urban agglomeration also have slums and slum like habitats which is in addition to this. A common feature of all the slums in Thiruvananthapuram city and the urban agglomeration area is that all the slums are established on public land. There are no slums on private properties. The CDP recognizes that slums and slum like habitats do not have uniform characteristics and advocates developing different approaches to slum redevelopment based on the geographical and socio-economic realities of slums. 3.4 Key Features of CDP - ‘Child Friendly’ Approach of Kerala The main goal of BSUP is to create ‘A Slum Free Thiruvananthapuram City by the Year 2031’. This is very much aligned with the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation’s (TMC’s) vision for a ‘Poverty Free City by the Year 2031’. Currently about one fourth of the city population is living in slums or slum-like conditions. The CDP of Thiruvananthapuram incorporates several strategies for improving the lives of children and youth in the city particularly those living in poverty and at risky living conditions. These include strategies for improving children’s participation in decision-making within the city corporation, facilities for street children, improving learning outcomes for poor children through special classes, improving employability of youth, improving social security for disadvantaged youth, improving child and maternal health and health of the urban poor, improving child care facilities, better provisioning of parks, playgrounds and open spaces for sports and games and outdoor recreation. Under BSUP the state of Kerala has a total fund allocation of Rs.577.20 crores. The fund sharing pattern for Thiruvananthapuram is 80:20 between Central and State Governments. In the State share of the project the balance fund after beneficiary share will be borne equally by the State and Local Governments.v There are 4 BSUP projects currently underway in Thiruvananthapuram of which Karimadom redevelopment is most notable. Shortcomings of the CDP - In its redevelopment proposal for Karimadom, the CDP recognizes the inhabitable environmental conditions prevalent in the slum due to the presence of a large city level sewage pond. Yet the CDP proposes an in-situ approach to 29


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

redevelopment contrary to the city’s BSUP goals of slum redevelopment that supports relocation of slums located in environmentally hazardous areas. The CDP in its cost estimates for Infrastructure to be provided to Karimadom through BSUP divides the programme components and the cost into two heads: Home and Environment and Support Services for Total Growth and Sustainability. Under the first head it assumes costs for 613 houses which is an incorrect assumption of beneficiaries as subsequent surveys revealed. Under this same head it allocates money for improving drainage under several different heads of storm water drains, sewerage, environmental improvements and drinking water connections. The least allocation has been made under environmental improvements showing the lack of understanding of the severity of the environmental problem in the colony and no funds were allocated for potential cost escalation during the implementation period spanning several years. 3.5 Key Features of DPR Around 2005, COSTFORD was invited by the local councilor of Karimadom to visit the slum and advise on possible development to improve living conditions of the poor. COSTFORD was already working with the Kerala government and urban local bodies to prepare DPRs for slum development using BSUP and IHSDP funds. Sensing an opportunity to redevelop Karimadom using BSUP funds, COSTFORD convinced TMC to include Karimadom in the CDP under BSUP projects. COSTFORD conducted a preliminary survey using the neighborhood women. Since Laurie Baker6 had already developed some sketch designs for Karimadom in 1998, to implement his vision of providing dignified living environments for slum dwellers, COSTFORD could very quickly produce the DPR for Karimadom redevelopment. COSTFORD’s vision was to develop the entire slum by providing housing to 560 families in flatted apartments. The DPR proposed 28 blocks of flats with each block consisting of 20 flats of 31 sq meter floor area plus terraces. The DPR included few hand drawn rough sketches providing only a very basic idea of the typical block of flats and the relationship between two blocks. No site plan or house type plan were provided in the DPR In addition to building new in-situ replacement apartment blocks, the Karimadom DPR included infrastructural provisions of water supply, electricity and sanitation. The DPR also included several provisions for realizing the vision encapsulated in Thiruvananthapuram’s CDP. It plans to promote ‘Green Strategies’ at house and community level using eco friendly low-cost solutions by providing smokeless chullahs; cleaning, de-silting the sewage pond and strengthening the embankment with dry rubble masonry walls to prevent flooding and site erosion; bio-fencing around the pond and site boundary of the slum using bamboo fencing and bougainvillea plantings; rainwater harvesting tanks in all houses and a biogas plant to utilize the garbage and bio-degradable materials in the slum to power streetlights. The provision of a study center cum library, construction of two Anganwadi Centers, community open spaces with planted trees to serve as gathering spaces and play spaces for

6

Laurence Wilfred "Laurie" Baker (2 March 1917 – 1 April 2007) was a British-born Indian architect, renowned for his initiatives in cost-effective energy-efficient architecture and for his unique space utilization and simple but aesthetic sensibility. Influenced by Mahatma Gandhi, his designs were simple, practical yet beautiful using local materials and construction techniques. Baker settled in Kerala and practiced his brand of sustainable low-cost vernacular architecture through COSTFORD. Baker has often been called the "Gandhi of architecture". 30


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

children along with playground are included in the DPR for improving the lives of the Karimadom children. The DPR did not include improvement proposals for existing social amenities such as the large community hall, the AW and PHC. The DPR also did not provide any budget for its program components making it difficult to analyze how the budgetary allocations in the CDP were adjusted in the new program components proposed in the DPR. The DPR had some good ideas, but the lack of details makes it difficult to understand the vision and difficult to implement. The lack of a site plan or even building level plan in the DPR would have made it impossible for any other agency other than COSTFORD to implement this project according to Laurie Baker’s vision. 3.6 COSTFORD Baseline Survey 2010 - Key Observations Table 3.4 - Community Profile Karimadom Sex ratio 1137 Male 1013 (based on surveyed population of 2165) Female 1152 (based on surveyed population of 2165) Children under 14 years 508 (270 males, 238 females) Working Population (15-60 1521 (70% of the years) population) Religious Background 57% Muslim, the rest are Hindus and Christians Caste Background 11% SC Source: COSTFORD Baseline Survey (2010)

A Baseline Survey (2010) was initiated by COSTFORD after two of the 1st phase blocks had already been constructed to get a better understanding of health, education, employment and other social dimensions. It appears that the overall site plans of the colony was developed after the baseline survey and post the first phase of construction.

Disturbing Trends Observed:  Despite the adult sex ratio of Karimadom (1137 women for 1000 men) being higher than the state average (1084), in the 0-14 years category there were 48 girls less than what was required to level with the state sex ratio for this age category.  Of the 509 surveyed families, 157 families were headed by women many of whom were young women such as young widows, married women deserted by their husbands and unmarried young mothers.  Despite Kerala being considered an ageing state, the above 60 population in Karimadom is much below the state average and there were twice as many older women than men in the community.  In the surveyed population, 98 persons were illiterate, 9 persons had received no formal education, and 377 never finished high school. 3.6.1 Health Verifiable data available from the PHC is imprecise as residents prefer the Government Hospital over this facility. All deliveries are institutional and children get immunized at a nearby government children’s hospital facility. Most common health problems faced by children are diarrhea, fever and scabies. Fever among children and diarrhea do not get reported since families prefer to use home remedies. Due to lack of awareness about the implications of

31


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

some of the diseases, such as leptospirosis, a common disease in Kerala related to an adverse living environment families do not seek treatment. Though the COSTFORD study did not report on disabilities, the research team found 3 male siblings (less than 14 years) to have missing and morphed digits in their hands, a genetic trait called ectrodactyly also known as split hand/split food malformation (SHFM). Their mother and maternal uncle also have this condition. 3.6.2 Education Table 3.5 – Education Levels in Karimadom School Going 214 girls 212 boys th High School (Class 11 ) 28 girls 19 boys College 23 girls Illiterate 287 No formal schooling 41 Graduated from high school 25 Attended primary school 600 Attended high school 500 Graduated from college 18 Source: COSTFORD Baseline Survey (2010)

Karimadom’s literacy rate is much lower than the literacy rate recorded for Thiruvananthapuram district. Most children from Karimadom attend the Government Higher Secondary School at Manacaud, followed by Government UPS at Manacaud, Government Boys High School at Chalai, Sanskrit High School and Government Model Higher Secondary School.

The Survey by COSTFORD missed reporting about Don Bosco Veedu Society that had been running free after school tuition classes for children in Karimadom for many years and also provided scholarships to needy students. 3.6.3 Livelihoods The livelihood opportunity for men comes mainly from the Chalai market as daily wage earners, with wages ranging from Rs.400500. Only a part of this earning reaches the families since alcoholism is high among men. Daily wage labor is hard work and men involved in it are unable to continue that work as they grow older. Life expectancy at birth in Kerala for men is 73.2 years and for women is 77.6 years. The fact that there are only 49 men alive in the community above the age of 60 as compared to 87 women of the same age suggests that hard physical work and alcoholism contribute to shorter life expectancy among men here. Table 3.6 - Typical Occupations in Karimadom Occupation Number Number of of Men Women Wage Labor 386 81 Head Load Work 75 3 Auto Rickshaw Drivers 44 0 Sales person 11 5 Mechanics 8 0 Government Jobs 3 7 Small Vendors 0 30 Housemaids 0 29 Source: COSTFORD Baseline Survey (2010)

Women earn much less compared to men and as a result woman headed households tend to be poorer. However, women spend their total earnings on the family. Lack of higher educational attainment in the community also limits employment options for the poor. Women are much more focused than men on getting their children educated for better future opportunities. Some women heads of families desperate to ensure a better future for their children are working as housemaids in Gulf countries. They are contract bound to return home once in three years entrusting their children to the care of other family members typically their mother or sister. 32


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

Box 3.1 - Amala’s story Amala lost her husband to cancer in 2012. She is the sole provider for her family. Her divorced daughter and her two children as well as her son’s two children stay with her. She has a house front shop inside the slum and also runs the Don Bosco study center from the Anganwadi next to the PHC. Her husband’s prolonged illness has put her in debt. The day she was interviewed her family had gone hungry because they did not have the money to buy food. However she was positive that by evening she would earn a few rupees from the shop and could cook a spicy fish curry.

Data about other types of employment is not segregated by gender. Besides auto drivers there are also taxi drivers and drivers of private cars, a few masons, carpenters and construction workers, and a few part time teachers. 3.6.4 Home Based Businesses 114 people are running small businesses such as pickle making, appam7 making and chipmaking using seasonal crops such as jackfruit and banana that use the home and the neighborhood as a base. About 15 people are engaged in scrap sorting business. Their job is to separate metal scrap, glass and plastic bottles from garbage. About 10 people, mostly women are engaged in tailoring as a primary source of income. Several others do tailoring jobs to supplement their family income. However many women are not able to sustain this as a livelihood option due to inadequate light inside the huts, unsupportive husbands and lack of space inside their homes to keep a sewing machine, accessories and fabric. A few families are engaged in food catering. Some families provide butcher services to local shops from home. They mostly buy dead goats and chicken and store them in a room. This room is also used for slaughtering before delivery to the shop. Many women and children are involved in making flower garlands from home. 3.6.5 Work of Children Even though most children in Karimadom go to school, boys and girls are engaged in different forms of work. Girls are responsible for all housework including cleaning the house, washing clothes for the entire family, washing utensils, and helping with cooking. However more boys drop out of school than girls. Dropout rate among boys after 14 years is high as most of them prefer to earn daily wages by working in Chalai market or in neighborhood businesses over higher education. 3.6.6 Vulnerabilities of the Poor Box 3.2 - Indicators for identifying poor families Kudumbashree uses 9 indicators or risk factors to identify poor households. A household is considered poor if it possesses 4 or more of the 9 risk factors:  Families having no land or less than 5 cents of land  No house or dilapidated house  No sanitary latrine  No access to safe drinking water within 150 meters radius  Women-headed household, presence of a widow,

7

A type of South Indian pancake. 33


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

Most families in Karimadom have color televisions, radios, music systems, cell phones, some furniture such as beds, almirahs,  tables and chairs, besides storage  racks, adequate steel utensils and gas range. Despite all these material possessions, families in the existing slum of Karimadom are subject to the vulnerabilities associated with the other risk factors related to an inadequate living environment, uncertain income, gender and social group related inequalities  

divorcee, abandoned woman or unwed mother No regularly employed person in the family Socially disadvantaged groups such as Scheduled Castes/Tribes Presence of mentally or physically challenged person or chronically ill member in the family Families without color television.

3.7 Community Organizations 

Under Kudumbashree there are 20 active neighborhood groups (NHGs) each having 20 women who take advantage of the weekly savings facility provided through this self help program designed to empower poor women (see Figure 3.2). In addition NHGs are supposed to discuss community needs to form the basis for a ‘micro plan’. The micro plans of all the NHGs are coordinated and prioritized at the Area Development Society (ADS) level and this forms the ‘mini plans’ of that particular ADS. The ‘mini plans’ of the various ADSs are again coordinated at the Community Development Society (CDS) level and it forms the ‘Town Plan’ for poverty alleviation.

 There are 13 Bal Sabhas in Karimadom and each Bal Sabha is named after a flower.  The nearby Fort Police Station helped to set up the Karimadom Resident’s Welfare Association (KRWA) in 2011.  Offices of major political parties also operated out of the slum.

Figure 3.2 - Organizational structure of Kudumbashree (Source: ACE 2013)

34


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

3.8 Children’s Networks under Kudumbashree In order to prevent inter-generational transmission of poverty, Kudumbashree supported by UNICEF has established neighborhood based networks of children or Children’s Neighborhood Groups (Bal Sabhas) to enhance capabilities of children. Box 3.3 - Children’s Networks in Thiruvananthapuram Bal Sabha - Each Bal Sabha consists of 15-30 children in the age group of 5-15 years. Bal Sabhas are envisaged to engage children in small learning groups for experimental and systematic learning, understanding democratic processes, conserving the environment and collective decision-making. Bal Sabha Samiti - One boy and one girl are elected as representatives of each neighborhood level Bal Sabha to the general body of the ward level Bal Sabha Samiti. Bal Panchayat - Similarly two members (a boy and a girl) from each Samiti at the ward level are elected to the Bal Panchayat. Bal Nagarsabha (Children’s Corporation) - Proposed by the CDP to enable poor children to participate in the development agenda of the city and to hear about issues faced by children to formulate better plans at the corporation level. • There are currently 5900 Bal Sabhas in Thiruvananthapuram district. This network of children is a powerful structure and could go a long way in providing a participatory space for children in local and city level decision making and mainstream children’s participation in the JnNURM process. • There are 13 active Bal Sabhas in Karimadom. Each Bal Sabha has an individual bank account. The Bal Sabhas organize children for different activities on Sundays and collect money for celebrating different festivals. Each Bal Sabha has a president and a secretary.

The Bal Nagarsabha proposal is yet to be implemented. However it is worth noting that the Bal Panchayats are active at the Panchayat level and successfully conduct meetings sensitizing children to their rights. The Bal Nagarsabha could similarly provide a platform for urban children to develop needbased area specific projects in the spirit of Local Agenda 21 (1992), Habitat Agenda (1996), and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), to improve their own lives and the communities in which

they live. 3.9 Existing Slum Environment 3.9.1 Location Analysis of Karimadom Advantage 1. Accessible location in the heart of the city. 2. Proximity to major sources of employment: the Chalai Market and the Railway Station (1200m). 3. Proximity to religious and tourist attraction of Padmanabhaswamy temple.

Table 3.7 Location Analysis of Karimadom Disadvantage 1. Located next to a large sewage pond which is connected to the drainage system of the city. 2. Open drains connected to other city drains carrying untreated sewage flows through the heart of the slum. 3. Prone to flooding as the area is low lying with a high water table which is barely 60cm below the surface. 4. Across the road from the slum is a large vacant land which is being used as a city level garbage dump ever since the landfill at Vilappilsala became unavailable to the 8 city in 2011 . 5. The stench in the slum is overpowering due to these hazardous environmental conditions.

8

Vilappilsala waste treatment plant on the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram was forcefully shut down by the local Panchayat in late 2011 following a standoff between Thiruvananthapuram City Corporation and the village Panchayat with locals there demanding that it be re located as its presence was causing serious health problems in the area. Ever since the city is sinking in garbage as the corporation stopped garbage collection as it had no place to take it to for treatment. 35


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

4. Proximity to schools and hospitals.

6. Following the closing of the Vilappilsala landfill, sky high piles of garbage accumulated near Chalai that flooded the market streets with garbage during rains and prevented people from entering. For the first time in its long history, Chalai market considered closing down and relocating to a less polluted area. If this relocation comes to pass, Karimadom will become irrelevant to its residents as the most conveniently located living environment for the urban poor in the city.

500 M CIRCLE

LEGEND School KARIMADOM Hospital Garden Colleges Temple Mosque PHC BUS DEPOT

CITY LEVEL FACILITIES WITHIN A KILOMETER REACH : KARIMADOM

Figure 3.3 - Facilities near Karimadom (Source: ACE 2013)

Figure 3.4 – Current Status of Redevelopment in Karimadom (Source: ACE 2013)

36


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

3.9.2 Analysis of Physical Environment Prior to Redevelopment

Provision

Table 3.8 - Analysis of Physical Environment Prior to Redevelopment Characteristics

Settlement Structure

The existing slum had grown organically over decades. Narrow 3-5 ft wide bylanes traverse the length and breadth of the slum providing access to the huts. One 25 ft wide east-west running metal road divides the slum in two halves. A drain runs parallel to this road inside the slum and drains into the sewage pond. There is a raised concrete street over the drain with houses on either side. There are very few open spaces within the slum which are used for storing sorted scraps, vegetable crates; small vending carts and other articles that help the community earn a living. The streets and open spaces are used by children and girls for playing.

Physical Infrastructure

Water Supply: The slum depends on the water supplied by TMC. About 224 houses have domestic connection for drinking water in the existing slum. Rest of the families use water from the public standpipes. When the municipal water supply runs low, TMC sends water tankers to supply drinking water to the colony. There is piped water in a lot of the slum houses as a SC/ST scheme provided this essential service to the slum. This is the source of drinking water for families that have the supply, otherwise water is collected from the standpipe and stored in drums inside the kitchen area or even outside the entrance in case of smaller huts.

vi

Electric Supply: 84% of households in the existing slum are electrified. About 81 houses use kerosene lamps for lighting. Sanitation: 60% of the houses had domestic toilets which directly discharged into the drain. There are public toilets in the slum which cater to the remaining households. These too are directly connected to the drain. During rainy season, the drain which in addition to carrying sewage also serves as a storm water drain overflows and sometimes families have to stand in chest deep dirty water in their houses. Social Infrastructure

Community Hall: One large community hall is located along the 8m wide road. This Hall serves as a transit camp for residents whose houses are demolished for redevelopment. Primary Health Center (PHC): One health center is located across the street from the community hall. A doctor comes once a month, a nurse and a junior nurse provide limited over the counter drugs to residents. But mostly people go to the General Hospital. Anganwadi’s (AW): Karimadom has 2 AW’s. One anganwadi is located next to the PHC and another one deep inside the slum in a rented house. The anganwadi next to the PHC has a large hall with tiled floors and many windows. A washbasin is kept in the corner and the long narrow kitchen at one end is used for both cooking children’s lunch and as an eating space. There is an unused room at the back. Outside there is strip of front yard with a boundary wall and a gate. The children’s toilets located at the back of the AW have no toilet fixtures and as a result the children squat anywhere and the AW worker has no toilet to go to. This AW functions as a study center operated by Don Bosco Veedu Society in the evening. The second AW runs out of a rented house inside the slum. The government only provides Rs.750/month for rent whereas the rent is Rs.2000/month. The balance is jointly paid by the AW worker and her assistant in order to run the AW and have a government job. This AW conducts monthly classes for mothers and adolescent girls on personal hygiene and care. This AW floods during the monsoons and the children are shifted to another building.

House Form

Single storied with mostly sloping roofs

House Layout and

One room partitioned into sleeping and cooking areas entrance/work/business area. Many houses have small shops.

and

sometimes

an

37


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

Habitability

Typical floor areas range from 100-400 sq ft. Average family size is 5, houses with 8-9 members are considered overcrowded. There is segregation of cooking and sleeping areas in most houses. Both gas cylinders and wood are used for cooking. Plastic is often burned to light the firewood. Clothes are washed with water drawn from standpipes. Washing often happens on the street in front of the house. People have constructed wooden shelves wherever convenient for storage of smaller articles like school bags, toiletries, medicines etc. There is no emergency fire access inside the slum where highly inflammable plastic sheets and cardboard components are present in almost every house.

Material of Construction

Roof - The roofs are variously made of GI sheets, asbestos, plastic sheets, thatch and in some cases concrete slabs. The roofs are not accessible. Walls - Walls have been constructed with any available material ranging from bricks, concrete blocks, plastic sheets, thick cardboard from packing boxes, cane matting etc. A house may even have several of these materials on different walls. Floor - Most houses have flooring made out of plain cement concrete. Some houses have put tiles over this rough floor. Windows - There are hardly any windows. The few windows that are present are small and mostly boarded up for privacy.

Problems with Existing Houses

   

The houses have poor ventilation as windows are rare and the few windows that are present are boarded up to provide sound and visual privacy from the street and neighbors in this crowded high density living environment. There is almost no natural light except from the front door which is typically kept open. Every year residents have to repair the leaking roofs to weather protect the house. They spend up to Rs.5000 every year on repairs. The drain that flows through the heart of the slum overflows during heavy rain and mixes with flood water. This is a severe threat to the community health particularly for children. The presence of the open drain carrying sewage, garbage filled streets, and the nearness of the sewage pond makes the slum a fertile mosquito breeding ground.

3.9.3 Children’s Perception of Existing Slum in Karimadom Box 3.4 - The story of a 14 year old boy living in the slum awaiting redevelopment Nowfal and his family which comprises of his parents, grandparents, sister and extended family th th members (eleven members) await allotment of a flat in the 4 phase. Construction of the 4 phase is subject to political clearance, since it requires reorganizing the sewage pipes necessitating coordination between several government departments. Nowfal is 14 years old and studies in Sanskrit High School. His school is located at a distance of about 500 meters and he used to cycle to school till his cycle broke down and now he has no money to repair it. Nowfal’s house is deep inside the slum with a small clearing in front. The spatial layout of his house comprises of one space partitioned into an entrance, a sleeping area with two beds, a big TV, a music system, two steel almirahs and a small kitchen. A corner of the kitchen, which has a piped water connection, has been turned into a washing area. There is one fan and one electric light inside the room, with no provision for natural light. Nowfal stores his school books under one of the beds. His existing house arrangement leaves little space for Nowfal to study or have any sense of privacy. The stench from the pond and drain makes him sick and kills his appetite. The everyday diet of the family consists of rice and possibly a vegetable curry. Fish and 38


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

chicken are extremely rare, though occasionally he eats an egg. His favorite food is parotta and chicken curry which he hadn’t eaten in a long time. Nowfal’s father works in a hotel making tea and snacks during the day and sells dosa-vadas in the evenings from a cart, earning around Rs.500/day. He has high sugar, BP problem and smokes heavily. His mother works as a maid in a teacher’s house, earning Rs.1000/month. She is a part of the NHG and has managed to save Rs.4000 so far. She suffers from acute migraine and varicose veins and gets frequent headaches and stomach aches. Typically, Nowfal’s day starts at about 5.30am, and he has to wait for about 15 min to use the common toilet which is shared by 10 families. Soon after he goes to mosque to offer prayers, and on returning studies till 8.30am after which he leaves for school. On returning from school he has some snacks and goes to Madrassa at about 4pm. Nowfal helps his family by running errands like shopping, washing utensils and clothes. Recently in the evening he has also started working in a chicken shop to supplement his family’s income. Nowfal said he likes the new flats that have come up in the area. But since they cost Rs.21000 he is not sure whether his family can pay for it. So for this reason he says he also likes his old house as that is free.

Most children in Karimadom when asked to name the good things in their community started by saying, “there is nothing good here!” Further probing revealed that a group of Muslim preadolescent boys considered the Madrasa a good place for children. Adolescent boys seek out other places nearby when they wander around with their friends. Nowfal and his best friend Ashique also think that there is nothing nice in Karimadom. The two of them had a secret place they called “paradise” where they often went to escape the slum. It mainly comprises a series of vacant lots on a dead end street with tall coconut trees and grazing cattle. The street ends at a tall stone wall beyond which lay the grounds of the government school where the boys studied before. They would climb over this wall and jump over to the other side. However nowadays paradise is lost to urbanization. All children were much more forthcoming about the bad things in the community irrespective of gender and religion. They list alcoholism and the violence that results from this abuse both at the family and community level as one of the worst things in their community. This is followed by use of bad language, fights and clashes over garbage, space, allotment of new houses. The scarcity of resources such as the rush to fetch water in the morning from the public standpipe which results in their getting late for school; environmental hazards such as dirty drain water overflowing and flooding their houses during the rainy season were also mentioned. All children, boys and girls are forbidden by parents to go near the pond and the large garbage disposal areas. The only clearings currently available in the community are near the pond and in garbage strewn areas. So children have no choice but to disobey and play in these dirty places. Children many times said that they would like to have a good park and playground, good study/tuition centers, nice shops and a common hall for indoor play and community functions in Karimadom. It is interesting to note how children and adults both ask for study centers. Private tuition after schools are very common in this community as mothers in particular are keen to get their children educated well. Don Bosco Veedu Society has been running free after school tuition classes in the community for a long time but there seems to be a reluctance to engage with this existing resource at the community level and also through the redevelopment process.

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3.10 The Process of Slum Redevelopment at Karimadom After COSTFORD had submitted the DPR, TMC found it difficult to find contractors or NGOs to bid for the project. Before Karimadom, another slum redevelopment project was executed by COSTFORD at Changanchulla. That project was tendered thrice before COSTFORD agreed to work on it. In the case of Karimadom too the government invited tenders but no one came forward; the lack of escalation clause, working with PWD rates with no contractor’s profit were some of the deterrents for people wanting to work on these projects. However COSTFORD was keen to implement Karimadom as Baker already had a vision for it. So they made an offer to the government to redevelop the slum. In the absence of any other bidders and with an established track record of completed projects for the government, COSTFORD was given the work. Once COSTFORD was awarded the project in 2007, they developed the sketch design made by Laurie Baker for Karimadom and created a site plan housing 28 blocks with 20 flats each. The central open space as originally envisaged by Laurie Baker and mentioned in the DPR as a children’s playground/social gathering space was done away with. Instead spaces that got generated between blocks were considered to serve those functions. The blocks were scattered all over the site without any attempt to create streets or courtyards or well defined open spaces. Box 3.5 – Phased Redevelopment in Karimadom The redevelopment was to be carried out in a phased manner in four phases: st

Phase 1 - The 1 phase had 4 blocks and 80 flats constructed for Rs.62 lakhs each in 2008. 26 families who lived in that pocket were awarded 40 flats. The rest were given to people on the basis of st recommendations by political parties. 1 phase finished in 8 months as there was political pressure to inaugurate the project before elections. nd

Phase 2 - The 2 phase faced cash flow problems and progress was slow. 2 Figure 3.5 - Proposed Site Plan of Karimadom blocks were constructed in 2010 for Redevelopment Showing the Phases of Construction Rs.72 lakhs each. It removed 53 families and created 60 flats in 3 blocks. 7 remaining families came from all over the slum mostly through political connections. In all, 3 of the planned 4 blocks were constructed in the 2nd phase. The 4th block has been put on hold because the drain that connects Kuriathy sewage pumping station to the sewage pond runs close to the surface, where this block was sited in plan. Building the block would require relocating the drain. rd

Phase 3 - The 3 phase entails the construction of 9 blocks. This is currently underway. Phase 4 – The remaining 11 blocks are to be constructed in some of the highest density clusters with poorest of poor living in Karimadom.

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Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

3.10.1 Politics of House Allocation All beneficiaries paid Rs.21000 as their share, except BPL families who paid Rs.18000. Residents had to show an identity proof that showed their place of residence as Karimadom. Various proofs were accepted: BPL card, ration card, voter’s card etc. If a family failed to furnish any of these, then their neighbors could vouch for them as residents of Karimadom. According to the Municipal Project Implementation Office, there was logic to the house allocation. Ground floor apartments were reserved for the elderly and people with disabilities and the rest were allocated through a lottery. People dislike the lottery system since it does not allow them to choose their neighbors. But more importantly, residents feel the process has been controlled by local politicians and Kudumbashree officials on the ground. In both phase 1 and 2, more flats were created than were needed by families removed from that area, and the additional flats were given to people well connected to local power bases and not the most vulnerable families. Some of the residents, not given the houses claimed that the community organizer had allocated them to her relatives and friends. They went to court in August 2011, accusing the Corporation and community organizer of discrimination and the violation of norms. The High Court ordered a stay on the allotment, asking the Corporation to file an affidavit on the matter. However, after flash floods in early January 2012, the Corporation requested permission to allot 40 houses to flood-affected residents. The Court agreed to a conditional and temporary occupation of the flats until a final decision was made. The petitioners, however, blocked access to the flats intended for the community organizer and her family. The Mayor called a meeting to resolve the matter, and it was observed that some of the people blocking access did not even belong to the community. The allotees were allowed to take possession of their flats under police protection. Eventually the petitioners lost the case and the allotees now have a legal basis for staying. The community organizer accused of favoritism defended her actions. She had chosen not to receive a Phase 1 flat, she said, because these were in a Muslim dominated area. Instead she chose to remain with her family in transit accommodation, waiting for a Phase 2 flat. Having lived in transit accommodation for two years, her family had priority, and their case was supported by the Corporation and the court. It is worth noting that the community organizer now occupies a top floor apartment, highly desirable because of the degree of privacy, natural light, cross ventilation and potential for later expansion. 3.10.2 Consultative Process In 2008, several meetings were called by the local MLA in the Karimadom community hall. COSTFORD, TMC officials and mostly women from the NHGs attended these meetings. Children also attended these meetings with their mothers but only as silent spectators. According to the president of the most active Bal Sabha who was present at the meetings with her mother, said, “No one allows children to speak up, children are only meant to listen to elders here�. The planning process was expert driven and drawings and models were used as visual tools for persuasion by politicians and TMC to secure the community vote for the project. The lack of understanding of the ground level realities showed in the development of

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Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

CDP and DPR which had discrepancies regarding the overall site size, number of households and total population to be covered. Box 3.6 – Consultative Process in Karimadom 

COSTFORD showed drawings and models of the redevelopment proposal. Initially the community had several reservations about the proposal - they did not want to walk up 4 floors; did not want to have their shacks demolished, or shift to a new place and did not want to make the beneficiary contribution of Rs.21,000. But TMC made it clear that flats could only be allotted upon receiving the beneficiary contributions as per the rules of the project. People also wanted more space as some of them had large families, TMC agreed to allot individual flats to households within larger families provided each household made the beneficiary contribution. However people’s feedback was not taken regarding the house design and so no modifications were made.  COSTFORD and TMC relied heavily on community organizers and local politicians to win the trust of the community who persuaded slum dwellers to think about the benefits of redevelopment which above all would provide them with a dignified living space. In each phase slum dwellers were convinced to vacate and demolish the houses themselves and encouraged to salvage, sell and recycle materials. Families after demolishing their houses lived with relatives, or in the community hall that served as a transit camp or in rented accommodation. Some really needy families lived in makeshift tents around the construction site.

TMC took a tough stand with people who refused to sign off on the redevelopment and provided a deadline for families to vacate and demolish their houses. If these orders were ignored, the corporation forcefully demolished the huts. The courts and other locals availing BSUP houses supported the corporation in their stand.

The weak consultative processes coupled with some of the procedural aspects resulted in certain uncertainties in the project. 3.11 Housing Quality Evaluation of Slum Redevelopment A housing rights framework9 is adopted to analyze the housing quality of the slum redevelopment. 3.11.1 Security of Tenure The land of Karimadom Colony belongs to the Water Authority that had permitted the Corporation to redevelop the slum to house the urban poor. TMC provided an ownership certificate to residents as proof of secure tenure entitling residents to the flat and to no part of the land. These certificates will remain in TMC’s custody for 7 years which is a lock in period when residents are not allowed to sell or transfer ownership of their properties. All service connections such as electricity and water supply are in the name of the beneficiary family thus strengthening proof of ownership of the residence. 9

As per article 11 (1) of CESCR, States parties "recognize the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and to the continuous improvement of living conditions". The human right to adequate housing, which is thus derived from the right to an adequate standard of living, is of central importance for the enjoyment of all economic, social and cultural rights. Adequacy of housing is defined by the General Comment 4 as comprising legal security of tenure, availability of services, materials, facilities and infrastructure, affordability, habitability, accessibility, location and cultural adequacy. An adequate standard of living is also enshrined in Article 27 of UNCRC that the discourse on children’s housing rights draws on. 42


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

3.11.2 Affordability Most of the flats (about 90%) are in the names of women, as recommended by BSUP, as men tend to sell property more than women. Kudumbashree assisted women to get loans from banks for paying the beneficiary contribution for the new flats. Typically women took loans of about Rs.20000 which they repaid in 20 to 22 months through the neighborhood savings and SHGs. The repayment record for women in Karimadom has been 100%. Electricity and water connections are not part of Anando is a 14 year old boy living with the BSUP funding. These his widowed aunt in a new flat in are paid for by TMC from Karimadom. His mother works in Oman National Slum Development as a housemaid and comes home once in 3 years. Anando’s father left them Program (NSDP) funds. when he was an infant. Anando’s COSTFORD provided the mother paid Rs.18000 for the house and wiring for electric connection was not given any ownership papers. Anando and his aunt up to one point in every TMC gave them a paper where the house. All internal wiring house number and amount of money paid was mentioned but neither Anando nor his aunt knew where the paper was kept. After they received the work had to be done by BSUP flat, they had to get all internal wiring done for electrifying the house residents at their own cost. themselves. They also got the house painted, grilled up the balcony and put Typically internal wiring a security gate to keep away stray dogs from entering the ground floor work cost varied in the house and messing with the shrine they have made in the entrance veranda. All this cost the family close to Rs.30000. They use gas for cooking which is range of Rs.900 – Rs.2500. increasingly becoming expensive and hard to get. It takes a minimum of 60 Moreover families had to get days to get a new gas cylinder. the electricity connection directly from the Electric Company upon making a compulsory deposit of Rs.300. Similarly water pipelines were laid by COSTFORD but water connection had to be procured directly by the family. Kudumbasree helped people to apply for new electricity and water connections together in a group. The electricity bills typically vary between Rs.250-500/month and could even go up to Rs.1500/month for those who use appliances such as washing machines. The water bills may vary between Rs.100-250/month. Box 3.7 - Cost to a Family to make the Flat Livable

During the 1st phase of construction all 20 families could be accommodated in the community hall which served as a transit accommodation. But during the 2nd phase 53 families needed transit accommodation. The community through the Kudumbashree decided that only the neediest families would stay in the community hall. The rest stayed with relatives or made new shacks around the construction site. Some stayed in rented houses paying as much as Rs.5000/month as rent. As the construction and allocation process took close to 2 years, the families in transit houses had to bear additional expenses. 3.11.3 Availability of Services, Facilities and Infrastructure 3.11.3a Access to Site - Karimadom enjoys easy access from three surrounding roads—the Bypass Road in the north, the Puthen Road in the west and the Pipeline Road in the east. The face of the Karimadom development is on the Bypass Road, a city level major traffic corridor. 3.11.3b Street Network - The 4 blocks in Phase 1 form an internal street but the lack of definition of the public realm with no attempt to pave or landscape the stretch between the block and the 2m wide concrete street has resulted in encroachments in that space by 43


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

families. Typically the encroachments are to create enclosures for cattle or rented out to tea stalls. 3.11.3c Open Spaces - There is no large open space provided in the layout at community level. The small spaces in between blocks are considered community level open space. 50% of the flats have private terraces. 3.11.3d Power Supply - Karimadom receives regular supply of electricity with half hour power cuts twice a day whose timings are conveyed weekly. People are prepared as the timings are known. 3.11.3e Water Supply - There is 24X7 water supply from TMC to Karimadom. Every new flat has piped water to the toilet and kitchen which families pay for (approximately Rs. 100200/month). This is the source of water for drinking and washing as well. Families in the upper two floors have installed 1000 liter plastic water storage tanks which are perched precariously on the sloping roof. This is because of low water pressure in the upper floors. 3.11.3f Sanitation - The new housing is provided with sewage pipes to dispose the toilet waste. The sewerage system of the housing is connected to the city sewerage network. Excreta are no longer dumped into the pond as in the existing slum and the old flats. The BSUP housing provides a toilet in each flat. There is no open defecation in the new development due to this, though open defecation particularly among children is still common in the old slum. 3.11.3g Drainage - The new housing area has covered drains for both the toilet waste and grey water from toilet and kitchen. As the 7 houses in the first two phases did not really follow a street pattern, no storm water drains were provided near them. 3.11.3h Garbage Disposal - There is no system of garbage collection or disposal in Karimadom at present. This is also true of the city of Thiruvananthapuram ever since the landfill shut down. Garbage is openly thrown all around Karimadom, in the pond and on the roads around it. The garbage dump across the Bypass road currently functions as a city level garbage disposal area. 3.11.3i Local Transport - Residents of Karimadom enjoy easy access to public transport being on a major bus route. Autos also are a common mode of transport for custom destinations. 3.11.3j Emergency Access - The new housing blocks located along the periphery of the site and on either side of the East-West road have emergency access. 3.11.3k Streetlights - There are a total of 15 streetlights in Karimadom. Most of these streetlights do not work and there is no street lighting around the pond, the place where light is most needed after dark. 3.11.3l Daily Needs Shopping - Most food items such as grains and vegetables are purchased at the Chalai Market. There are several home front shops, within the colony that sell dry non-perishable snacks, milk powder, cigarettes and diapers. There are a few medicine shops on the Bypass Road.

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3.11.3m Cooking Fuel - The community initially rejected the offer of smokeless chullahs proposed in the DPR. But as gas prices have gone up and as there is almost a 60 day wait to get a gas cylinder in Kerala, now families want the smokeless chullah. The community uses wood to slow cook rice in the available open spaces such as terraces or immediately outside the flat in the ground floor. In case of houses with no house level or immediate open space, wood fired stoves are used indoors. 3.11.3n Health Services - As there are several good hospitals near Karimadom and a PHC, the BSUP housing did not provide any healthcare services. The PHC in Karimadom is visited by a doctor once a month. It has one senior and two junior nurses though all four of them are seldom present at a time. The PHC only prescribes over the counter medicines for common ailments and typically refers residents to hospitals. They also provide first aid in case someone gets hurt. 3.11.3o Social Infrastructure – One AW has been created using BSUP funds in addition to the existing two. This is a single storied exposed brick structure in the same COSTFORD design vocabulary as the rest of the housing. The new AW is an inadequate facility as it does not provide for the six functions an AW is supposed to discharge.10 3.11.3p Play and Recreation Facilities - There is no provision for parks or playgrounds in the new development and there is no recognition of internal streets as common everyday play spaces. 3.11.4 Habitability 3.11.4a Larger Homes - The BSUP provided floor areas of 360 sq ft in each flat. Terraces and verandas are in addition to this. The top floor flat with two terraces adds up to 600 sq ft. The BSUP flats are bigger than the ones in the previous government housing which provided flats of 250 sq ft each. Houses with 8-10 members are considered overcrowded. Since BSUP allotted each household within an extended family a flat on payment of the beneficiary share, BSUP houses are less crowded. 3.11.4b More Habitable Spaces - BSUP flats provided one front room, one larger bedroom at the back, one kitchen and one toilet in between the two rooms, and terraces in 10 flats in each block, and verandas in 6. Spaces are well ventilated. All rooms including kitchen and toilet have at least one external window. Families that have a flat terrace attached to their flat use it for drying clothes, washing clothes, cooking rice on the wood fire stove, pickling, drying spices, hanging out, playing etc. 3.11.4c Lack of Provisions for Home Based Work - The new flats have not adequately provided for home-based work such as scrap sorting (nor has any community space been provided for this recognized business), or meat cutting (households catering to meat shops have no space to store dead animals or cut the meat), or for peeling vegetables and managing garbage associated with chip making businesses. The slum houses better catered to homebased work.

10

Anganwadis have a six fold service delivery agenda which is seldom understood or provided for improving child health and nutrition, early childhood education, mother care and counseling for adolescent girls. 45


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

3.11.4d Adequacy of Building Materials and Construction Roof: The flat terraces are finished in neat cement over concrete slabs. The sloping roofs are also concrete slabs finished in neat cement which is light in color. The stepped terraces with the 10 flats are accessible from the staircase landing and from the flats. The top floor flats have exclusive terrace access from their flats. 4 feet high parapets are provided in the flat terraces. Walls: Load bearing brick walls in exposed Flemish bond. This is Laurie Baker and COSTFORD’s signature style and several different projects have been implemented all over Kerala using these materials. Floor: Grey cement flooring has been used in the flats. The floor is quite rough and accumulates dust. It requires rigorous mopping everyday to look clean. About 20 flats have replaced this flooring with vitrified tiles. Windows: The windows are frameless with wooden framed glazed shutters hung on hinges. The shutters open flat against the outside wall. Security grilles have been provided but no mosquito nets. 3.11.4e Inadequate Storage Facilities - The only shelves provided are in the kitchen and along the corridor next to the kitchen. These are taken over by kitchen utensils and related storage. The lack of additional storage shelves has led to things piling up on the floor. Due to the exposed brick construction, it is not easy to install shelves in the new flats. More storage shelves should have been provided during the construction. Kerosene is stored under the kitchen slab. Medicines are kept on shelves and bathroom cleaning poisonous liquids are kept on the floor inside the bathroom. 3.11.4f Safe Drinking Water - The municipal water is used for drinking. Drinking water is stored in steel pitchers with a steel lid on the kitchen slab in many houses. In some houses water is stored in plastic or steel drums on the kitchen floor. People either boil the water or at least warm the water before drinking (warming drinking water is a cultural practice in Kerala). 3.11.4g Fire Safe Houses - These houses have been constructed with thick outer walls and floor slabs. Moreover the presence of terraces and balconies reduce the risk of being trapped in the case of fire. However some residents in ground floor flats are cooking rice on a wood fire oven kept on the floor inside the flat. This is a major fire hazard. In the 1st phase of the new housing, the shoulder of the 2m wide concrete path between the 4 blocks has been encroached upon making it difficult for a fire tender to drive in. The intent of the design maybe good, but without a maintenance and regulation plan particularly for shared resources, it won’t take long for any new housing environment to resemble a slum. 3.11.5 Accessibility The slum redevelopment in Karimadom failed to create a barrier free environment. The BSUP housing has three walk-up floors. Even though wide semi-covered staircases with sufficient

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Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

landing space have been provided in the center of each block, these houses are not easy to live in for many social groups. Elderly - Through the allocation strategies, an effort was made to allocate ground floor flats to elderly residents, and the differently abled. But there are families with dependent elderly members in upper floor flats. Women - There are 157 female headed Box 3.8 – Accessibility for Women households residing in Karimadom. Many of Aswathy runs a catering whom are young widows, unmarried mothers business. She sometimes and abandoned women with children. cooks for upto 1000 people in large vessels. She lives in Carrying daily needs items and children to a third floor flat. As she the upper floors on a daily basis and in cannot possibly bring down heavy vessels from the top sickness is not an easy task for a woman floor, she uses the kitchen of especially in the context of high another woman in the ground floor. She employs some undernourishment in women and children as of the local women when she has to fulfill large orders. Her catering business will suffer if she does not have in the case of Kerala. access to the ground floor kitchen.

Children - The children of Karimadom were used to playing in the streets and narrow lanes of the slum outside their homes. In their new housing they are disconnected from this habitual play space. Though a terrace is present in many flats, it cannot replace the community space of the street. The staircase landings connecting the flats are also used by younger children to play. Lack of parks and playgrounds, and the loss of the streets mean that boys play in whatever open space they can find. Typically these are garbage strewn clearings near the pond or broken rough ground between the new and old housing or on the main street. However playing in the main street near the community center is fraught with tension; any fights between playing teams will result in patrolling police picking up some of the boys and breaking up the group. For girls with limited mobility licenses, hanging out with friends immediately outside the block, or playing on terraces and in front of the Madrasa are the few options. The new development failed to create adequate and age and gender specific play and recreational resources for children of Karimadom. 3.11.6 Cultural Adequacy Cultural identity promoted through architecture: COSTFORD’s work has a strong design aesthetic associated with the use of local materials and techniques of construction which had been developed through decades of experimentation to keep costs affordable and the process eco friendly. In Karimadom too this design vocabulary is used without compromising on materials or technique. For that COSTFORD needs to be praised, for not lowering their “Cost-effective houses are not just for the poor, construction standards for a slum they are for everyone. The equation that a costredevelopment project. This has also resulted in effective house is a house for the poor, implying a a strong cultural identity for Karimadom as good bad looking house, can definitely be proved vii wrong.” – Laurie Baker quality housing in the best traditions of contemporary low-cost Kerala vernacular architecture. Cultural diversity not promoted through design: The redevelopment project tried to incorporate the findings of a detailed baseline survey that documented all aspects of life of the community. However the survey missed out on highlighting some of the cultural practices of the majority Muslim population. For example the Madrasa in the heart of the existing slum 47


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

plays a very important role in teaching the Koran and providing a social space for the slum children especially girls in the evening. The new housing does not provide for the Madrasa. Even though gender separated study centers are proposed in the layout, but these are not the same as the Madrasa where Muslim boys and girls legitimately come together and study the Koran and engage in after school activities in a shared space. Gender insensitive provisions for vendors: The proposal provides kiosks as markets or places where women could come and sell vegetables. The only kiosk which has been built so far lies empty the whole day. Kiosks may not work as well as home front shops run by women which enables attending to both home and work through the day. Moreover the number of house front shops and vendors far outnumber the kiosks provided in the proposal. So who decides who gets to do business in the kiosk? Culturally inadequate cooking provisions: The community is predominantly rice eating and prefers to cook rice on a slow wood fire outdoors. Terraces, are used for this while families in the floors without terraces or verandahs cook outside the building or under the staircase space or inside in the front room. The design of the new flats did not consider this cultural aspect of cooking and should have provided a house level open space with every flat. The walls and ceilings are already covered in soot and the indoor air quality compromised in flats where wood-fired ovens are used indoors. Culturally inadequate washing provisions: The community was used to washing clothes outside their homes and not inside toilets. Even though they now have abundant municipal water supply for washing clothes, they feel uncomfortable about washing inside the small toilets. Ground floor flats in the second phase have constructed raised washing platforms along the pond across from their flats (see figure 1.2). They use a water hose from their toilet to provide water to the platform. Flats with attached terraces have cordoned off a part of their terrace as a washing area and extended a piped water connection to it. This again points to the importance of a personalized open space attached to the house. At the very least a common clothes washing area could have been provided as part of the community development initiatives. 3.12 Community Perceptions of New Development The Karimadom redevelopment is viewed differently by different people. For families that have already secured new flats the common feeling is that this is a superior living environment to their slum. Residents now point to the slum and say, “we used to live like that, with snakes, rats, bandicoots and like animals ourselves next to the pond�. The fact that they have two rooms, kitchen, toilet, terraces or verandahs, steady supply of piped water at home, is now a source of pride to families. They now have a dignified living space which is well built and made safe from flooding. The new development is also seen as a new beginning for Karimadom. People said that the reputation of Karimadom was so bad that no one was willing to marry a girl from here. Children had nowhere to play and no space or atmosphere to study at home due to cramped living conditions and alcohol induced domestic violence. People feel confident that once the redevelopment project finishes as per the proposal shown to them, their neighborhood will be a good living place with study centers and libraries for children and places for play. 48


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

These positive perceptions about the redevelopment are also shared by the local police who are actively involved in maintaining law and order in the community and in bringing together the community, particularly men as a Residents Welfare Association (RWA). Other service providers such as local AW workers who have worked in the community for many years feel that due to the new improved living environments children in new houses are healthier than in the slums. However there are others who are dissatisfied with the redevelopment project. These belong to three groups of people: 1. Residents who are waiting for more than 2 years for a house in Phase 2 due to delay in construction. These people are incurring high expenses in staying elsewhere and are unhappy with the delay. 2. Residents who are currently residing in the old government flats and were refused flats in the BSUP project as they have already availed of free government housing before. However these people want the superior BSUP housing or at least their blocks, which are in bad condition, to be redeveloped in the same manner. 3. Residents who are currently residing in the slum and awaiting redevelopment. Particularly families living in the corner of the slum, earmarked for the 4th phase of development, have no information about when they are likely to get a new home. There are also apprehensions about the future of the project and whether the 4th phase will happen at all. Even among residents who have been allotted houses there is a sense of loss of social networks as families had no control over the allotment process which prevented them from choosing their neighbors. The old slum had families who have lived there for three generations and been with each other as a close-knit community. Though most families got flats in the pocket where they had their huts, the apartment blocks cannot substitute a street based low-rise living for social interactions and shared community life. 3.12.1 Experience of Girls Children who have moved from the slum to new flats have positive things to say about their new houses. Sumaiya and Razia are two 15 year old Muslim girls, best friends, who have moved into two different flats with their families in a second phase building in 2011. They said, “We very much like our new house. Very much. All amenities are there.� These girls spend a lot of time at home doing housework and also otherwise since they have limited mobility license being Muslim adolescent girls. Razia said she enjoys staying at home by herself and listening to Tamil and Hindi film songs on her phone. She and her grandmother are the only two people in the flat as her widowed mother works as a housemaid in Kuwait and three married elder sisters live in other cities. Figure 3.6 - Improvements to Housing through gardening, adding washing platform and creating a clothes drying area.

When asked to compare the new house with the old one Sumaiya explained that the old house was crowded, the toilet was outside the house and there was no piped water in the house. So Sumaiya could not go to the toilet at night as she felt unsafe, and she had to collect water from the standpipe in buckets, a tedious job that she hated. In the new 49


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

house there is 24x7 water supply. Though the water pressure is a bit low in the morning, after 9:30 am the pressure becomes alright. The new house is also less crowded as her extended family received three flats. So she can now go and hangout in these houses as well whenever she wants. The old house used to flood every year. The garbage used to come inside the house. Every time that happened, someone or other in the family ended up in the hospital. There were skin rashes, allergies, fever, cough and cold, and stomach upsets. With the improved living conditions in the new house, these health problems have also decreased. The people in Sumaiya and Razia’s block have planted many flowering plants next to the pond. Ground floor flat owners like Sumaiya and Razia’s grandmothers have constructed raised washing platforms next to the pond across from the path in front of their houses. They bring water to the platform with garden hoses from their house to wash clothes. These families in personalizing the spaces around the block through gardening created new utility spaces. The house front shops they have established further mark their territories around the block. The girls feel safe moving around the block and hanging around in the space between the block and the pond. However at night there is no street lighting in this area. There is an active Bal Sabha in Phase 2 of which Sumaiya is the president. She organizes games for the members in front of the block towards the main road.

Figure 3.7 - The Area around Razia and Sumaiya’s Block

3.12.2 Experience of Boys The boys also like their new flats much more than the old slum housing. They however spend very little time at home as they spend most part of the day in structured activities such as school, tuition and some unstrcutured activities like playing outdoors with neighborhood friends. Boys complained about the lack of spaces to hangout and play sports in the community. Box 3.9 - Adolescent Boy Living in New BSUP Flat st

Anando is a 14 year old boy living in a ground floor apartment in one of the 1 BSUP buildings constructed in Karimadom. Anando studies at the St Mary’s School in Pattam, which is 12km from Karimadom. He goes to school by bus. He lives with his aunt as his mother works as a maid in Oman. Anando cooks idli, dosa, rice and vegetables when his aunt is unwell. As there are only two people in his house, he has the back room to himself. Anando likes this new house better than the last one because he has a quiet space to himself. Anando leaves for school at 8am and returns home by 5pm. He has private tuition classes from 5:30pm to 7:30pm at a tuition center in Manacaud, He cycles to tuition after coming home from school. After tuition he plays with his 50


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

friends in the clearing near the community hall or near the new kiosk. He can play till late or as long as his friends are around. He watches TV before going to sleep. According to him, his school does not give any homework. He wakes up at 6:30am and helps with household chores if his aunt is not well. On Saturdays he has day long tuition classes from 9am till 4:30pm. After that he watches TV and plays with his friends. On Sunday he goes for tuition from 9am to 12 noon. The tuition center charges Rs.1000 as admission fees and Rs.600/month. Anando loves playing cricket with his friends. He belongs to the “Blue Star� team, which is one of the 5 teams formed by Karimadom boys to play tournaments against each other. The only place available for these matches is the clearing near the Community Hall. Even though the local councilor had promised the boys that they could safely play cricket here by calling it their playground, in the face of the garbage crisis of the city, this area has degenerated into a garbage dump. Moreover many people in the community do not like adolescents playing sports in the neighborhood particularly in the streets near the houses. Anando and his friends complain that whenever they start playing, the police turn up as if someone tipped them off. The police took their bats away, asked them to leave the premises and sometimes the boys were beaten up if they continued to disobey orders. Anando wants to stay in Karimadom when he grows up even though he does not like the place too much. He says this is the only place he has known and all his friends and family are here. He wants to join the army when he grows up.

Figure 3.8 - A cricket tournament is underway in the clearing next to the community hall, in June, 2012.

Figure 3.9 - The clearing next to the community hall, the place where boys played cricket, in November, 2012. (No garbage had been picked up by the Municipal Corporation in months from anywhere in the wake of the ongoing garbage crisis following the shutting down of the Vilappilsala plant.)

3.13 Key Findings The key findings of the case study are discussed at three levels: policy, programme and project. 3.13.1 Policy Level 3.13.1a Positive Aspects 

The vision for BSUP in Kerala is an inclusive one reaching out to women, children, youth, the urban poor including street children and the destitute. It recognizes that slum redevelopment requires not only improved houses and environment but also improved and new community facilities.

51


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

In seeking convergence of all pro-poor programs through one nodal agency, Kerala does set the stage for a strong BSUP program to alleviate urban poverty through adequate provisioning of housing.

BSUP policy also recognizes that slums have different geographic and socio-economic realities. It talks about two different approaches to slum development: in-situ and relocation. 3.13.1b Limitations

Lack of understanding of environmental hazards at policy level - The CDP recognized the environmental problem at Karimadom due to the sewage pond yet adopted an in-situ approach to redevelopment without mitigating the environmental hazards.

Post facto policymaking - The complexity of the Karimadom slum required a sustained politically driven community effort to solve the major social problem of drug trading and use. Local MLAs and COSTFORD saw a window of opportunity in BSUP to redevelop Karimadom. COSTFORD facilitated the inclusion of Karimadom as they had already done a primary survey of the slum using local women when they were asked to engage with the community. The detailed COSTFORD Baseline Survey was done in 2010 after the construction of the 1st phase had started.

Allocation - The allocation process lacked transparency and was accused of favouring politically connected beneficiaries over the neediest families. As delays occurred, the poorest families had to incur additional costs while living in transit.

Nodal Agencies should be apolitical bodies - Kudumbashree was formed by the Communist Party of India (Marxist)11 government. Even though this programme is internationally awarded and much acclaimed, the new Congress (INC)12 government of Kerala has launched the Janashree Sustainable Development Mission, a private micro-finance organisation to counter Kudumbashree. Poverty alleviation funds are now being diverted to Janashree amidst strong protests in the Assembly. This does put a question mark on the future viability of Kudumbashree as an effective nodal agency for state urban development, BSUP implementation and other poverty alleviation schemes through meaningful convergence. 3.13.1c Recommendations

The slum redevelopment policy should clearly articulate environmental conditions under which in-situ redevelopment must occur and the conditions that will make relocation of slums mandatory. A state policy on slum redevelopment needs to establish the non-negotiable conditions under which a slum will have to be relocated particularly if it threatens public health in a significant way.

If in-situ development has to happen in an environmentally degraded area due to other factors such as proximity to opportunities for livelihood, strategies for environmental mitigation as well as adequate budget allocation under infrastructure must be made in the CDP. 11 12

CPI (M) - It is a political party with a strong presence in West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura. INC – Indian National Congress often only referred to as ‘Congress’ is one of the two major political parties in India. 52


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

Allocation policies need to consider the neediest first. Kudumbashree through its nine indicators have already established a system for identifying the poor. Drawing from that list, the neediest families are likely to be: o Women-headed households, presence of a widow, divorcee, abandoned woman or unwed mother. o No regularly employed person in the family. o Socially disadvantaged groups such as SC’s and ST’s. o Presence of mentally or physically challenged person or chronically ill member in the family. It will be worthwhile to explore giving houses to these categories of families first and also offering choice of houses.

Nodal agencies such as Kudumbashree needs to be apolitical bodies to effectively safeguard programs of national and citizen interest from changing politics of the state. 3.13.2 Programme Level 3.13.2a Positive Aspects

Participation of NGOs in housing delivery in BSUP resulted in providing dignified houses. In involving COSTFORD, a NGO known for low-cost eco-friendly work and a history of completed government works, the Karimadom project bypassed the issues of low-quality associated with awarding work to the lowest bidding contractor.

COSTFORD managed to mobilize the community for the primary survey that led to the DPR. The socio-economic survey that commenced after construction of the first phase had started, mobilized adolescent girls to collect data from families. This is a good beginning and BSUP in Kerala needs to build capacity of existing networks of women and children to spearhead community-driven surveys before projects. 3.13.2b Limitations

No Capacity in NHGs to adequately prepare local area plans - NHGs are envisaged to prepare mini plans for the local areas in addition to functioning as a successful savings and thrift group. However this process needs facilitation and without proper training of the selected members of the governing body of NHG, Area Development Society (ADS) and Community Development Society (CDS) in creating a collective vision for urban development, this role of these groups will remain a pipe dream.

No children’s participation in BSUP inspite of Bal Sabhas - The children’s neighbourhood groups currently do not play any role in participatory local area development even though this is very much a role sought for them in the vision for Bal Sabhas, Bal Samitis, Bal Panchayats and the yet to be launched Bal Nagar Panchayat. Currently the understanding about children’s needs in the community and as included in the development program is based on an adult view of best interests of the child, specifically the mothers’ views about lack of facilities for studying in the community. If children were involved in the process as a right based approach mandate, the program components would certainly have included spaces for play, recreation, leisure and sports. 53


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

No involvement of people in construction - Since improving livelihood options of the community was a stated goal in the DPR; the skilled and semi-skilled construction workers living in the community could have been involved in the construction process after being trained by COSTFORD in their particular brand of low-cost, eco-friendly techniques. This would not only have opened up new employment opportunities for the community but also built a greater sense of ownership of the new housing. 3.13.2c Recommendations

Community driven data gathering should be mandated in BSUP in Kerala through NHGs and Bal Sabhas to conduct detailed socio-economic surveys and community mapping.

Participatory planning processes to build on the data collected by the community and involving NHGs and Bal Sabhas in developing their own plans and in mobilizing the entire community to co-create the final plan.

To adequately programme for a participatory process for slum redevelopment, capacities of NHGs need to be developed through training for preparing need based mini plans for the local areas in addition to functioning as a successful savings and thrift group.

Bal Sabhas also should be trained and made an integral part of local area development decision-making. 3.13.3 Project Level 3.13.3a Positive Aspects

Provided larger more habitable houses than in previous government housing projects in the slum.

Provided aesthetically designed, well constructed, fire safe and flood safe houses.

New facilities such as new Anganwadis, study centers and women’s work centers are planned.

Diverse green design measures are promoted.

Improved water supply and sanitation provided. 3.13.3b Limitations

Missed opportunity to showcase model facilities for children - The DPR has provisions for a study center cum library, two Anganwadi Centers, community open spaces which would serve as play spaces for children and a playground. One new AW has been provided and one more will come up in a later phase. The rest have not been created. The one AW that has been constructed missed an opportunity to demonstrate safe design and child friendly spatial organization. 54


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

Figure 3.10 – Uneven open spaces

Lack of integration of old and new environments and failure in addressing hazards in children’s everyday environment - The DPR did not have a vision for integrating and improving existing facilities such as community hall, health center, AW. Nor did it have a vision for connecting the public spaces between the old government housing and the new BSUP blocks (see figure 3.10). This has resulted in a dangerously uneven open space where children and adults are at risk. Environmental hazards related to the sewage pond, garbage in public places threaten children’s use of outdoor spaces.

Inadequate storage and flooring in houses for childcare - It is not very easy to put shelves in this type of construction despite inadequate storage space. Storing medicines and poisonous liquids away from children’s reach is a problem. The flooring is quite rough and difficult to keep clean which is poses a problem for younger children who are mostly on the floor.

Indoor air quality is affected due to wood-fired ovens - As families are still using woodfired ovens to cook rice, in flats without open space, as well as in flats with open spaces during rains women are forced to cook indoors. This compromises air quality and children’s health.

Inadequate provisioning for home-based work - The apartment typologies provided are unsuitable for home-based work that generates income but also garbage (e.g.: banana chips making) or require to move around large heavy utensils/articles etc. If a truly participatory process was followed that involved women, children and men in evolving the flat types and building types as per the community needs, the new housing could have improved living conditions and removed the hardships related to home-based work.

Green design measures only on paper - Most of the green design components discussed in the DPR were not implemented (rain water harvesting, rejuvenation of the pond, smokeless chullah) or are scheduled to be implemented after the all the houses are completed (biogas plant and bio-fencing around pond). These measures would have made the housing more liveable and would have benefited children the most. If the biogas plant gets operational after 5 years in the manner envisaged in the DPR, it may solve the community’s garbage problem. But children need clean and safe outdoor environments today or else BSUP would have failed them in Karimadom now.

Failure to provide for overhead water tanks - Water pressure is typically low in upper floors of buildings. Putting overhead water storage tanks on roofs is a common practice in India to solve this problem. The BSUP housing in Karimadom created four storied buildings with no provision for overhead water tanks. The sloping roofs on the top make it difficult to place water tanks without compromising both safety and aesthetics. These issues notwithstanding residents have started putting 1000 litre water tanks on the top sloping roofs. This design failure makes the top houses unsafe.

55


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

Impediments to construction due to Sewage Pond - Lack of engagement with the problems related to the sewage pond affected smooth implementation of the project. The 4th block in the 2nd phase could not be built due to the presence of a city level drain that connects with the sewage pond located directly under the proposed building. Unless that drain is rerouted which the city does not want, this block cannot be constructed.

Future of project uncertain due to politics - Changing politics of the state also affect projects on the ground level. In Karimadom the new local councillor, and MLA are affiliated with INC whereas the Kudumbashree community organizers as well as the mayor who represent the Corporation are affiliated to CPI (M). There is currently little interest on either side to implement the 4th phase of the project where the poorest families reside and are currently saving up to get a new BSUP house. 3.13.3c Recommendations

Conduct a baseline survey to identify the local issues prior to finalising the plans.

Prioritise the activities based on findings of the baseline survey in the community and share the findings through several layers of consultations with the women and adolescent boys and girls to make the design truly child and women friendly.

Revisit the CDP and DPR for incorporating the ideas collected during the consultative processes.

Generate awareness among the urban local body and politicians (MLA) on aspects of making the slum redevelopment child friendly and implications of ignoring them.

Ensure that the design of the houses prioritises safety of infants and small children, reduces drudgery of women and does not increase indoor pollution or take away the income generating opportunities for the household.

Develop safe play spaces, safe routes to school and to other local play and recreation hot spots, to promote freedom of movement of children especially girls in the local area.

Build capacities of the local self-help groups like Kudumbashree to conduct demand generation activities in the community appropriately so that women and families understand the need for making houses child and environment friendly and allow changes that will promote good heath for children. Specifically in the case of Karimadom, for the remaining phase take up the following immediately to make it child friendly: 

Take up advocacy with the TMC and the MLA to invest in cleaning up the sewage pond as a priority city infrastructure project and use the pond like a constructed wetland to treat waste water. Kudumbashree and COSTFORD must educate the community and generate demand for undertaking this activity on a priority basis.

56


Chapter 3 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram

To minimise the discomfort, health hazards and expenditure for the families that will be displaced during the construction phase, ensure that the community centre or any other alternative arrangement is made livable with toilets and running water.

Kudumbashree must extend loan at cheap rates to those families who will be opting to move to rented places, to compensate for the expenditure.

COSTFORD and Kudumbashree should work with the TMC for exploring alternative employment opportunities for those who are likely to lose household income earning opportunities by linking them with government employment schemes as well as Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY), a health insurance scheme.

Find engineering solutions to avoid flooding of the other sections due to raised levels of the constructed sections.

Asses the usability of the Anganwadi centre, Don Bosco study centre and other existing community spaces for use by boys and girls in the evenings till study centres or other community facilities are available.

COSTFORD, TMC and the local community networks should join hands in cleaning up the garbage and start the bio-gas plant on a priority basis.

COSTFORD and Kudumbashree along with the schools should generate awareness among the Bal Sabhas regarding their responsibility in keeping their space clean, throwing garbage at designated places and participating in the community cleaning drives.

COSTFORD and Kudumbashree should activate the Bal Sabahs and build their capacity for more involvement of boys and girls, especially adolescent boys and girls in the slum redevelopment planning process in addition to participation in cleaning and recreational related activities.

3.14 References i

United Nations Children’s Fund. (2009). Coverage Evaluation http://www.unicef.org/india/National_Fact_Sheet_CES_2009.pdf ii

Indian Alcohol Policy Alliance (IAPA). (2007). Alcohol http://www.indianalcoholpolicy.org/alcohol_atlas_download.html

Atlas

of

Survey.

Retrieved

from

India.

Retrieved

from

iii

Centre of Development Studies. (2006). Human Development Report 2005 Kerala. Retrieved from http://planningcommission.nic.in/plans/stateplan/sdr_pdf/shdr_kerala05.pdf iv

Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation. (2006). City Development Plan Thiruvananthapuram. Retrieved from http://www.ksudp.org/index.php/downloads/109 v

Ibid.

vi

COSTFORD. (2010). Baseline Survey.

vii

Warkhandkar, S. and Singh, J. (2003, March 1). Laurie Baker's Creative Journey. Frontline. Retrieved from http://www.flonnet.com/fl2005/stories/20030314000906400.htm 57


Chapter 4 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Jat Trodi, Nagpur

Chapter 4 - Jat Trodi, Nagpur, Maharashtra

58


Chapter 4 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Jat Trodi, Nagpur

4.1 Introduction JnNURM in Nagpur, Maharashtra, had been the focus of much international attention and collaboration. The IndoUSAID programme on Financial Institutions Reform and Expansion (FIRE-DIII) selected Nagpur as one of the pilot cities to formulate the CDP. CHF (Cooperative Housing Foundation), another international NGO selected Nagpur to be one of the three cities in India for implementing the SCALE-UP (Slum Figure 4.1 - Location Map of Nagpur (Source: ACE 2013) Communities Achieving Livable Environment with Urban Partners) project under BSUP. SCALE-UP hoped to integrate the priorities of slum dwellers into project planning and development and build capacities of stakeholders which in the case of Nagpur were CHF’s local NGO partner ESAF and the implementing agency, Slum Rehabilitation Authority. CHF got involved in the process of preparing a model DPR for one slum redevelopment project under BSUP, Jat Trodi 2 in Nagpur, which was envisaged to be replicable by other Tier 2 cities with minor modifications. The process of BSUP implementation at Jat Trodi was mired in conflict, where authorities had to use force to evict some families, and due to lack of transparency of land ownership no secure tenure could be provided. Only 33 flats had been constructed in 2012 out of the sanctioned 279. The future of the project today is uncertain with many families with children staying in transit camps with no old home to go back to and no future housing in the offing. ACE has taken up Jat Trodi 2 as a case study as it had the potential to become a BSUP best practice, to understand its impact on children and learn from the successes and failures of this project. 4.2 Background on Nagpur Table 4.1 - Social Indicators – Nagpur Urban Population Population 2,497,777 Child Population (0-6 years)

248,678

Sex Ratio

958

Child Sex Ratio (0-6 years)

920

Average Literacy

93.17%

Source: Census 2011

The city of Nagpur, famous for its oranges, is the third largest city of Maharashtra after Mumbai and Pune. Nagpur is one of the ancient cities of India dating back to over three thousand years. In 1960, the Marathi majority Vidarbha region was merged with the new state of Maharashtra and Nagpur was designated the second capital of Maharashtra, alternating with Bombay as the seat of the Maharashtra state legislature.

59


Chapter 4 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Jat Trodi, Nagpur

Nagpur is the 13th largest urban conglomeration in India. The city over the last few years has seen unprecedented growth in industrial and economic sectors. This has led to decadal growth in population of 14.37% for 2001-2011i and has increased the population density per square kilometer from 411 to 470.ii In 2011 Nagpur was ranked the ‘greenest city in India after Bangalore’.iii 4.2.1 Urban Local Body of Nagpur and its Function Nagpur Municipal Committee (NMC) was established in the year 1869. At that time population of the city was 82,000 with an area of 14.3 sq km. In 1872 another civic body known as the civil station sub–committee was constituted for town development with an area of 3.8 sq km under its jurisdiction. Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT) was setup after 1937 and was solely responsible for the development of the city and made the Master Plan of 1946-1951 when Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) was formed.iv Today, Nagpur district consists of NMC, 10 municipalities, 13 Panchayats Samitis and 778 Gram Panchayats. The total area covered is about 9897 sq.km of which Nagpur city accounts for 217.65 sq km (2.2%).v The Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) was constituted in 2004 for Nagpur City under the Maharashtra Slum Areas (Improvement Clearance & Redevelopment) Act, 1971.The Municipal Commissioner is the CEO of SRA, which has been declared as a planning authority, to function as a local authority for the area under its jurisdiction by amendment to the Maharashtra Regional & Town Planning (MR & TP) Act 1956. SRA intends to implement slum rehabilitation schemes in Nagpur city using Transfer of Development Rights on public and private land. SRA is currently responsible for implementing BSUP in Nagpur. 4.2.2 Slums in Nagpur One of the key visions of Nagpur is making it a ‘Slum free’ city by providing affordable housing and slum upgradation. According to the CDP, 40% of Nagpur’s population lives in slums which are spread over the geographical expanse of the city. Slum pockets vary in area from 2,000 to 50,000 sq. m. According to the Nagpur CDP access to basic services must be ensured along with pucca housing for the urban poor. Since Nagpur is pegged to grow at a fast pace there is an urgent need to improve the infrastructure of the city. Making land available to the urban poor at affordable rates and ensuring housing and other basic services can prevent or restrict the formation of new slums. CHF prepared a Slum Atlas for Nagpur in 2008 which showed that out of the 446 identified slums 287 were notified, 137 were not notified and 22 were newly identified slum areas. Key findings of the survey are tabulated below:

60


Chapter 4 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Jat Trodi, Nagpur

The previous slum improvement schemes Employment The average monthly income per household is Rs.3000. 9% of focused on the provision the slum dwellers earn less than Rs.2000/month, 15% earn of physical infrastructure between Rs.2000 and Rs.4000 and 76% earn more than Rs.4000/month. without taking into account the views of the Location 17% of the slums are located on private lands, 14% are located slum dwelling community. on NMC, NIT, Revenue Department (Nazul) and Indian Railways So the amenities land, 19% are located on government land and the remaining 50% have a mixed ownership – government, industrial and provided were privately owned land. 70% of the slums are located on lands underutilized, as the reserved as residential while 18% are on lands reserved for public users were not taken into utilities like roads, railways, playgrounds, parks etc., 11% are on confidence. NMC under lands reserved for commercial use and the remaining 1% are on the Slum Rehabilitation lands reserved for mixed use. Act (SRA) has initiated Housing There are approximately 147,716 housing structures in the 446 the SUN (Slum UpType slums out of which 40% are pucca, 38% are semi-pucca and the gradation Nagpur) plan to remaining 22% are kutcha. make Nagpur a slum-free city. It involves Source: Slum Atlas of Nagpur (2008) rehabilitation and integration of socially and economically backward urban citizens. This project aims at an integrated approach to solve the slum problem with special emphasis on economic upliftment. The primary goal of the proposed plan is to provide an improved quality of life to the slum dwellers based on the concept of HIKES (Healthy Living, Income Generation, Knowledge, Environmental Sensitivity and Socio-cultural Development). Table 4.2 - Key Findings of Slum Atlas, Nagpur

vi

4.3 City Development Plan (CDP) of Nagpur The Nagpur CDP has been developed in close consultation with many stakeholders over 13 weeks starting from middle of January in 2006. The Nagpur CDP development process itself was divided into three phases and the final CDP was submitted in May 2006 (pp. 21). The IndoUSAID programme on Financial Institutions Reform and Expansion (FIRE-DIII) had selected Nagpur as one of the pilot cities to formulate the CDP and had employed the services of CRISIL Infrastructure Advisory to prepare the same. The process was divided into three phases beginning with defining the vision and creating a mission statement, followed by identifying priority action to achieve the mission and lastly the feasibility assessment and investment scheduling. During the second phase of CDP consultative process a Citizen Demand Survey was conducted by an independent research agency to assess the performance of NMC, and survey results showed majority of people wanted 17% of the total budget allocation to be spent on slum redevelopment. Hence 27.01% of the total investment was ear marked for urban poor in Nagpur. 4.3.1 CDP’s Vision for Children CDP’s vision for children in Nagpur comprises of destitute home for children and improved education facilities. For improving education facilities it aims at promoting higher education, by

61


Chapter 4 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Jat Trodi, Nagpur

creating a conducive environment which would be facilitated by NMC. Municipal Corporation would aim at building public private partnership which would help in maintaining of infrastructure and buildings. Children’s participation in the process of CDP formulation has been limited to writing an essay on what they like and dislike about their city. It is not clear, to what extent the suggestions given by children have been included in the CDP. 4.4 BSUP in Nagpur The Nodal Agency for implementing BSUP in Maharashtra is the MHADA (Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority) and the implementing agency for Nagpur is the Slum Rehabilitation Authority. The cost of apartments is approximately Rs.3.75 lakhs including developmental changes. In JnNURM first edition, government had sanctioned 8 DPR’s under BSUP (in-situ) redevelopment project in which 9829 Tenements costing Rs.327.81 crores had been sanctioned. Also under BSUP-PPP1 projects 5 DPRs had been sanctioned by the government with 5560 tenements costing Rs.384.7crores.vii Total project cost for redevelopment of slums in the Jat Trodi area is Rs.1242.43 lakhs.viii 4.5 Case Study – Jat Trodi, Nagpur 4.5.1 Background on Jat Trodi Jat Trodi is located in the South West constituency of Location Dhantoli (Zone 4), Nagpur Nagpur, Zone 4 of NMC. Area 19060.7 sq m People started settling in Population 1250 Population Density 65580 persons per square km this area during mid 60’s. Land Ownership Nagpur Improvement Trust and Nazul At that time the area was Number of Dwelling Units- Proposed 279 dominated by Jats2 who under redevelopment had migrated to Nagpur in Number of Dwelling Units built under 33 search of work and hence BSUP the settlement is called Jat NMC’s Internal Earmarking of funds Funds earmarked but not specified in for Urban Poor % Trodi. Slowly people from Source: Nagpur DPR other parts of India also settled in the area. Today it has mixed population of people belonging to Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. Jat Trodi is hardly three kilometers from the Nagpur Railway Station. At the moment Jat Trodi has a cluster of three slums. The slum called Jat Trodi 2 is one of the pockets in this cluster. This slum was notified in the year 1994. Table4.3 - Fact File Jat Trodi

1

33 slums in Nagpur exist on land belonging to various institutions such as Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT), Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC), State/Central Government, and railway or on reserved land for public utilities, play grounds or green belt land. These slums need to be rehabilitated on alternate land to free up the reserved spaces and put them to designated use as per sanctioned Development Plan. To rehabilitate these slum dwellers an area of 24 Ha. is required. As government land is in limited supply, private land is being mobilized for resettlement of slum dwellers using a Public Private Partnership model in the BSUP scheme in Nagpur. This model envisages slum development as replacement housing on private land as per BSUP norms of 25 sq. ft per apartment in exchange of increased FSI to the builder to redevelop parts of the same land or in another place through Transfer of Development Rights (TDR). 2 Jats are a community of traditionally non-elite tillers and herders in Northern India 62


Chapter 4 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Jat Trodi, Nagpur

4.5.2 Community Profile CHF International for the implementation of its SCALE-UP (Slum Communities Achieving Livable Environment with Urban Partners) project teamed up with Evangelical Social Action Forum (ESAF), a local NGO in Nagpur. ESAF prior to preparing DPR conducted a survey in the area to get background of the community. There were no directives or guidelines from BSUP or SRA with respect to data collection and survey. Hence only primary demographic details were collected. Table 4.4 - Demographic Profile of the Jat Trodi Community Total Population

1250 (approx)

Religious Background

Religion

% Household

Hindu

56

Buddhist

43.5

Christian

0.5

Caste Background

Caste SC ST OBC

% Household 43.5 20 29.5

% of Male Female

51% Male and 49% Female out of which 36% are Adult Males, 37% are Adult Females, 15% are Boys and 12% are Girls. In the detailed survey conducted in 2006 and revised in 2008-9 there were a total 225 children (126 boys and 99 girls) in 279 families. Disaggregated age-wise data was not collected.

and

Children

There is no clear data on population break up, but children make a sizeable population at 23%. DPR mentions only consolidated figures. Majority of the families in the area are Hindus followed by Buddhists.

Source: Nagpur DPR

4.5.2a Livelihood As per the survey results majority of the residents in the area are daily wage earners of whom 44% are Laborers 44 Labor 9 laborers. In the absence of Rickshaw Pullers 8 Housewife 62 any data on literacy level it Private Service 3 Agarbatti Making 0 is difficult to understand the Government Service 1 Housemaid 13 Drivers 6 skill set of the population. Shop Owners 3 Women’s participation in the Painters 3 work force is low. There is Source: Nagpur DPR Tailors 0 no opportunity available to Hawkers 4 work from home in the Retired 0 community. One does not know whether women do not work due to gender issues, lack of options or due to child care and rearing taking up most of their time. Table 4.5 - Livelihoods of the Jat Trodi Community Occupation of Men % Employed Occupation of % Women Employed

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However during the data collection, ACE researchers came across women who have been selling vegetables in the community close to the transit camp to generate additional income for their family. Some of the women have also started taking small tailoring assignments. Most of these women are staying in the new houses developed under BSUP. To understand the financial behavior, saving pattern of the family and its impact on children, monthly income of the family was also tabulated during the survey (done by CHF and ESAF) which is as follows: Average income for the majority of the families in Jat Trodi is less than Rs.3000. Beneficiary contribution in the redevelopment is about Rs.30,000 and monthly installment for repaying loans is about Rs.500 in that case families are left with Rs. 2500/month. According to the survey: Table 4.6 - Incomes of the Jat Trodi Households Range of Income (In Rupees) % Households 800 – 1000 21 1400 – 1600 24 Over 5000 4 Source: Nagpur DPR

   

66% of the families did not save regularly while the remaining 34% saved regularly. 12% of the families saved up to Rs.100 per month. Only 4% of the households used formal banks and Bachat Gats (saving group) for saving money. 36% of the households’ availed bank loans, 20% borrowed from other sources and only 2% had borrowed from NGOs and Microfinance Institutions (MFI). 92% of the people surveyed did not have any insurance cover while 7% had availed of the insurance scheme offered by the Life Insurance Corporation of India.

4.5.2b Health According to the DPR, following were the trends in health issues:  

75% of the families reported that they suffered frequent illnesses. 71% of the households utilized the health services provided by the government while 24% went to private health centers.  70% of the children in Jat Trodi are vaccinated out of which 96% availed the government vaccination services All of the above results are consolidated in the DPR; thus making it difficult to ascertain trends in illness. For example, in which season do residents fall sick. What are the common ailments for the children? However during data collection and interviews following health trends were found: 

Majority of the women opt for home deliveries rather than institutional deliveries. According to the local doctor who has been practicing in the area for the last twenty five years, women do not want to go to the government hospital primarily due to staff behavior. Women seek medical consultation till advanced stage of pregnancy; however later opt for home deliveries. When women were asked why they opt for home deliveries they said, they feel they are well taken care off at home and can continue looking after their children and family.

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However, all the women get immunized from the Anganwadi. There has been no reported death of mother or child during child birth. 

Anemia and problems in menstrual cycle are prevalent among women and young girls. Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) is very common among the married women. According to the Anganwadi worker there are about eighty girls in Jat Trodi between the age group of 8-18 of which 35 are anemic. As per the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3) conducted in 2005-06ix, about 56% of the adolescent girls in India are anemic. Adolescent girls and women are given supplementary food packets from the Anganwadi.



Among children, common ailments are cold, cough, fever and occasional diarrhea. According to the local doctor there are about ten cases of dengue and malaria every month during the rainy season.3 Post redevelopment cases of worm infestation among children have reduced.

4.5.2c Education According to the DPR 98% of the children were enrolled in school while the remaining 2% did not attend school. Most children from Jat Trodi attend the Jattarodi Hindi Prathamic Shala, a government school till class VII which is at a distance of 1 km from the community. There is no data on what the remaining 2% of the children were doing. Apart from school enrollment data there is no other information on children. At present both boys and girls drop out of school post class eight. Girls drop out as there is no school close by; boys drop out and start working to supplement their family income. There is no data on over all literacy level of the community. 4.5.2d Children and Work Children in Jat Trodi were not involved in the surveys or in the making of the DPR. Children and their needs have been missing in the entire process of redevelopment. There is no verifiable information on status of working children in Jat Trodi. During interviews and group discussion with children it was found that, both boys and girls drop out of school by the time they reach secondary level. In all probabilities, a boy going out to find work is higher than girls who would be required to stay at home and take care of her siblings. According to an estimate there are about 12.5%x children in Nagpur who are engaged in child labor. Research shows there is a strong correlation between poverty and child labor. Nitin et al. in their study in Nagpur found that a lower socio-economic status of the family was significantly associated with child laborers.xi Redevelopment, has added to the overall expenditure of the house in the form of water bill, electricity bill and maintenance of the house. With average monthly income being less than Rs.3000, modest saving is not possible in most families. Household monthly installment for repayment of loan comes to about Rs.500, which leaves families with an average of Rs.2500 to manage other expenses. In such a scenario children are seen as additional earning sources. This is one of the major reasons for children dropping out of school and seeking work.

3

This data has been recorded from one of the doctors in the vicinity. Actual number of cases may be higher. 65


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Girls on the other hand are involved in household work. Majority of the girls have to fill water in the morning and evening from the public stand post. Individual water connections at home were removed as residents were finding it difficult to pay the water bill. Adolescent girls take care of their younger siblings when their parents are away at work. 4.6 Socio- Economic and Cultural Life Religion and Rituals - Majority of the families in Jat Trodi are Hindus. There is a small temple next to the transit camp where women and children go to pray. According to children post redevelopment there has not been any celebration of festivals in the area. Earlier there used to be Dahi Handi and Ganesh festival which used to be celebrated at the community level. Extended Family Network - Residents of Jat Trodi have migrated from the neighboring states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and have maintained strong ties with their area of origin and visit their village annually. Children like visiting their families in the village, as they get to travel by train. According to children they like to visit their village as they have more space to play and have bigger houses than the one where they live. As Jat Trodi has been in existence for over two decades, families have formed close ties with their neighbors as well. In case of emergency and need they rely on each other. Children whose parents go out to work are looked after by their neighbors. Social Issues - Like most of the other slums, Jat Trodi too has problems of eve teasing and alcoholism. According to the children, after men get drunk they usually fight with each other and at times they also beat up their wives and children. Impact of alcoholism on children can be assessed in the words of twelve year old girl whose father is a regular drinker. “When he (father) used to be good then he used to love us. He would get us all that we needed. When he would drink he would scold us. One day mother said don’t drink, at this my sister laughed. Father got so angry that he threw his mobile and it broke. Then my mother said, don’t get angry and scream, children will start crying and really Lali started crying. Some days he would be nice and other days he would drink.” When she finished speaking, other girls also said their fathers drank. At times drunken men come and sit in the landing of the stairs and also fight with the people. Girl’s mobility is restricted due to prevalence of eve teasing and bullying by boys. 4.7 Physical Environment of Jat Trodi Prior to Redevelopment Table 4.7 - Physical Environment of Jat Trodi Prior to Redevelopment Provision

Characteristics

Settlement Structure

The structures are mostly kutcha and semi pucca with the average hutment size of 300-400 sq ft. The kutcha structures are made of mud and have thatched roof while some are made of wood with asbestos sheet/tin sheet as roof. The semi pucca structures have brick walls with tin/asbestos sheet roofs.

Physical Infrastructure

Water supply: There is piped water connection in the colony. Only 31 households have individual water connections. Rest of the community collects drinking water from public stand posts and hand pumps. The water supply is in the evening from 4.00 pm to 6.00 pm. Electric Supply: Only 55 households have metered electric connections. 66


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Sanitation: There is a sewer line in the colony. 78 households have individual toilets. Social Infrastructure

Community Hall: There is one community hall, but it is not used by people in the building. Primary Health Center (PHC): None in the area. Nearest Hospital: There is a govt. hospital which is at a distance of 2 km from the colony. Anganwadis (AW): There is one Anganwadi which is located less than hundred meters from the new building. Anganwadi is using a rented premise paying Rs750/month. Rent is paid by the government. There are two staff—one teacher and one helper, at the Anganwadi center. At present there are twenty children in the Anganwadi between the age group of 2.5 years to 5 years. Anganwadi hours are 10:30 am in the morning to 1:30 pm; however the staff is supposed to be at the center till 3:30 pm to finish and update their documentation. Nearest School: One of the government schools, Jattarodi Hindi Pratmik Shala is at ten minute walking distance from colony.

House Form

Kutcha - 65%, Semi-pucca - 25%, Pucca - 7%

House Layout and habitability

There is one major “L” shaped tar road. The houses are aligned along this road. But the hutments along the disused railway track grew in a haphazard manner with no ventilation and served by narrow and congested lanes.

Material Construction

Roof - Tiles/ “Kavelu” with thick plastic sheets, Asbestos Sheets, Tin Sheets.

of

Wall - Mud, Logs, Bamboos, Bricks. Floor - Mud, cement. Windows and Doors - Wooden. Problems with Existing Houses

   

The houses have poor ventilation because there are very few windows. The structures are located very close to each other. The by lanes are very congested and due to this there is poor natural light. During rainy season there are flooding and roof leakages. Mosquitoes are a problem due to the presence of open drains.

4.8 Children’s Use of Jat Trodi 4.8.1 Play of Younger Children DPR does not have any provision for creating safe spaces for children to play and explore. Young children spend most of their time with care givers at home and play close to home. They usually play in the area between the two buildings or in the space on the ground floor of the building. Very young children cannot be left unsupervised at any time, as while playing between the buildings there is the chance of them tripping on the stairs. Even when children play on the ground floor, they need constant supervision as two wheelers are parked in the play spaces that children seek out and jerky movements tend to topple these light vehicles. In building B children can hurt themselves, playing on their own as no fencing has been done around the electrical meters in the ground floor. Residents have put bricks around the area to keep children away

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from reaching out. Older siblings especially girls are the ones taking care of and playing with younger children. Children of working parents usually go to the Anganwadi till one, after which mothers or older siblings pick them up.

Figure 4.2 - Children playing near transit houses, a girl playing next to her house, a young girl playing in the space between houses in the building

4.8.2 Mobility of Children within the Community Boys in the community are allowed to go almost anywhere they like without any restriction. They can hang around anywhere with their friends in the community. Boys go to Bhure Maidan which is in the heart of the neighboring NIT plotted housing. Girls on the other hand are not allowed to play in any of the fields or away from home. They play around the new buildings. However according to children, families living on the ground floor, they do not like children playing so close to their houses and often scold them for making noise. While boys play games like cricket and football and just hang out, girls play traditional games like hopscotch and nine grids. Girls also play indoor games like chauka bara4 with the women in the building. In the evenings girls have no leisure time as they need to fill water and help their mothers with housework.

Figure 4.3 - Young girls playing near their building, boys playing outside their house

4.8.3 Mobility of Children outside the Community Movement of the girls is restricted and supervised. Outside their community, girls go to school, tuition center and at times the local shop which is within the community. Parents who were interviewed expressed concern with respect to the immediate environment and why they don’t 4

Chauka Bara is a 'Race Game' where in two to four players race their respective coins on a board of 5x5 squares to reach the inner most square. The movement of coins is controlled by throw of four cowry shells; hence it is a game of chance. Since each player has four coins, he/she can decide which coin to move; hence it also is a kind of strategic game. 68


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let girls go anywhere. An alcohol shop is close to the community and is on the way to their school. In the evening when the researchers had gone with the girls for a walk in the community, they could see drunken men lying on the streets. Most of the girls also drop out of the school after the tenth standard as there are no schools nearby. At present there are only three girls who are going to college. Boy’s mobility on the other hand expands along with their economic activity. Majority of the boys drop out of school after 8th standard and start working. Outside the community, both boys and girls visit their village, and their extended families.

Figure4.4 - Girls in the building, boys playing in Bhure Maidan

4.9 The Process of Slum Redevelopment at Jat Trodi CHF had selected Nagpur to be one of the three cities in India for implementing the SCALE-UP (Slum Communities Achieving Livable Environment with Urban Partners) project. SCALE-UP hoped to:  

Integrate the priorities of slum dwellers into project planning and development. Build capacities of the stakeholders (ESAF and SRA for Nagpur).

After the initiation of the project it was discovered that NMC lacked the capability of formulating a DPR for slum rehabilitation and CHF got involved in the process of preparing the DPR as a model DPR which could be replicated by other Tier 2 cities with minor modifications. At the time of survey it was found that 89% of the houses in the community were kutcha and almost 78% of the houses had a footprint of less than 250 sq ft. Hence chances of people consenting to redevelopment as they were getting larger dwelling units under redevelopment were higher. The land belongs to NIT and Nazul (Revenue Department) and it was thought that NOC (noobjection certificate) would be easier to obtain from a government agency. A survey conducted by ESAF before the implementation of the project found that 69% of the community was willing to give their consent to the BSUP scheme. The inclusion of a beneficiary list was one of the pre-requisites while submitting a DPR. ESAF conducted field surveys to collect the socio-economic data for Jat Trodi and also to gauge the willingness of the community members for the BSUP project. The slum dwellers were initially reluctant to be a part of the survey as they believed that ESAF was working for the government and they questioned the motives of the government agencies. The project faced resistance from the community initially and especially from residents who had pucca houses.

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To gain the trust of the community ESAF started working with the children in the community in the form of a children’s club but the parents soon grew apprehensive and stopped sending their children. ESAF then started resource centers to bring women under the self help groups and enhance their skills for income generating opportunities.

Figure 4.5 - Old Houses

Figure4.6 - Transit Houses

Figure 4.7 - New DUs

4.9.1 Consultative Process The smallest cluster was chosen for redevelopment in first phase as the cluster had only 11 families. CHF along with ESAF helped in mobilizing the community and explained to them the benefits of participating in BSUP; the chance to get bigger houses and better sanitation. Transit accommodation was provided to families and they had to demolish their existing homes once they shifted to the transit accommodation which had been built in the open grounds next to the phase I clusters. On commencement of the process, 3 families out of the 11 from the selected cluster refused to shift to the transit accommodation because they occupied a bigger footprint than what they would get under BSUP scheme. SRA officials tried to convince them but they refused to shift to the transit accommodation. When all negotiation efforts failed, notices were sent to the 3 families asking them to vacate their houses within 15 days. A meeting was arranged between members of the Jat Trodi community, SRA officials and the local MLA by CHF to allay the concerns of the slum dwellers. The local MLA also tried convincing the 3 families but in the end police force had to be used to evict them and move them to the transit houses. The community was presented with 3 design options and the G+3 plan was rejected by the community. They demanded tenure of the same area where they lived without going vertical and protested against reductions in their existing footprint. To address these concerns ESAF organized mobilization drives to raise awareness about the BSUP scheme, community consultations were held on slum up gradations, neighborhood meetings were organized and the scheme was explained to each and every slum dweller and the consent of the community was taken on paper. Community did not have an opportunity to make changes in the house design at the individual level. They were presented with three alternative designs and had to choose one of the options. Currently two blocks comprising 33 apartments have been completed and 70


Chapter 4 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Jat Trodi, Nagpur

allocated (See figure 4.8). One more block with 12 flats is currently under construction. The proposed layout for the redevelopment as planned (see figure 4.9) had used a different flat design and building typology than what has been implemented.

LEGEND SCHOOL TRANSIT HOUSING EXISTING BSUP BLOCKS RESIDENTIAL POLICE STATION PUBLIC TOILETS COMMERCIAL COMMUNITY CENTRE NALLAH

N

SLUM BOUNDARY ROAD SURFACE OLD ABANDONED RAILWAY TRACK

EXISTING SITUATION : JAT TARODI

Figure 4.8 - Current State of Development at Jat Trodi

LEGEND TYPE A UNIT CLUSTER TYPE B UNIT CLUSTER TYPE C UNIT CLUSTER TYPE D UNIT CLUSTER PATHWAYS NALLAH OPEN GREEN AREA PARKING AREA FOR FUTURE EXPANSION

N

EXISTING COMMUNITY CENTRE PROPOSED AMENITIES

PROPOSED LAYOUT : JAT TARODI

ROAD SURFACE

Figure 4.9 - Proposed Layout for Jat Trodi

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4.10 Provisions in the Jat Trodi Detailed Project Report (DPR) In Jat Trodi 2 the total number of structures is 250; of which 32 are pucca, 120 are semi kutcha and the remaining 98 are kutcha. A total of 279 dwelling units have been proposed in the DPR with each dwelling unit including two rooms, a kitchen, bath, and toilet. The total carpet area of each unit will be 25 sq m (269 sq ft). Although overall housing contributions will meet JnNURM requirements, per-unit contributions have been modified so that those occupying ground floor units pay more than others. Contributions from ground floor units will be at 12.00% of housing costs, first floor units at 11.50%, and second floor units at 11.00%. However, recent guidelines give preference to households with handicapped members for ground floor units. The ownership documents will be transferred to the households at affordable prices and will generally be granted jointly in the name of the husband and wife or to a woman in the household. The DPR also has provisions for transit accommodation for the slum dwellers while the redevelopment is taking place. Proposed Services under DPR for Jat Trodi 

   

Water Supply –According to the DPR, the NMC has developed a Slum Policy for water supply which aims to reduce water wastage by removing standpipes and providing individual metered water connections to each household. Electric Supply – Individual metered connections will be provided to each dwelling unit and 656 rmt of streetlights will be provided and existing streetlights will be relocated as per the location of the new roads. Drainage and Sewerage – 1100 rmt of drainage will be provided and 1150 rmt of gutters will be built to provide sewer coverage to the slum areas. Roads – The DPR proposes 6m wide roads for internal access and 9m wide roads for the periphery. Solid Waste Management – The NMC proposes to levy a solid waste user charge in the slums and the rest of the city for collection of solid waste. Community Facilities – The implementation of this program will result in the creation of several open spaces in Jat Trodi2. The creation of additional public parks is not a part of BSUP but NMC will synthesize the open spaces with its citywide strategies for parks planned for the future. The DPR includes funds for the creation of market areas on some of the undeveloped lands. Social Services - As per BSUP guidelines the slum redevelopment will aim to improve convergence with existing health, education and social services and other facilities by: o Improving the road infrastructure to increase the access of the slum dwellers to these services. o Facilitating a citizen’s based organization (CBO) to act as an intermediary between the slum dwellers and the NMC regarding services and facilities and also to coordinate beneficiary involvement in the BSUP scheme. If CBOs already exist their capacity to undertake the above will be evaluated and if found lacking they will be offered capacity building. Social Infrastructure o Anganwadi/Balwadi – One 160 sq m anganwadi is proposed in the DPR. 72


Chapter 4 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment in Jat Trodi, Nagpur

o o

Livelihood Center – The DPR proposes a 170 sq m livelihood center. Health Clinic - The DPR proposes the construction of a private 53 sq m health clinic.

4.10.1 Provisions for Children in the DPR DPR does not explicitly mention children or their needs. Children had not been specifically covered under the survey. However, the DPR has provisions to build an anganwadi with adequate area allocations. However there is no provision for any play, recreation or sports facilities for children and adolescents. 4.11 House Allocation Lottery method was adopted for allocation of dwelling units and the entire process was transparent. The beneficiaries had to pick up chits with the house numbers. Some of the residents wanted a dwelling unit on a particular floor, in such cases applications for mutual exchange of houses were submitted to the SRA which approved the applications with the consent of the NMC Commissioner. 4.12 Housing Quality Evaluation Evaluation of the BSUP housing at Jat Trodi using a housing rights framework is presented below: 4.12.1 Security of Tenure Land in Jat Trodi belongs to Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT). Even though the NIT had given a NOC at the beginning of the project, it refused to transfer the land ownership to the slum dwellers. Even if they do, lease would be in the name of the co-operative housing society formed by the slum dwellers. Lease would be for a period of thirty years, post which it can be renewed at a nominal price. Currently residents have allotment letters which gives them right to stay and not right over the house due to a land dispute between NIT and NMC. Even after two years of having moved into their flats the residents are yet to receive security of tenure. 4.12.2 Affordability When compared to other states, Jat Trodi redevelopment has a high beneficiary contribution. It is Rs 30,000 for SC/ST and OBC. Residents belonging to the general category have to pay Rs 36,000. However there seems to be some discrepancy in the amount of the beneficiary share as reported by residents and by NGO’s. According to residents SC/ST and OBC had to pay Rs 35,000 and general Rs 45,000. It was observed by the NGO that residents would pay five to ten thousand while remaining amount was financed by the bank. The implementing agency SRA and its NGO partners CHF and ESAF organized loans from Union Bank at 9% interest. Families pay an EMI of Rs. 625/month for 7 years. 4.12.3 Availability of Services, Facilities and Infrastructure

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4.12.3a Access to Site - Site is well connected to the main market and railway station. Railway station is three kms away from Jat Trodi. 4.12.3b Street Network - Main road leading to the house is a wide tar road. There are paved tar roads around the area. Since land availability is not a problem in Nagpur, area has well paved roads and by lanes. 4.12.3c Open Spaces - Children especially boys play in the park or ground which is less than 500m away from the community called the Bhure Maidan. Young children and girls play outside the building. Children play in the vacant land created after demolition of slum houses in front of Phase I cluster. 4.12.3d Power Supply – There is regular power supply with scheduled power cuts which is applicable to the rest of the city as well. 4.12.3e Water Supply - There is an overhead water tank along with a motor to pump up borewell water. Residents have water 24 hours in their kitchen and toilet due to this. However, drinking water is collected by the residents from the public stand posts. Houses were given separate water connection for drinking along with a water meter. However, it added to their monthly expenses and people broke their piped connection and collect water from the public faucets. 4.12.3f Sanitation - Redevelopment has not led to overall change and improvement of the community environment as very few flats have been built. All new flats have inhouse toilets and a single pipe serves as soil and waste water pipe and discharges directly into the underground sewerage system. 4.12.3g Drainage - Drains in the community are covered; there is no water logging but due to uneven ground small puddles of water are formed. 4.12.3h Garbage Disposal - There is no formal system of garbage disposal. Most of the people collect their own garbage and throw it in the trash can which is close to the housing. Over flowing trash cans and garbage heaps are visible at less than 200m from the BSUP houses. 4.12.3i Local Transport–Nagpur has a well connected local transport system in the form of autos and buses. Bus stand is less then 1.5kms from the community. 4.12.3j Emergency Access - As the roads are paved and wide, cars, trucks and fire tenders can reach up to the buildings in case of emergency. 4.12.3k Streetlights -There are functional streetlights in the area.

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4.12.3l Daily Needs Shopping - Daily needs shopping of the residents are done from shops located in the community. Vegetables are sold on the road between the transit houses and new buildings. 4.12.3m Cooking Fuel – Cooking is done above the floor level and majority of the residents use LPG cylinders. Kerosene or wood powered stoves are used in the absence of LPG as refilling of gas cylinder can take between one to two months. There is segregation of sleeping and cooking area. Kerosene and other poisonous materials are stored in the balcony away from the reach of children. 4.12.3n Social Infrastructure - Apart from the anganwadi there are no specific facilities meant for children. 4.12.3o Play and Recreation Facilities - There are no organized play and recreational facilities for children in the area 4.12.4 Habitability 4.12.4a Smaller homes but with more defined spaces - The new dwelling units have 269sq ft carpet area and 333sq ft super built up area (including balcony). Land availability is not a problem in Nagpur, hence prior to redevelopment residents had larger home than one allotted to them under BSUP. Some children found their old houses more comfortable and nicer. However for families who had smaller footprint the scheme has ensured additional space.

Figure 4.10 - Typical Plan of a Dwelling Unit

4.12.4b Provision for home-based work - The Nagpur DPR has provisions for providing a separate dwelling unit for home based licensed businesses. Some women in the area are engaged in work from home like stitching clothes, beading work, selling vegetables etc. The women use the space between the flats to sort vegetables. 4.12.4c Physical Components - No water proofing or heat insulation has been done for the roof. The terrace can be accessed by all the residents but it is kept locked as children may get hurt while playing unsupervised on the terrace. Flooring is made of vitrified tiles. Window has glass shutters with grilles. Houses are well ventilated and let in daylight. Staircase is made of folded RCC. Residents have made some changes to their flats which include adding shelves in kitchen and living area.

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Figure 4.11 - From left to right: Leaking roof, incomplete pipe lines leading to dampness and mold on the walls, unfinished terrace of Building B, paan stains on the stairs.

4.12.4d Inadequate Storage Facilities - There are no in-built cupboards and shelves for storage. Overhead storage has been provided in the bedroom. A loft has been provided above the bathroom which can also be used for keeping an internal tank in the house of about 200litres capacity.

Figure 4.12 – Inside a BSUP Flat

4.12.4e Water Supply and Storage - Drinking water is collected by families from the standpipe outside the block and stored in steel pots, drums and plastic bottles. Bathroom and kitchen is supplied by water from a common water tank on the terrace. For Building B overhead water tank does not have a permanent cover, it is covered with three or four wooden planks. Children have access to water; they use glass to take the water out and drink. Drinking water is collected from the stand posts. It is not boiled or put through any filtration besides putting it through a sieve. Water from over head tank is used for washing clothes. 4.12.4f Fire Safe Houses – Houses are fire safe. 4.12.4g Neighborhood Evaluation - Young girls in the community are not allowed to go out on their own, as alcoholism among men is rampant. Girls also complained about eve teasing, thus confining them to their houses for safety reason. Boys on the other hand have freedom to go anywhere in the community. Alcohol shop is less than 200 meters away from the community. According to children violence in the community is common, and occurs at two levels: family and community. Domestic violence is common across most households and aggravated by alcoholism of adult male members. According to the local doctor there have been cases where women needed immediate medical attention. Men after alcohol consumption also fight among themselves. This makes the overall environment unsafe for children and women.

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4.12.5 Accessibility The buildings and flats are not provided with universal access. There is a railing on the staircase, however it is difficult for children and elderly to climb up and down several times as they go about their daily chores, most important of which is filling water from the public stand pipe outside the building. The building has provision for 24x7 water supply. However women fill drinking water from the stand post as families are reluctant to pay water bills. Every evening young girls and women can be seen filling water and taking it to their homes. More than four trips are required to meet the family’s water requirements. For families residing in the top floor, this entails climbing up three floors with heavy loads of water several times a day. The absence of a boundary wall or any kind of safe zone discourages girls to play even in the space below the buildings for they fear being harassed. 4.12.6 Cultural Adequacy The layout of the flats better accommodate the families and the extended shared landing spaces at the entrance of flats enable families from similar cultural backgrounds to socialize with neighbors. The flats do not provide opportunities for home-based work. No adequate house level open space compromises indoor air quality due to using wood fired stoves. At no point while making the DPR or during the survey children and their needs have been taken into account. No space has been created for children to play. The proposed plan did have open spaces for festivals or cultural purposes. The plan could not be implemented due to ongoing land ownership dispute and also due to resistance from the community to the flatted development typology. 4.13 Experience of Redevelopment BSUP redevelopment in Jat Trodi, Nagpur has not been an easy experience for families. Violence and force have been used for evicting few families that refused to move on their own. Voluntary organizations and government officials involved in the process did not envisage resistance from people. According to residents, prior to redevelopment they had bigger houses whereas houses given to them under the scheme are small. The survey which was conducted by ESAF in 2006, mentions people were paying property taxes thereby implying, they had ownership of the house. Hence when people were asked to move to flatted buildings and given smaller houses/flats it was not well received. As a result forceful eviction was done in some cases.

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Box 4.1 - Story of a boy living in a transit camp awaiting a BSUP house Mayur is a 12 year old boy living in the transit accommodation built by SRA for BSUP for the last 10 months after his pucca house was forcefully demolished by SRA. He studies in Class 7 in TilakVidyalay. He stays with his father, mother, two younger sisters and grandmother. His family is expected to get a flat in the third cluster. His father works in a sweet making factory and earns Rs.3500/month and his mother is a homemaker. He currently stays in a 10x10 room located in the open space opposite Jat Trodi slum. The transit accommodation houses 22 evicted families who share a common toilet and drinking water facilities. Mayur doesn’t like the transit house as it is very small and he cannot study because of the noise and constant quarrels between the residents. His earlier house was a much bigger pucca structure. His parents had spent a lot of money on renovating that house just before it was demolished to make way for the third cluster building under the BSUP scheme. Mayur gets up at 7am every morning and has to wait approximately 15 minutes for his turn to use the common toilet. He hates using the public toilets and his mother complains that he doesn’t use it until and unless she takes two buckets of water to flush the toilets. After having a bath he has his breakfast and then leaves for school by 10am. He first attends his scholarship tuitions and then heads to school. He uses a cycle to go to school. Mayur loves to go to school and enjoys spending time in school. After coming back from school he eats a snack and then goes to play for an hour. He generally plays in the lanes of Jat Trodi and sometimes goes to 'bhuremaidan' to play cricket and football with friends. By 7.00pm he comes back and studies till 8.30pm. He goes to bed by 9.30pm. The everyday diet of the family primarily comprises of rotis, rice, a vegetables curry and dal. They occasionally eat non-vegetarian food. He loves to spend his spare time drawing and also helps his younger sisters with their studies. After growing up, Mayur wants to do a decent job and earn well for his family. He also says that if he had the power he would definitely ensure that all the schools have good number of clean toilets and big playgrounds for kids to play. He is anxiously waiting to move out of the transit accommodation and prays to God for getting a new flat as soon as possible.

It took two years to construct the building, during which beneficiaries were accommodated in a makeshift arrangement in the community called ‘transit houses’. Transit houses, had typically one room with a common toilet. No arrangements were made for cleaning toilets and women had to fill water from faucets as there was no water connection. The transit houses were not well planned out and this resulted in the beneficiaries resisting the move (See box 4.1 for the experience of one child still staying in a transit camp due to the land dispute where railways now claims the land around the defunct track that has now made the future of the project uncertain). Women are unhappy with their new flats as redevelopment has added to their expenditures for water, electricity and building maintenance. According to the children, who were interviewed, every month their families have to pay Rs.100-200 for some work in the building. However, girls like the new houses as they have attached toilets. When children were asked to draw their immediate environment, everyone drew pictures of a running tap in their house. Children had different views about their new houses. Some of them liked the new flats while others thought their previous house was better as people celebrated festivals together which does not happen anymore (see Box 4.2). Children also said given an option they would want to stay back in their villages as it has bigger homes, and open spaces for them to play. Women on the other hand, do not feel safe leaving their children behind for work. Absence of a boundary wall and no gates at the stairs, leads to drunken men climbing up to the flats or lying around in the common space. Women and men are also not very happy with the quality of construction of the houses (see Box 4.3). In building two, no protective grill has been provided around the area where electricity meters are installed. Work on the terrace has not been completed and as a result, there is 78


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leakage in the second floor flats during monsoons. There is limited storage space provided in the house and as a result residents had to spend extra on installing shelves. Maintenance of the building has already become a problem with ‘paan stains’ all around the building (See figure 4.10). Box 4.2 - Girl living in a new BSUP flat Anjali is 9 years old. She studies in class V in Saint Anthony’s School and is proud to be studying in an English medium school. Her family comprises of her father, mother and younger brother. Anjali’s family moved into the BSUP flat in April, 2012 from the transit accommodation where they lived for almost 2 years. Her father works as a daily laborer in construction. He belongs to one of the first families that settled in Jat Trodi. Anjali wakes up at 7am in the morning. She gets ready and then goes to school. Her father drops her off to school on his bike. She is back from school around 2:00pm. She changes and then completes her homework. Her mother is very keen to get her and her brother educated well and sends Anjali and her brother for evening tuitions. They come back at 8:00pm, watch the television for an hour, eat dinner and sleep by 9:00pm. Anjali helps her mother with daily household chores like sweeping, washing clothes like socks and handkerchiefs and serving food when they eat together. Anjali likes cooking and looks forward to the weekend. Anjali doesn’t like playing outdoors as children play with mud. She prefers to play hide and seek indoors with her brother. She feels apprehensive about her new house as she is scared that her new house might get demolished like the old one. She is not comfortable with the older boys in her community, who use the terrace for gambling and smoking cigarettes and chewing tobacco. She wishes to have a computer at home and her father will buy her one if she passes Class V with flying colors. Anjali is a promising girl and aspires to be a doctor.

Box 4.3 - A family’s experience of BSUP house Raju lives with Pushpa and her three kids; elder daughter Pinky (16 years), another daughter Rinki (14 year) and a son (11 years). Although he is not legally married to Pushpa, he says that he came to her rescue when her first husband tried to kill her by pouring kerosene on her and her kids. Since then he is living with her and treats her like his wife .He takes care of her and her children. He works as a daily wager and earns about 500/- per day in thesabzimandi(vegetable market). Raju hails from the Durg district in the neighboring state of Chhattisgarh. His parents came to Jat Trodi almost 20 yrs back and stayed in rental accommodations in this area. As an 8 year old he remembers that their hut got burnt in a fire. Raju has not even finished primary school. Raju’s elder daughter has th passed her 10 grade. They are not sending her to college for further education as they say they don’t have enough money. The younger two kids go to school (Saint Anthony). Raju recently moved to this new BSUP building. Raju is very concerned that the flat is still not registered. Although they got an allotment letter from SRA, they have not got any receipt for the 10-12% beneficiary contribution that they had to pay. No bank people have visited them and they don’t even have a pass book. He laments that no government official is bothered about them. Raju feels that the neighborhood is not very good, there are frequent fights for petty issues including over water. During summer when there is scarcity of water, the fights intensify. There were more fights in the transit arrangement as the facilities were public and they had to share. But he says that the fights are only verbal. No police is called. Bicycle thefts are common and there is a lot of drinking problem in the area. Raju and Pushpa cannot leave their children alone at night time. According to Raju about 25% of the work in the BSUP housing is still incomplete. But nobody is bothering to finish. Residents did monitor the construction work of their building and also suggested some changes in the design like having a separate wash space in the kitchen, a balcony in the bedroom and reducing the size of the bathroom, so that the bedrooms become a little bigger. But he complains about the white tiles, says that it is difficult to keep them clean. The builder did the electrical wiring and the slum dwellers then purchased their own ceiling fans, electric tube lights and switches. Raju feels that the builder still could have done a better job. The pipes are leaking and they cannot leave their daily work and attend to these problems every day. They also wanted a compound wall for their cluster. Other slum dwellers have already started encroaching on the land around the building. 79


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4.14 Future of Redevelopment and Children in Jat Trodi Jat Trodi slum clusters developed along a disused railway track owned by Central Railways but used by a private mill till 1985. Railways now claim the land of the sidings which are encroached by the slums. NIT also claims to be the owners of this land and on that basis had given NOCs to SRA to redevelop Jat Trodi 2 under BSUP. Central Railways marked the boundary of their land and issued eviction notices to slum dwellers. The residents under the guidance of a local corporator and ex-standing committee chairman of NMC have formed a Railway Pidit Sangarsh Samiti and have filed a court case. The case is pending. Of the 279 families who were beneficiaries of the scheme, only 33 have received new houses. Before the Railways issued notices, NMC had decided to redevelop the entire site under BSUP and the then Municipal Commissioner had ordered forceful evictions to make way for the third cluster of 44 flats. NMC evicted 30 families and shifted them to nearby transit houses. These families had pucca structures with bigger footprints, the reason for not wanting to vacate their houses. Eleven families out of the thirty agreed to move into BSUP flats and the remaining 19 families submitted an affidavit to SRA saying that they don’t want the flat scheme. Therefore part of the third cluster is being constructed outside the boundary of the land claimed by the railways to house the 11 families in a flatted block. Once the case is finalized, the project may get implemented as envisioned. But the timeframe for the sanctioned BSUP scheme is December 2013. SRA may think about implementing the scheme adopting an in-situ upgradation approach giving pucca houses to people having kutcha structures under RAY as most families are currently opposed to the flat scheme. However as RAY has made it non-obligatory for states to financially contribute to affordable housing under JnNURM, and the central government share being fixed at 50%, the ULB and beneficiaries now have to share the remaining 50%. This makes housing under RAY totally unaffordable for poor families as cash-strapped ULBs are likely to pass on greater proportions of the house cost to the beneficiary. Currently of the 279 families with 225 children identified as beneficiaries of the Jat Trodi 2 BSUP redevelopment, only 33 families with 45 children have Figure 4.13 - The transit camp along the defunct railway track next to been allotted new houses. 30 existing slum houses in Jat Trodi 2, Nagpur in September 2012. families with 32 children are staying in the transit camps, out of which 19 families in refusing BSUP houses face an uncertain future as does the remaining 227 families and their children. 80


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4.15 Key Findings The key findings of the case study are discussed at three levels: policy, programming and implementation. 4.15.1 Policy Level 4.15.1a Positive Aspects The CDP of Nagpur promotes:  Community participation for any kind of developmental activities in slums.  An in-situ development approach to slum development with a focus on linking poor people to government housing schemes and livelihood options. Only in case of untenable slums (for which conditions are not defined) relocation is recommended.  The involvement of NGOs/CBOs in slum upgrading and urban poverty alleviation initiatives to ensure a community-centered approach.  Initiating the process of de-notification of slums which are already developed.  Approximately 25% budget allocation for the slum development activities in the city to be earmarked in the NMC budget. 4.15.1b Limitations 

No recognition of children living in poverty as a vulnerable group: CDP does not include rights and needs of children or women. The CDP which sets the policy direction for all projects under JNNURM including BSUP does not recognize children living in poverty as a vulnerable group. In the CDP document the only mention about children’s participation is where school children were encouraged to write short essays on what they like and dislike about Nagpur and their dream for the city. However it is not clear to what extent these suggestions have been incorporated.

Lack of recent and accurate data before plan making: The vision for Urban Poverty and social development in the CDP is based primarily on a survey done by GTZ-NMC in 19992003. The Appraisal Report of Nagpur CDP prepared by the Ministry of Urban Development states that there is basic data gap and presentation of contradictory information.xii CDP gives no data on available infrastructure facilities, or on status of open defecation in slums. For shaping a vision of a city and its effective implementation, agencies need to work with updated data.

Lack of clarity in the CDP: According to the CDP the NMC has been earmarking funds for provision of basic services to the urban poor while a subsequent paragraph indicates that it is planned from 2006-2007. The provision of security of tenure to the poor has not been included as a part of the provision of basic services.

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Participation: The past schemes focused on the provision of physical infrastructure without taking into account the views of the slum dwelling community because of which the amenities provided were underutilized. However, whether this realization actually led to seeking out opportunities for slum dwellers’ active involvement in planning and implementation of BSUP remains doubtful. JNNURM demands a participatory planning process including the urban poor. It is not clear what inputs were received from the community for designing and planning BSUP projects in Nagpur. Though NGOs involved with the process called community meetings and insisted that they had followed a participatory process, people in Jat Trodi were not involved in the planning and design stages nor in the preparation of the DPR.

Selection of Beneficiaries: The BSUP policy does not provide clear guidelines on beneficiary selection. As a result in flatted redevelopment blocks, there is confusion on whether to give flats structure wise or household/family wise. The policy also does not give clarity on whether to include rentals in the scheme or not. The Government regulations on BSUP mentions giving priority to slum dwellers who have been staying in the slum since 1.1.95, but the State govt. insists on the 1.1.95 cutoff date, making the dwellers who have no proof of 1.1.95 as “not eligible”.

Planning for different house typologies missing: The planning does not provide for mixed used housing or different typologies based on family types. All families have been accommodated in the 269 sq ft carpet area irrespective of the number of members in a family. Therefore, there is no option for bigger families but to continue living in overcrowded surroundings.

Community development through convergence on paper only: No convergence of social services had been planned while redeveloping Nagpur slums. Approach to redevelopment under BSUP in Nagpur is mainly converting kutcha houses to pucca structures.

4.15.1c Recommendations •

The eligibility criteria of the beneficiaries have to be defined properly. The cutoff date of proof of residence prior to 1.1.95 acts as a deterrent in implementing BSUP as it leaves out many families who resort to illegal internal selling and buying deals within the slum pocket.

House allocation should be based on family/household and not on existing slum structure. During field surveys it was found that there was more than one family staying in one structure.

BSUP should mandate Environmental Impact Assessments and Community Impact Assessments including considering impact of development on children in a particular location to decide on the best approach to slum development.

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If in-situ redevelopment has to happen in an environmentally degraded area due to other factors such as proximity to opportunities for livelihood, strategies for environmental mitigation as well as adequate budget allocation under infrastructure must be made in the CDP.

4.15.2 Programme level 4.15.2a Positive Aspects 

The involvement of NGOs led to some positive outcomes such as creating flexible options for residents to repay house loans, giving two houses to bigger families (no rule is laid down to this effect in policy), smooth transference of the flat to beneficiary and formation of a housing co-operative society.

4.15.2b Limitations 

Plans based on incomplete understanding of community life: Although survey was done by ESAF, the survey instrument was inadequate in the absence of any clear cut directives from government. The survey was not seen as a value addition by SRA towards preparation of DPR. No data was collected on children, on community spaces needed for women and girls or on environmental hazards. As a result the proposed plan and building typology is removed from the life of residents and their needs. For example someone in the scrap sorting business needs open space to carry out their work but the building typology does not offer them any such space.

Consultative participation with no community involvement in planning and design: All technical inputs as well as planning and design decisions were taken by NMC. Though the socioeconomic survey of the slum directly collected data from the community, the process was managed by NGOs and the DPR did not benefit much from this survey.

No Capacity in women’s groups to adequately participate in planning process: Though the CDP promotes women’s role in planning and implementation of slum upgrading projects, women’s savings groups were not empowered to discuss local area development issues.

Cost escalations due to delay in actual implementation of the project - Project delay due to unprecedented reasons led to escalation in cost and DPR or CDP had no provision for such exigencies.

4.15.2c Recommendations 

Participatory planning processes to build on the data collected by the community and involvement of women and children in developing their own plans and in mobilizing the entire community to co-create the final plan. 83


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Children’s neighborhood networks should be developed through Bal Sabhas and children should be trained and made an integral part of local area development decision-making through this network.

Proposals in the DPR must be detailed and arrived at through a participatory design process involving women, boys and girls, youth and mothers of young children besides men. Proposals should be reviewed by the community and accepted. Costing should be done based on approved proposals. This way implementing agencies will not waste time revising or redesigning proposals in the DPR.

4.15.3 Project Level 4.15.3a Limitations 

Flatted vs. plotted development: Nagpur does not have problems of land availability unlike Mumbai and Pune in Maharashtra. As a result, slum dwellers occupy bigger huts and are reluctant to shift to flatted buildings with no option for incremental housing. In Jat Trodi too many slum dwellers that had bigger footprints refused to give consent to redevelopment. As a result forced evictions occurred. This could be avoided if policy is made keeping city specific requirements in mind. Expenditure on the basic services at house and community level: Redevelopment should not create additional financial burden on slum dwellers. In Jat Trodi-2 according to the survey carried out, the monthly income is less than Rs. 3000 for a majority of the residents, whereas EMI comes to Rs. 500. An additional Rs. 500 goes towards their electricity bill and water bill leaving people with Rs. 2000/month. According to people they are not left without any saving; redevelopment has added to their expenditure

Indoor air quality an issue due to wood-fired ovens: As families are still using wood-fired ovens inside dwellings in the kitchen, air quality is compromised threatening children’s health. Families with gas connection are also using wood as fuel as they have no money to replace their cylinders every month

No new facilities created for play or recreation: The project failed to create any play spaces or landscaped parks within the community despite budgetary allocations for a children’s park in the DPR. This limits options for outdoor activities especially for girls.

4.15.3b Recommendations 

Involve competent professionals to work with competent NGOs to design more adequate housing.

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Community development to include need based facilities such as study centers, bridging classes to prevent children from dropping out of school, non-formal learning centers for working children, rehabilitation centers and counseling services for alcohol abuse.

Define open spaces with planted shade, street furniture and adequate space to allow play especially for the girl child.

Convergence of funds should be done for better housing and infrastructure development.

Community including children should be involved in not only planning and designing play and recreation spaces but also in constructing and maintaining them.

References i

Population Census. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.census2011.co.in/census/city/353-nagpur.html

ii

Ibid

iii

TNN. (2011, December 9). Make Nagpur Greenest City of India. The Times of India. Retrieved from http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-12-09/nagpur/30497315_1_greenest-city-treessustainable-cities iv

Nagpur Improvement Trust. (n.d.) Development Plan. Retrieved from http://www.nitnagpur.org/dp.html Nagpur Municipal Corporation. (n.d.) City Information. Retrieved from http://nmcnagpur.gov.in/en/cityinformation.html v

vi

CHF International. (2008). Slum Atlas of Nagpur.

vii

Slum Rehabilitation Authority.(n.d.).BSUP. Retrieved from http://sranagpur.in/JnNURM-schemeBSUP.html viii

Ministry of Housing and Poverty Alleviation. (n.d.) Project Level Fund Flow. Retrieved from http://ipoms.cgg.gov.in/loginFundFlow.do?mode=getProjectLevelReport&cityId=3250&stateId=27&schem eId=1 ix

Agencies. (2008, July 17). Anemia is on the rise in India, says NFHS report. Express India. Retrieved from http://expressindia.indianexpress.com/latest-news/anemia-is-on-the-rise-in-india-says-nfhsreport/336854/\ x

Raut, K.U. (2011). Child Labour in Vidarbha of Maharashtra: Problem and Solution. Indian Streams Research Journal. Retrieved from http://www.isrj.net/UploadedData/98.pdf xi

Devi, K. and Roy, G. (2007).Study of Child Labour among School Children in Urban and Rural Areas of Pondicherry. Indian Journal of Community Medicine. Retrieved from http://www.ijcm.org.in/text.asp?2008/33/2/116/40881

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xii

Ministry of Urban Development. (2006). Nagpur: City Development Plan (CDP) and City-Level Reform Agenda, An Appraisal Report. Retrieved from http://JnNURM.nic.in/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/CDPNagpur.pdf

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Chapter 5 - Kalpana Nagar and Madrasi Colony, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

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5.1 Introduction Kalpana Nagar and Madrasi Colony are erstwhile slums that have been redeveloped under the BSUP project of JnNURM in the city of Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh. The story of BSUP projects in Madhya Pradesh is a dynamic one where numbers of redeveloped apartments are high without significant involvement of the beneficiaries in the development process. The main stakeholders in the redevelopment Figure 5.1 – Location Map of Kalpana Nagar (Source: ACE 2013)

projects are the ULB and private development organizations. In the absence of NGO’s negotiating better living conditions with ULBs and representation of people in the redevelopment project, the design and construction consultancy of private developers resulted in usage of low-cost and inferior quality materials for construction and anonymous housing typologies. However, the projects are all in-situ housing redevelopment and have the advantage of being located within

city limits with excellent accessibility. Two case studies have been documented in considerable detail from amongst the 14 BSUP projects in Bhopal. Kalpana Nagar was one of the first projects to be implemented and is an example of a planning process and product which had no beneficiary participation. The reactions of the residents and the impact on their lives provide insights on the negative aspects of the non-participatory approach. The second case, Madrasi Colony, is a later project and the process and the product both indicate a more participatory approach and the result is evident in the built form as well as in the life of the residents. Figure 5.2 – Location Map of Madrasi Colony (Source: ACE 2013)

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5.2 Background on Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh is referred to as the heart of India because of its central location. It is the second largest state by area after Rajasthan and the sixth most populous state in India. In terms of urbanization it is tenth in the country.i It is a large state endowed with natural and historic riches. According to the 1995 Human Development Report of Madhya Pradesh, from the middle of 1990’s the state government started investing in education and basic health and the pace of progress in literacy, school enrollment and decentralized community based health services picked up. 5.2.1 History of Housing in Madhya Pradesh The problem of urban housing shortage is not peculiar to Madhya Pradesh. According to the Housing Shortage Report 2007ii, the urban housing shortage in the country was around 24.71 million dwelling units while the shortage of urban housing in Madhya Pradesh was 1.29 million households. The housing shortage has declined by 25% and come down to 18.78 million units for India and 1.1 million units for Madhya Pradesh which is about 5.8% of the country’s shortage.iii Madhya Pradesh enforced “Affordable Housing Rules” in 2010, keeping with the National Affordable Housing Policy of India, as an amendment to relevant sections of the Madhya Pradesh Bhumi Vikas Rules, 1984. The Rules define affordable housing by providing income criteria of different socio-economic groups in line with those provided by HUDCO1 and dwelling unit area. The rules address the issue of house as a living unit rather than as an asset, mandating a 15 year period from time of possession to permitting the owner to sell the property. Various types of development models have been provided with different incentive frameworks, suited for varying contexts, for both government and private sector as developers. Several schemes were introduced by both the state and central government to address the issues of housing and slum redevelopment. Some of the initiatives and policies are listed below:  Madhya Pradesh Urban Services for the Poor (MPUSP)  Municipal Action Plan for Poverty Reduction (MAPP)  Slum Networking of Bhopal  ‘Patta Act’ of 1984 and 1998, also known as Madhya Pradesh Nagariya Kshetron ke Bhoomihin Vyakti (Pattadruti Adhikaron ka Pradan Kiya Jana) Adhiniyam2  Rajiv Gandhi Ahsray Abhiyan Under the Urban Poverty Alleviation Program of the Central Government, the District Urban Development Authority undertook the creation of Community Development Societies (CDS). This programme was devised primarily for implementation of community schemes by availing 1

The Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited (HUDCO) is a public sector undertaking, wholly owned by the Government of India and is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation. HUDCO is charged with building affordable housing and carrying out urban development. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housing_and_Urban_Development_Corporation 2 Act for grant of leasehold rights to landless persons occupying urban lands.

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money through credit groups. This programme proved to be inadequate as it was observed that while the participation was apparent through the chairpersons of CDS, there was no comprehensive participation of the larger community. This programme was not applied to all slums of the cities. Madhya Pradesh has been making efforts to address the issues of urban housing shortage and that of slums through various schemes and programmes, which after implementation have showed different levels of success. 5.2.2 Child Health Care Programmesiv Several Central and State Government schemes for Child Healthcare and Education are being implemented in Madhya Pradesh to prevent anemia among adolescent girls, to promote institutional delivery and early breastfeeding, to reduce infant and maternal mortality, to promote nutritious diet, to combat serious malnutrition and advocacy for saving the girl child. In the last 10 to 15 years an accelerated and focused effort to improve child health has had a positive impact on IMR and U5IMR in the state. 5.3 Background of Bhopal Bhopal became the capital of Madhya Pradesh in 1956. The industrial township of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) was also established in the same decade Population 1,883,381 about 3kms east of the then city boundary. As a result of Child Population (0-6 217,415 years) these two events, Bhopal has witnessed a substantial Sex Ratio 911 growth in its population. During 1971-1981, the city Child Sex Ratio (0-6 years) 915 boundaries were increased to bring BHEL Township within the Bhopal Municipal Corporations (BMC) limits. Average Literacy 85.29 Bhopal has not grown as a single city but as discrete townships, with sparse outgrowth in between. The Source: Census of India 2011 discreet parts are the old city and its periphery, BHEL Township, Capital Project (the new planned administrative capital) and Bairagarh (originally the cantonment area which now is also a major trading centre).v Table 5.1 - Social Indicators – Bhopal Urban Population

The city is dominated by the presence of a large lake, Bhojtal, separating the old and new parts with hills and forested areas being a part of the urban area. Essentially Bhopal is a city of inhabited pockets with open areas and natural barriers in between. Since Bhopal was planned as an administrative capital it has large parcels of land under government ownership in the heart of the city. Most of the recent private development in the residential sector has thus occurred at peripheral locations of the city along the major transport arteries.

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5.3.1 Housing and Slums in Bhopal Table 5.2 Access to Services in Bhopal Average Household (HH) Size 5.79 Average Monthly HH Income 6065 BPL Population (% HH) 15.2 No Legal Tenure (% HH) 21.4 No in-house water (% HH) 33 No piped water (% HH) 4.3 No private toilet (% HH) 18.6 Flooding Problem (% HH) 41.2 No Paved Road (% HH) 22.3 Public Transport > 1km 11.1 Source: Integrated Urban Development in Madhya Pradesh for Bhopal, ADB

The presence of Government offices and residential quarters for their staff led to the demand for the service sector in the central areas of Bhopal. With vacant land parcels being available in the vicinity, a large number of slums developed in and around the central areas to house the service population. Thus most slums in Bhopal are on Government land, which are vacant and typically not environmentally desirable.

The location of these slums coupled with the comparatively low densities of population in Bhopal; have in a way acted in favor of the slum dwellers of the city. During the implementation of the BSUP project the BMC in-situ approach was adopted wherever possible as the land was owned by the Government. This led to the redevelopment projects being implemented on very accessible locations in Bhopal. Box 5.1 – General Characteristics of Bhopal Slums

According to the CDP of Bhopal, the registered slum Surveys of slums conducted during preparation of the CDP of Bhopal have population in Bhopal is indicated the following general characteristics of slums: 480,000. The November • House type - Majority of houses in the slums are either semi-pucca or kutcha 2005 survey conducted by in nature. Pucca houses are seen on the plots whose owners have Patta, or leasehold rights. The dwelling units are single storied and have one or two the BMC reports 384 slums rooms averaging an area of 300–400 sq ft. in Bhopal.vi The CDP also provides the statistics for • Roads in slums - Most slums in Bhopal have reasonably good access roads housing and access to made of asphalt. The internal areas of the slums have concrete, stone paved, kutcha and Water Bound Macadam (WBM) roads. basic infrastructure facilities for the city of • Water Supply - The problem common in most slums is that the water is Bhopal as enumerated in available at points on the perimeter main lines and people have to carry water Table 1.2. As many of the to the internal areas in buckets, often in steep terrain and through kutcha lanes. slums are built on hill • Sanitation - Less than 5% of the households have access to some toilet slopes obstructing facility within the community. While some of the slums were serviced by Sulabh catchment areas and (public toilet) complexes, the residents displayed a reluctance to use them, natural drainage paths, particularly the women. incidence of flooding is high. Problems of inadequate roads, toilet facilities and lack of in house water supply are shared by about 20-30% of the households. In Bhopal, about 50% of all housing activity in the urban formal sector is undertaken by individuals, either Government agencies or private developers. The Madhya Pradesh Housing & Infrastructure Development Board has historically been the sole agency for providing housing in urban areas mainly for LIG and EWS groups.vii 91


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5.4 Bhopal CDP Box 5.2 – CDP’s Indicators for Poverty Levels Apart from monetary income the CDP mentions 7 non-economic indicators for assessing poverty levels:  Roof  Floor  Water  Sanitation  Education Level  Type of Employment  Status of Children in Life

The CDP for Bhopal was prepared by Mehta and Associates of Indore, Madhya Pradesh. As part of the preparation process, only one public consultation or ‘open house discussion’ was conducted and people’s suggestions were incorporated in the CDP. The following strategies have been outlined in the CDP for Housing for Urban Poor and Slum Rehabilitation to make Bhopal a “Zero Slum City” by the year 2012 by rehabilitation and relocation of as many as 25,000

slum dwelling units in a phased manner:  Survey of existing slum conditions.  Rehabilitation of slums.  Development of infrastructure.  Community development and creation of social infrastructure.  Regularization of illegal colonies and unauthorized layouts. CDP’s Vision for Children Although the CDP mentions demographics involving children like percentage of population in various age groups, percentage of working children below 14 years, the average number of children in households (1.9) there are no separate provisions for children. The CDP bypasses the entire subject comprehensively both in its conceptual framework and in its strategies of implementation. 5.5 Process of Slum Redevelopment under BSUP in Bhopal Madhya Pradesh was the first state in the country to start delivering housing under the BSUP scheme. There are few states in the country which have delivered such large numbers of housing through the BSUP scheme. In Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal has delivered the highest number of dwelling units. The availability of unencumbered government land in good locations and the willingness of the government to implement BSUP benefited the project. The balance between quantity and quality has always been difficult to achieve and the same is the case in Bhopal. The absence of public participation is justified by the authorities as a means to meeting deadlines of delivery. The lack of public participation in the process of design and allotment has received negative feedback from the city’s NGOs. The media has also been trying to play the role of a watchdog and bring out the problems faced by the residents in these colonies. Bhopal has extensively implemented BSUP projects. Table 1.3 provides the list of BSUP projects and the cost. A total of 14 projects have been sanctioned and are in various stages of completion with a total of 23,609 dwelling units being provided through these projects in

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Bhopal alone. Out of the 14 projects approved under BSUP at a cost of Rs.443.44 crores, only 1 project has been completed.viii The BMC has been experimenting with layout designs and building typologies in subsequent projects. While the initial projects had many obvious flaws in planning and layout, later projects have attempted to rectify some of these lacunae. Later projects have also tried to involve beneficiaries in both the design stage and the allotment stage, albeit in limited capacities. Table 5.3 BSUP Projects in Bhopal Cost (in Dwelling Expenditure crores INR) Unit 1. Rehabilitation of Shyam Nagar, Rishi Nagar 16 1440 8.45 2. Integrated Development of Indrapuri, Kalpana Nagar 2.54 212 1.97 3. Development of Weekly Market at Kotra 9.36 512 7.13 4. Slum and Poor Locality Integrated Area Development 39.50 0 31.77 Scheme Phase I 5. Slum and Poor Locality Integrated Area Development 41.11 0 38.81 Scheme Phase II 6. Slum Rehabilitation of Roshanpura 47.15 3600 16.02 7. Rehabilitation of Babanagar, Shahpura 26.61 1872 4.13 8. Rehabilitation of Ganga Nagar and Aradhana Nagar at 24.73 1848 13.64 Kotra 9. Rehabilitation of Arjun Nagar, Bhim Nagar, Madrasi 52.63 3528 1.39 Colony and Rahul Nagar 10. Rehabilitation of Indra Nagar Phase I 17.10 1216 21.45 11. Rehabilitation of Bajpayee Nagar Police line Kohefiza, 50.84 3328 3.70 Ayub Nagar, Mata Madhiya and Belar Colony 12. Rehabilitation of Indra Nagar Phase II 13.43 896 0 13. Slum Redevelopment and Rehabilitation of Identified 55.68 2858 0 Slums (Housing Devp) Part I, Bharat Mata Nagar, Naya Basera and Arjun Nagar 14. Slum Redevelopment and Rehabilitation of Identified 46.76 2229 0 Slums (Housing Development) Total 443.44 23609 148.46 Source: Urban Madhya Pradesh – The JnNURM Impact, Urban Administration and Development Department S. No.

Project Name

5.6 Case Study: KALPANA NAGAR, Bhopal Table 5.4 – Fact File Kalpana Nagar Location Ward No. 61, Bhopal Area 1.06 acres Population 1060 Land Ownership Bhopal Municipal Corporation BSUP Implementing Agency Bhopal Municipal Corporation Number of Households 163 Number of Houses built under BSUP 164 Average Household Size 6.5 Religious Background 157 Muslim families and 7 Hindu Families Dwelling Unit Size 20.72 sq m TMC’s Internal Earmarking of funds for Urban Poor 20-25%

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5.6.1 Common DPR for Indrapuri and Kalpana Nagar The DPR for the project was prepared by Wallabh and Wallabh Associates, Bhopal, and mentions redevelopment of the entire neighborhood in two phases.  The first phase was to include rehabilitation of the slum dwellers on vacant land within the Kalpana Nagar area and build new units on the same land occupied by the old slum.  Better organization of the existing space was planned and included residential units, open spaces, parks and other civic amenities.  Residential and commercial development was planned for the surplus land and profits from it were reserved to cross subsidize the slum redevelopment.  The commercial development was expected to fund the upgradation of basic physical infrastructure in the locality (sewage, drainage and water supply) which was installed in 1980s and was now deteriorating. 5.6.2 Community Profile According to the officials there is no household or livelihood data because this was one of the first projects, developed about 6 years ago and with changes in the officials over the years the records of the completed projects are no longer easily accessible. According to the residents of Kalpana Nagar their dissatisfaction with the project was so high that at the time of project initiation they destroyed the detailed livelihood mapping documents brought along by the BMC officials. As no official data was made available from BMC, the data was taken from interviews with a Livelihood Coordinator of BMC and then further cross checked by undertaking a random sample of 30 households. The Livelihood Coordinator of BMC was not able to provide much information on Kalpana Nagar Slum as the project profiling was done before he took up this post. The profiling has been done entirely on the basis of a primary survey conducted on site by ACE and SPA researchers based on a sample size of 30 families. 5.6.2a Livelihood No verifiable data about the resident’s livelihoods is available. The ACE primary survey gives some insight about the employment patterns of the residents. Wide socio-economic variations exist among the various families. Some families have higher incomes, evident from the cars owned by them, and are mostly engaged in trading and in the transport sector. The majority of the residents work as car mechanics, car and bus drivers, petty traders, butchers and daily workers in the construction industry and are also seasonally employed as agricultural labor in their native villages. Very few women are employed. Some women run home based shops owned by their families while some others work as house help in the middle income neighborhoods. 94


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Daily laborers earn Rs.3000/month in peak seasons for 20 days of work. For drivers the income may vary between Rs.4000-5000/month while women working as house maids earn between Rs.1500-2500/month. In families where the men and women both work the combined income rarely exceeds Rs.6000. 5.6.2b Education According to the ACE primary survey almost all of the children in the age group of 5-12 years attend school. After the age of 14 dropout rates are high amongst the boys who leave school to supplement their family’s income. There is a Madrasa in Kalpana Nagar which operates out of the Community Hall. Out of the school children surveyed, 80% of the girls attend the Madrasa after completing standard 6 because of the convenient location of the Madrasa and the timings. The Madrasa teacher also provides private tuitions for Rs.85-100/month. 5.6.2c Health Verifiable data pertaining to the health of the Kalpana Nagar residents is missing. The interviews conducted by the ACE researchers gives some insight into the health status of the residents. The residents mentioned that a number of children suffered from bronchial ailments. The incidences of waterborne diseases are high because of the presence of open water tanks on the terraces. Most of the children are born in hospitals while incidences of home births with a midwife presiding are rare. There are no dispensaries in Kalpana Nagar and the residents either visit the government hospitals which are at a distance of 5-7 kms for major illnesses or private doctors for minor ailments. 5.6.2d Work of Children Most of the children in Kalpana Nagar attend school. The boys who start working after the age of 14 either work full time or part time as garage mechanics to supplement the family’s income. In Kalpana Nagar, the children are responsible for domestic chores especially girls who are made to help with housework from an early age. Many adolescent boys quit school in order to start earning. Adolescent boys either work or hang around the colony the whole day. Drug and alcohol abuse are common though not readily acknowledged by the community.

5.7 Process of BSUP Redevelopment in Kalpana Nagar In 2006, this slum was selected for in-situ redevelopment under the first phase of BSUP projects in Bhopal and was one of the first projects to be implemented. The DPR described the slum as having kutcha hutments with narrow roads, poor drainage and lack of organized open spaces. The residents however, while describing their earlier housing have mentioned a more 95


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consolidated housing layout with pucca structures and open spaces as part of the housing unit. This contradiction could not be resolved as no visual documentation of the earlier slum is available. 5.7.1 From Vision to Reality The structures which were built differ from the ones proposed in the DPR in certain aspects, some of which are discussed below: 

  

 

The total number of dwelling units proposed in the DPR is 212, while the actual number of dwelling units which have been constructed is 164 out of which 163 have been allotted as residential units. The orientation of the block also differs from the one shown in the DPR. The dispensary proposed in the DPR has not been constructed. The community hall which was shown as integrated with the residential block layout in the DPR has been constructed on a land parcel across the approach road which has heavy vehicular traffic. The open space demarcated as the playground for the residents of the project is across the approach road, and has a boundary wall all around it with no gate towards Kalpana Nagar. The access is through a gate on the other side of the open space which faces the plotted residential development of a middle class neighborhood and the children and residents of Kalpana Nagar do not have access to the playground. The open space carved out of the earlier slum is not accessible to the residents of the slum. The beneficiary contribution has not been collected by BMC and neither have the ownership rights been transferred. The second phase of the development discussed in the DPR, addressing holistic renewal of the area has not been implemented, either as part of this scheme or any other scheme.

Only the first phase of development has been carried out.

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Figure 5.3 - Kalpana Nagar Base Map (Source: ACE 2013)

5.7.2 How Participatory was the Process? The Kalpana Nagar redevelopment happened in two distinct parts. In the first part, BMC decided to implement the BSUP scheme in the community and conducted a physical survey of the area for identifying the land and preparing a site plan. A slum survey was done for the verification of the number of households during which the community was informed about the redevelopment proposal for the area. The resident’s reaction was violent and BMC was not permitted to complete the household survey (as reported to ACE researchers). As the new buildings were being built on vacant land, the slum was not demolished prior to construction (see Figure 5.4). The residents claim that they had no idea that the new building was to be their new house. They assumed that the big monolithic structure was to be some sort of school or college. The BMC officials visited the slum once the new building was completed and announced that the residents were required to move immediately and that the existing slums would be demolished. Relocation notices were pasted on the houses. The BMC officials contacted by ACE researchers did not corroborate the residents account, but agreed that there was minimal public consultation in the process.

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Figure 5.4 - Redevelopment of Kalpana Nagar on adjacent vacant land to free up expensive land next to a National Highway (Source: Google Earth)

5.7.3 House Allocation Since no community profiling was done in Kalpana Nagar the house allotment was done randomly. This resulted in elderly and disabled residents being allotted upper level houses with no provisions for mutual exchange of flats. The families who knew the local corporator were successful in getting better located units and some even managed to get separate dwelling units for each adult member of the family, whereas most of the other families were assigned one dwelling unit, irrespective of the family size. The house allocation politics has led to a lot of dissatisfaction amongst the residents of the community. The community has been very vocal about its unhappiness with the new buildings and as a result of that BMC officials have stopped visiting Kalpana Nagar. 5.8 Housing Quality Evaluation 5.8.1 Security of Tenure The beneficiary share has largely not been recovered from Kalpana Nagar residents who were angered by the lack of transparency in the BSUP housing process. The municipal corporation did not approach the community to pay the beneficiary contribution sensing a backlash. As a result families have not received the papers giving them ownership. 5.8.2 Affordability Estimated cost of 1 dwelling unit in the replacement housing block in Kalpana Nagar by BMC was Rs. 1,00,000. The cost of each dwelling unit went up when the municipal corporation included the costs of the boundary wall and approach road and loaded them on unit cost. As per initial planning, the beneficiary share was Rs. 10,000 (10% of unit cost). Final beneficiary share came to Rs. 42,000. The final total unit cost was not disclosed by BMC and this amount for beneficiary was apparently calculated taking into consideration escalation and additional costs for extra common facilities. But no beneficiary contribution has been collected. Some of the residents have spent 10,000 on getting the plumbing done for the overhead water tanks to get

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water into their flats. BSUP housing in Kalpana Nagar is neither affordable nor does it have security of tenure. 5.8.3 Availability of Services, Facilities and Infrastructure

Figure 5.5 – Facilities near Kalpana Nagar (Source: ACE 2013)

5.8.3a Access and Boundary Condition - Kalpana Nagar is located at a distance of 400 meters from the Ayodhya bypass Road. The nearest junction is where Raisen Road and National Highway 12 intersect. There are a few cooperative housing colonies around Kalpana Nagar and it enjoys easy access to schools, health facilities and religious places within a 1 km radius. 5.8.3b Layout and Street Network - The BSUP housing is planned as three blocks enclosing a large central courtyard (see Figure 5.3). A ‘C’-shaped and two linear four-storied blocks accommodate 164 flats. The flats are arranged in rows along a singly loaded corridor which serves as a gallery around the courtyard. This typology is based on the famous Mumbai tenement housing or ‘chawl’3. Houses are constructed with a common wall and all of them open into a front passageway. The project failed to improve or build on existing road networks. The residents felt that the earlier slum street network and nature of space was more suited to their needs. The only central open community space is used for parking by adults and as play area by children.

3

A chawl is a name for a type of building found in India. They are often 4 to 5 stories with about 10 to 20 tenements, referred to as kholis, which literally mean 'rooms' on each floor. 99


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5.8.3c Open Spaces - A central open courtyard is the only open space which the community is using. There is an open space across the road which the children use for playing. The central open space is constantly occupied by parking vehicles and adults, especially during late evening hours. The community garden which was to be built across the road has not been constructed.

Figure 5.6 – Central Courtyard

5.8.3d Power Supply - Kalpana Nagar residents have individual metered electricity connections and the average monthly bills are between Rs.200-500/month. 5.8.3e Water Supply – The water supply is irregular. Water comes once in two or three days in summers and the upper floors do not get adequate pressure. The overhead water tanks do not have any cover, making the stored water susceptible to contamination. Top terraces are not accessible hence residents cannot check the water quality of the water tank nor provide a cover on their own. The sole water connection is in the bathroom of the dwelling unit. Quality of water is a major concern and some residents use precious LPG for boiling water for drinking. The dwelling units on the upper floors have to haul up buckets of water when water pressure is inadequate. 5.8.3f Sanitation - All the flats built under BSUP have been provided with toilets inside the flat. The toilet is also used for storing water by some residents. 5.8.3g Drainage - Kalpana Nagar has a closed drainage system. 5.8.3h Garbage Disposal - There is a garbage collection point just outside the entrance of the colony and BMC picks up the garbage every Friday. Upper floor and lower floor houses throw garbage directly in the small courts below or next to their housing unit. Some parts of the central open space also remains cluttered. 5.8.3h Local Transport - The area occupied by Kalpana Nagar lies one block behind the junction of two major roads and the bus stop is within 1km from the area. 5.8.3i Emergency Access – Fire tenders and ambulances can reach all the buildings in case of fire and other emergencies. 5.8.3j Streetlights - There are a few streetlights. A flood light is placed right in the centre of a large open space. The rest of the spaces in the periphery of the colony lack sufficient lighting. Many residents have complained of poor lighting and girls were especially concerned about the sufficiency of street lights in order to go out in the evening.

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5.8.3k Daily Needs Shopping - Some residents have opened grains and vegetables shops in the community and also sell dry non-perishable snacks, milk powder and cigarettes. There are a few medicine shops on Bypass Road and a nearby cooperative society has some shops which sell tea, snacks etc. Most of the residents avail of the various government schemes for grains and other rations. Other daily needs are well satisfied by the shops in the colony itself. 5.8.3l Cooking Fuel - Most households use cooking stoves with kerosene or cooking gas. The cooking fumes fill the dwelling units because the flats have limited ventilation. 5.8.3m Social Infrastructure Community Hall – The Madrasa operates out of the community hall built with the BSUP housing. The community hall is also used for celebrating marriages, parties and running a school in the mornings. Anganwadi (AW) – It is run out of a fourth floor flat. The AW provides free supplementary nutrition to all children and periodic vaccination. Information dissemination and awareness campaigns on mother care and puberty are also provided here. Nutritional supplements for teenage girls and pregnant women are also distributed through the AW. The local residents appeared to be satisfied with the services provided by the AW. Health Services – The dispensary proposed in the DPR has not been constructed and the residents visit the Beema Hospital which is 5-7 kms away. 5.8.3n Facilities for Children - Kalpana Nagar lacks recreational and play facilities. The central courtyard serves too many functions which clash with children’s play and recreation needs. A large open space was carved as a community park across the street but that area has been cordoned off by the higher income neighbors. 5.8.4 Habitability 5.8.4a Home Unit Size - The BSUP provided floor areas of 20 sq m in each flat divided into two rooms, a kitchen and a toilet. The terraces and verandahs are in addition to this. The top terrace is not accessible. Houses with 8-10 members are considered overcrowded; which is precisely the case in Kalpana Nagar, since BSUP allotted a single flat to families with multiple households. The older slum had much more livable spaces and open spaces for other uses. 5.8.4b Adequacy of Building Materials and Construction Roof - The flat terraces are finished in neat cement over concrete slabs. The terraces are inaccessible. Walls – RCC framed structure in concrete with infill brick walls, which are plastered and painted.

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Floor - Grey cement flooring has been used in the flats. It requires mopping everyday to keep it clean. Windows - The windows have steel frames with security grilles and frames hung on hinges. The shutters open flat against the outside wall. 5.8.4c Inadequate Storage Facilities - No storage facility has been provided. The families living in Kalpana Nagar have accumulated a lot of belongings and because of the lack of storage space have come up with innovative ideas to store their belongings. They have nailed chairs, bags, baskets etc. to the wall to act as shelves. They have nailed table fans to the wall to free up floor space within the house. 5.8.4d Lack of provisions for home based work - The new houses have not adequately provided for home-based work such as automobile repairing. The community space in between two rows of housing units is being used for home based work. A few people have converted their front rooms into small convenience shops. The slum houses better catered to home-based work. 5.8.4e Fire Safe Houses – The common wall construction with stacked flats on floors above each other is a major reason why these houses can be dangerous in case of fire. The poor quality of construction material also adds to the fire risk. Fire tender access to the blocks in Kalpana Nagar is not an issue but safe evacuation in case of fire may prove to be a challenge as residents have blocked the common corridors by storing all kinds of household items.

Figure 5.7 – Blocked Common Corridors

5.8.5 Cultural Adequacy In Kalpana Nagar, the project has received mixed responses. While the large enclosed common courtyard is accepted by the community as a major interaction space, with the dwelling units overlooking it and making it livelier, the scale of the space is not appreciated as much. The earlier residential environment of the slum saw fragmented open spaces linked as spill over activity spaces to the dwelling units, with each family having a defined territory with scope of personalizing the space. The community being predominantly Muslim used these smaller courtyard/backyard/front yard spaces for offering ‘namaz’, for keeping goats while children used it as a play area. In the present development, the community space provided is perhaps quantitatively larger than the sum of the smaller spaces existing in the old slum, but lacks the qualities of the earlier organic settlement. Conflicts arise from lack of territorial definitions and there is competition between different age and gender groups to occupy the space for different activities. Parking of 102


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vehicles in the same space creates further problems. The animals (typically goats) stray all across the open space and litter the area with droppings making the space unhygienic. There is no sense of ownership of the common space and it is usually in a littered condition. The lack of smaller more private spaces has had a significant impact on the lives of girls. The community does not approve of girls openly socializing with onlookers present in the open space. As a result most young girls remain confined within the dwelling units and have very limited social lives. The unit design is also not sensitive to the needs of the community. With each family having 814 family members, space is a major constraint. In addition to this, the bathroom and WC are integrated and this type of integrated design only permits a single user to use the facility at a time. The community opined that having a separate bathing and WC area would have enabled better utilization of the facilities for so many family members. Also, the sole water connection of the dwelling unit is in the bathroom cum WC. The family needs to collect water from the bathroom for drinking and cooking. This was almost unanimously criticized by the community. Collection of water for ‘clean’ activities from an ‘unclean’ zone is a taboo in most families. This has resulted in most of them storing water in large drums within the living space, which takes up valuable space in an already congested flat. Families with higher incomes have kept water tanks on the common verandah and have taken direct pipeline connections from the overhead tank to these unit level storage tanks. 5.9 Perceptions of the Community towards Redevelopment in Kalpana Nagar The residents have both positive and negative feelings towards the redevelopment. Previously, in their self-created settlement, water and electricity were free. But with the redevelopment they are now responsible for paying water and electricity bills. The increased cost of running the new tenements is an economic burden on poor families. In some cases, the residents were unemployed. People typically felt more comfortable and happier in their earlier slum houses where they could expand according to their needs. Some felt that the organic structure of the slum settlement was more conducive for children as social spaces such as streets which were immediately available outside homes. Now due to the apartment structure, the spaces of social interaction have altered and become distant. In Kalpana Nagar, the biggest complaint was the difficulty of housing large families (with 12-14 members) in the tenement provided. It may be noted that in cases of consolidated slums, where the housing units occupied much larger spaces, relocation to standard dwelling units may not be the appropriate approach. Also, in the earlier cluster type of housing, open spaces or ‘aangans’ (courtyards) at the house level were used for many activities including playing and cooking. The new small apartments prevent these, families are forced to cook outside in the common gallery leading to conflict with neighbors and children are forced to seek out alternate spaces for play.

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Residents also complain about the poor quality of construction. Many said that due to water seepage through floor (on ground floor) and walls (on upper floors) owing to the poor quality of construction materials, they have had to redo the flooring to have dry livable areas. In some houses, the seepage problem did not cease despite redoing them. 5.10 Children’s Experience of the Redevelopment Box 5.3 - Experience of a Girl Living in Kalpana Nagar Ruksaar Mansoori a 10 year old girl lives in Kalpana Nagar with her nine member strong family. Her extended family also lives in the same block. Her father is a laborer and has been away from home for 4 years. He occasionally visits and sends money. Her mother works as a maid in the nearby Nizamudin Colony. Ruksaar’s day begins at 7am. She attends a government school which provides her with a mid day meal. After school, Ruksaar and her cousins are taught the Quran at home. The Quran classes are followed by homework and a visit to the Masjid at 5pm. Her evenings are reserved for playing with her sister and other female cousins. They like to cycle on the main road but don’t venture far because of parental restrictions. Ruksaar’s home overlooks a part of the courtyard. Usually the courtyard is filled with parked vehicles. A number of families in Kalpana Nagar own goats which are tied to posts in the courtyard. Ruksaar’s family owns three goats that are kept tied in the verandah outside. The verandah is also used for sleeping purposes by her uncle and brother as there is no space inside and as a playing space. Inside Ruksaar’s house there is no clear distinction between the living room and the bedroom as the family’s belongings are cluttered all over the dwelling unit. The living area has two beds and the wall adjacent to it has nails all over it to accommodate bags that store the family’s belongings. Ruksaar’s family has a television, refrigerator, water storage tank and other items in the bedroom. The kitchen consists of a platform with a gas stove on it and oil stove below the platform. Two wooden shelves have been constructed above the cooking platform to accommodate grains and spices. Several water containers are stored above and below the kitchen platform. The kitchen door opens to a balcony overlooking the main road. Ruksaar likes to draw, ride a bicycle and is keen on learning Hindi and Urdu. She wants to study more but due to her family’s economic situation, her father is not keen on the idea. Ruksaar is unsure about what she wants to do when she grows up.

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Box 5.4 - Experience of a Boy Living in Kalpana Nagar Mihnaaz Khan is an 8 year old boy who lives in Kalpana Nagar with his extended family. His father works as a laborer and his mother is a housewife. He wakes up at 7am in the morning and seldom goes to school. He spends most of his time playing cricket with his friends in the nearby open fields. Being the youngest in the family, Mihnaaz is not very involved in the household chores. He goes to sleep at about 10pm after having dinner with his siblings. Mihnaaz’s apartment is entered from a long corridor/verandah that is shared by 5 other units. The corridor that overlooks the courtyard is an extension of the apartment and some families have put shoe racks while others have stored piles of boxes and kept fodder for goats. The parapet of the corridor is used for drying clothes. Mihnaaz’s living room has a double bed, the walls around which are adorned with frames and posters. His family has legal gas connection for two cylinders, one of which is kept beside the bed as a bed stand while the other is utilized in the kitchen. A bicycle is also kept next to the bed. Mihnaaz and his father sleep in the living room outside while his mother and sisters sleep in the bedroom and kitchen floors. The kitchen area is cluttered with provisions for storing utensils and comprises of a cooking platform with a gas stove. Beside the platform there are many containers for storing water. As compared to their earlier house, the family has less space for storage and less area for sleeping. The women sleep on the floor and nearly half of the floor space of the bedroom is used for storage. The small in-house balcony is filled with containers for storing water. During the monsoons, water enters Mihnaaz’s kitchen through the balcony and hence they have placed a tarpaulin sheet there. Mihnaaz likes outdoor play and playing video games at his friend’s place. He doesn’t like studying as much as he likes playing outside.

5.11 Case Study: MADRASI COLONY, Bhopal Madrasi Colony, as the name suggests was a slum largely inhabited by Tamil workers (who are often referred to as ‘madrasi’ or hailing from Madras, the capital of Tamil Nadu by North Indians) from Salem district who came in large numbers as stone cutters and construction laborers, at the time of construction of the new capital city in the 1960s. They have continued living in the same community for three generations while maintaining links with their native villages. Apart from the Tamil workers a Table 5.5 – Fact File Madrasi Colony Location (see annexure 4) Ward No.49, Bhopal Area 8115 sq m Population 1055 Land Ownership Bhopal Municipal Corporation BSUP Implementing Agency Bhopal Municipal Corporation Number of Households 211 Number of houses built under BSUP 180 Average Household Size 5.8 Religious Background 65% Hindus and 35% Muslims Community Profile There is a mix of Tamils, Maharashtrians and local Madhya Pradesh population from surrounding districts. Dwelling Unit Size 34.18 sq m BMC’s Internal Earmarking of funds for 20-25% Urban Poor

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large number of Maharashtrians and migrants from other parts of Madhya Pradesh can be found in Madrasi Colony. Within the slum, each community formed their own pockets and through daily rituals maintained their cultural identity without infringing on the other communities living there. Before the BSUP redevelopment the majority of the houses were kutcha and in dilapidated condition. The roads, water supply, drainage and sewerage facilities were inadequate. 5.11.1 Provisions in the Common Bhopal DPR The Bhopal DPR for In-Situ Rehabilitation (Incremental Housing) Scheme for Urban Poor Staying in Slums was prepared by Mehta and Associates, an Indore based firm and covers 4 slums – Madrasi Colony, Rahul Nagar, Bheem Nagar and Arjun Nagar. All the slums are located in the vicinity of Link Road 2 and the redevelopment schemes were carried out on the same land or adjoining lands. 3528 dwelling units were to be constructed to accommodate 20,462 slum dwellers. The individual sites for each of the colonies were detailed separately, with similar dwelling unit typologies in all with minor modifications according to specific site conditions. According to the plans mentioned in the DPR, three blocks were to be constructed in Madrasi Colony which was separated by smaller cluster level spaces. There is no vehicular access into the cluster spaces. The building blocks are placed along the periphery of the site to form a road edge; the blocks however present blank walls to the surrounding road. 5.11.2 Community Profile As no official data was made available from BMC, the data was taken from interviews with a Livelihood Coordinator of BMC and then further cross checked by undertaking a random sample of 30 households in Madrasi Colony. Madrasi Colony is divided into 4 unofficial blocks:  Hindi block - houses the migrants from Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.  Madrasi block - houses the Tamil population.  The third block houses the Muslim population mostly from Maharashtra.  Marathi block - houses the Maharashtrian population. 5.11.2a Livelihoods According to the primary survey conducted by the ACE researchers, there are variations in the predominant occupations of the various communities living in Madrasi Colony and in the income levels of the families. The Tamil men are mostly engaged in stone cutting activities on construction sites across the city and work as daily laborers. A large number of Tamil women also work in the construction 106


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sites or in other jobs. The men can earn upto Rs.3000/month in the peak season for 20 days of work. The Hindi block houses the more affluent families in Madrasi Colony. The men are mostly employed either in government or private service. Clerks, office staff, drivers for institutions etc. are some of the major occupations. A few women in the Hindi block work as maids in neighboring areas or are involved in home based businesses like tailoring, haircutting, pickle making and tuition classes for children. The women working as housemaids earn between Rs.1500-2500/month. Mechanics, drivers and men in service are the main occupations of the men in the Muslim block. The majority of the women in the Muslim block don’t work while some are employed as housemaids in the neighboring locality. The drivers, peons can earn anything between Rs.40005000/month. Even in families where both the men and women work the combined income rarely exceeds Rs.6000/month. 5.11.2b Education Educational levels vary for the different communities. The Marathi and Hindi speaking communities are more affluent and as a result enjoy higher levels of education. Almost all their children attend school and a high percentage also attends high schools and colleges. In the Madrasi block, the girls are married off early. Girls do not pursue higher education and most of them drop out of schools due to financial or parental pressures. The Madrasi community which is economically weaker has low numbers of school going children. Many of the older siblings have to stay back and care for the young ones. In recent years though because of increased awareness, more children have started going to school. More boys drop out of school after the age of 14 as compared to girls. There have been cases of addictions among teenage boys because of which they drop out of school. In the Marathi block, the parents are keen to educate the girl and boy child. In fact, when interviewed, the adolescent girls were very aware of their own issues of health, hygiene and education. There were stark differences between the children of the Madrasi and Marathi block. 5.11.2c Health There is no reliable data available about the health status of the residents of Madrasi Colony. The ACE survey with 30 families yielded some insight about the health status of the residents. Most of the women give birth in hospitals and in the rare instance of a home birth, there is a midwife present. There are no dispensaries in Madrasi Colony but the residents enjoy access to a number of private clinics in the immediate locality and prefer visiting them to the government hospitals which are at some distance. 5.11.2d Children and Work 107


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A large number of boys drop out after class 9 and 10 to supplement the family income or fall into bad company or addictions and choose not to continue school. Almost 50% of the boys’ dropout after completing class 10. Most of the girls in Madrasi Colony attend school till class 10 with a few even going on to class 11 and 12. The girls help with the household chores like washing clothes, utensils, collecting water, helping their mother with cooking etc. A number of adolescent girls look after the house after school hours as both parents work till late in the evening. They are also responsible for preparation of evening meals and also seemed proficient in handling internal family feuds. 5.12 Process of BSUP Redevelopment in Madrasi Colony Madrasi Colony’s redevelopment was done along with three other slums, Arjun Nagar, Bheem Nagar and Rahul Nagar. In Madrasi Colony 288 dwelling units were proposed to be built in 7 connected blocks. (See Figure 5.6).

Figure 5.8 - Madrasi Colony Before and After Redevelopment (Source: Goolge Earth)

5.12.1 From Vision to Reality BSUP in Madhya Pradesh has been hailed as a success because BMC has been successful in constructing a large number of dwelling units in a short period of time. However, a process which only targets delivery of dwelling units at a mass scale fails in securing the participation of stakeholders particularly slum dwellers. This is the case of Bhopal as well. Even though the CDP mentions a single public consultation, public opinion was not sought in the formulation of the CDP. Further, Bhopal Municipal Corporation as the executor of the BSUP projects had little consideration for the inputs of the consultants as well. The projects were implemented largely in-house with the DPRs being prepared to meet the mandatory requirements rather than as detailed guideline documents. The plans in the DPR and the site execution are almost identical. However the shared community hall that was provisioned for Madrasi Colony and Arjun Nagar has not been constructed.

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5.12.2 How participatory was the process? The learnings from Kalpana Nagar were implemented in Madrasi Colony and a participatory method was adopted. The community was taken into confidence and they interacted with the BMC officials and voiced their demands. Maya Vishwakarma, or “Amma� as she is fondly called by the residents, is a social worker active who lives in Madrasi Colony and played an important role in mobilizing the community and acting as a link between the community and the BMC officials. The community convinced the BMC to allot individual units to each adult member of a joint family having a family of his own. The proposed layout was shown to the residents and their suggestions were incorporated in the final designs. The social and religious fabrics of the existing pockets have been maintained by building three interlinked building clusters (See figure 5.7). This partial segregation had been suggested by the residents of Madrasi Colony and it was incorporated into the final layout.

Figure 5.9 - Madrasi Colony Base Map (Source: ACE 2013)

5.13 Housing Quality Evaluation 5.13.1 Security of Tenure Houses had been registered for those households who made the initial down payment of Rs.10, 000 and agreed to pay the remaining amount as calculated by BMC based on escalations in instalments. Only 30-40% of the residents have paid their contribution and have subsequently received their ownership papers.

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5.13.2 Affordability Planned cost of one dwelling unit in Madrasi Colony was Rs.1, 00, 000. Due to escalation of construction costs over the period of construction, each unit cost Rs. 2, 56, 000 when finished. Initially beneficiary share was estimated to be Rs. 10, 000 (10% of unit cost). Finally the beneficiary share amounted to Rs. 89, 000 (16.4 % of escalated cost of unit). BMC gave loans to the residents for this amount, and recovered payments in instalments of Rs. 3000 per month after an initial down payment of Rs.10, 000 (the original 10% component). According to sources in BMC and Urban Administration and Development Department (UADD), the deviation in beneficiary component occurred due to the Centre and State not agreeing to pay their contributions of revised costs due to escalation. Madrasi Colony being part of a package of 3 slums was executed in phases over the last 6 years and construction costs went up periodically. The balance of the escalated cost burden fell on ULBs who passed it on to the beneficiaries but allowed them to pay in instalments. Apart from the beneficiary contribution about 5-6 families in the Hindi block have made additional improvements to their house by changing the flooring etc. 5.13.3 Availability of Services, Facilities and Infrastructure Figure 5.10 – Facilities near Madrasi Colony (Source: ACE 2013)

5.13.3a Access and Boundary Condition – Madrasi Colony is located just near the major city level landmark of Mata Mandir. The colony is proximal to Link Road 3 and Dudh Dairy Road. Due to its central location, it enjoys easy access to several schools, colleges, religious centers, health facilities and transit within 1 km radius. Madrasi Colony is a typical example of in-situ rehabilitation. The present location has legal challenges from nearby land owners and the problem is still continuing. The colony has a compound wall of almost 8-9 feet which has no interface with the main road and almost makes it 110


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invisible from outside. The other side is flanked by a drainage channel creating hygiene problems for residents. 5.13.3b Layout and Street Network - The plan form consists of three four storied blocks each having eight units on each floor, separated by intermediate courtyards which form a defining character of the housing. These open spaces have varying degrees of private and public character. The ground floor units do not have direct access into the courtyards, so these spaces have become dead, badly maintained spaces. The residents of the upper floors throw garbage into these courtyards. The terrace is accessible but perceived as an unsafe space by the community as it attracts young men even from outside to hang out. The only street network available is the periphery road of the colony which has no interactive value. The irregular vista generated by intersecting courtyards of clusters is mostly used as street like space. The internal periphery street is sometimes used by local vegetable and other vendors for temporary hawking during evening hours. 5.13.3c Open Spaces - The road in between the courtyards is used as open spaces. The scale is perfect for the community and they have found ways to use the courtyard in a creative way for community functions. The street in the periphery is used as gathering space by women in the evenings. Most of the open spaces are incidental and not planned spaces. Many of the residents throw garbage in these spaces, especially from upper floor flats. The open spaces lack maintenance and upkeep. Figure 5.11 – Children in Courtyard

5.13.3d Power Supply - Madrasi Colony has individual metered power supply. The residents face problems with billing. The bill amounts are high and perceived to be disproportionate to their consumption. The electricity meters are located at such a height that residents cannot check their electricity consumption. 5.13.3e Water Supply - Water supply is on alternate days. However timings of water supply are not fixed. As a consequence there is a tendency to store large quantities of water. As the timings of water supply are not fixed, residents who go out for work, find it hard to store water. All households have got water storage tanks in their houses. 5.13.3f Sanitation - All the flats built under BSUP have been provided with toilets inside the flat. The single water connection provided to the dwelling units is in the toilets. Toilet waste is directly disposed into the city sewerage system.

5.13.3g Drainage – Madrasi Colony has uncovered drains.

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5.13.3h Garbage Disposal - Madrasi Colony has a garbage collection point just outside the colony but many families tend to throw garbage in the open drains. All the smaller courts at ground floor level are filled with garbage which does not come under the purview of municipal authorities and therefore remains unattended for long periods of time. Many residents pay Rs.30 for garbage collection from these courts. Figure 5.12 – Open Drains filled with Garbage

5.13.3i Local Transport - Madrasi Colony enjoys access to four bus stops within a 500m radius. 5.13.3j Emergency Access - Madrasi Colony is very vulnerable to fires and other disasters because of its inaccessible emergency routes. 5.13.3k Streetlights - As it is located near a major well-lit road of the city, there is sufficient borrowed light along the periphery of the colony. The internal areas of the colony do not receive sufficient amount of uninterrupted light. 5.13.3l Daily Needs Shopping - Madrasi Colony also has few house front shops (see figure 1.6) by residents but as compared to Kalpana Nagar they sell only a few select daily needs items. Most of the residents are still dependent on nearby shopping areas like New Market and Mata Mandir.

Figure 5.13 – Daily Needs Shop in Madrasi Colony

5.13.3m Cooking Fuel - Most households use cooking stoves with cooking gas as the main fuel. The area containing the kitchen platform is well ventilated. 5.13.3n Social Infrastructure Anganwadi (AW) - It is run from one of the dwelling units for the children of the locality. The AW provides supplementary nutrition to all children and periodic vaccinations. Information dissemination and awareness campaigns on mother care and puberty are also provided here. Nutritional supplements for teenage girls and pregnant women are also provided and the local residents appeared to be satisfied with the services provided by the AW. Health Services - Madrasi Colony has few government hospitals nearby. Many residents prefer to go to these hospitals as services are free of cost while others prefer the private clinics in the locality. 5.13.3o Facilities for Children - Apart from few open spaces, Madrasi Colony does not have any dedicated play and recreational facilities for children. Communal segregation defines the 112


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places of play of children. The main open space is hardly accessed by the children of the Madrasi block and hence its potential is limited due to unfriendly social conditions. 5.13.4 Habitability 5.13.4a Larger Houses - BSUP flats provided 34.18 sq m for one front room, one larger bedroom at the back, one kitchen and one toilet situated in front of the kitchen. Common spaces such as mid landing and lobby are creatively used by people. Though spaces are well ventilated poor orientation creates problem of bad lighting. All dwelling units have at least one external window. Families that have a front balcony attached to their flat use it for drying clothes, pickling, drying spices, hanging out, playing etc. The terraces are accessible but mostly controlled by a few people. The terraces are used by men from outside the community for gambling and drinking. 5.13.4b Adequacy of Building Materials and Construction Roof - The flat terraces are finished in neat cement over concrete slabs and access has been provided to the terraces. The parapet walls are of low height and the mid-landing also has very low parapet walls. Walls – RCC framed structures with infill brick walls covered with plaster and paint. Bad construction quality is visible as parts of the walls are falling down and the paint is peeling off. Floor - Grey cement flooring has been used in the flats. The floor is quite rough and accumulates dust. Some people have installed flooring tiles. Windows - The windows are steel framed with security grilles and frames hung on hinges. The shutters open flat against the outside wall. The weak door and window fitting makes the flats vulnerable to break-ins and thefts are common in Madrasi Colony. 5.13.4c Inadequate Storage Facilities – Like Kalpana Nagar, Madrasi Colony has a similar crisis for storage as there is no provisioning for shelves and almirahs. A number of residents have kept their belongings on the floor. A single shelf has been provided on top of the toilet but it is not sufficient. Some of the families use the balconies and mid landings for storage. 5.13.4d Lack of provisions for home based work - Many of the residents are engaged in construction works and stone cutting. There are very few families working from home. But in this housing too there is no provision for extra spaces or flexible spaces which can be used by the residents for home based work. 5.13.4e Fire Safe Houses - Lack of access to internal houses in case of fire is a major concern in Madrasi Colony. Cluster planning with inaccessible courts in between four blocks can cause great damage in case of accidental fires. The poorly worked out slopes that make the spaces 113


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outside the houses uneven and heavy vehicular traffic may cause delays in reaching the houses in case of fire. 5.13.5 Cultural Adequacy In Madrasi Colony, the Bhopal Municipal Corporation tried to reorganize the layout plan to make it more acceptable to the people. Here buildings are clustered around smaller open courtyards. However, the ground floor units do not open out to the courtyards and hence the spaces are quite dead and used mostly for parking two wheelers and have become a garbage dump for residents of upper floors. The larger spaces between the blocks are used for community gatherings and family functions, such as marriages and pujas. In the absence of any community hall, the larger spaces between the blocks serve as large gathering spaces, with the smaller courtyards within the blocks acting as the support spaces for cooking and preparation. Temporary covers of tarpaulin and cloth are put up to create covered gathering spaces. The vertical stacking of units with a common staircase has led to social problems which is culturally unacceptable. The project being located in the heart of the city, right along a major city road, is easily accessible. With no gated entries, entry of outsiders into the complex is open at all times. In the earlier slum, there were no defined boundaries either, but due to the organic layout of the slum, the community had visual control on the entry of outsiders and security was ensured by community policing. In the present complex, with each family remaining within their own dwelling unit, the staircases become unmonitored passageways for outsiders, to the terrace which is a secluded domain at an upper level. This has led to the abuse of the terrace by both outsiders and residents for anti-social activities. Increase of such activities on the terrace has acted as a major hindrance for other groups (young girls, housewives, and children) from using the terrace for everyday activities such as for drying spices, clothes, play and recreation. Home based economic activities largely undertaken by women and girls, which require open spaces, (e.g. papad drying, pickle making, soft toy making, agarbatti (incense sticks) making), do not have any designated space in this project and many families have given up these activities. At the apartment level, the inclusion of latrine and bathing areas in the same space is not appreciated by the residents. All the families have been provided with PVC water storage tanks within their living areas, where they store drinking and cooking water which is collected from the bathroom through rubber pipes. The cooking platform being adjacent to bathing and toilet facilities is a design flaw showing no sensitivity to the lifestyle of the community.

Figure 5.14 – Kitchen adjacent to Toilet inside the Flat

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5.14 Perceptions of the Community towards Redevelopment in Madrasi Colony When interviewed, people gave mixed opinions about the redevelopment. One key issue was security concerns among the residents. People reported that the terraces were misused by outsiders and there was no mechanism for controlling access to terraces. While terraces of walk up multi tenement units are usually perceived as breathing spaces compensating for the lack of ground level open spaces, in this case it is seen that uncontrolled access to these spaces can cause social problems. The terraces also being away from social policing are misused by adolescents and adult males of the community for consuming alcohol and drugs. This makes these spaces inaccessible to women and children. This is in stark contrast to the cluster level spaces available in the earlier slum dwellings, which were predominantly used by the women for various household activities and livelihood options (drying papad, pickle making etc.) The fall out of the vertical redevelopment typology in affecting the livelihoods and activity patterns of women were actively voiced by many members. Some people were content with their new physical settings but many people complained about metering of electricity. The main discontent was towards the expenditure incurred for accessing services like water and electricity which were free although illegal in their earlier homes in the slum. The construction quality was reported to be very poor, with residents showing large holes in walls which resulted from hammering a nail and eroding floor finish in about three years of occupation of the units. 5.15 Children’s Experience of Madrasi Colony Redevelopment Safety and protection issues as reported by the pre-adolescent and adolescent girls related to territorial control of public spaces. The open spaces of the new housing were gendered; the internal courtyards were dominated by girls playing together and outer spaces were dominated by boys. During the FGDs girls reported not being comfortable going beyond the internal courtyard for playing or any other social activity for fear of eve teasing or sexual harassment, which is apparently very common in the community. Even the parents of girls were not comfortable with sending them outside. This gender based place fear is not as much reported by pre-adolescent girls as by adolescent girls. As a result, the girl child is restricted to the house. In many cases it was observed that girls missed out on schools when their parents had gone out to work as they became responsible for the care of their younger siblings. Box 5.5 - Experience of a Girl Living in Madrasi Colony Neha Salve, a 10 year old girl, lives in Madrasi Colony with her father, mother, elder brother and elder sister. Her father is a laborer and her mother works as a housemaid in nearby households. Her father’s work depends heavily on the seasons and the realty market. On a work day he works between 8am and 11pm while her mother works from 9am to 6pm. Her sister and brother, both adolescents are busy with either studying or doing household chores. Neha wakes up at 7am after which she walks to school with her sister. She likes to go to school every day. Her friends in the neighborhood are girls of her age, mostly all Marathi. They play in the open

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space of the colony. In the evening, Neha watches T.V. and has dinner with her siblings. She studies from 8pm to about 10.30pm after which she sleeps. She sometimes helps her sister in collecting water and her mother in cooking. She is not involved in any major household work as she is the youngest in the family. Neha’s house is on the edge of the neighborhood, overlooking the open space of the colony and near the internal courtyard. There is a lot of movement in front of her house. The entrance area is a space where women sit around basking in the afternoon sun and men hang out. There is a lot of noise even at night. Neha and her sister don’t venture outside in the night as they feel unsafe. Strangers come to their colony and forcefully occupy their terraces for gambling and drinking. Neha’s father feels that this is a major shortcoming of the redevelopment project. Neha’s house is crowded with household things. Walls are painted green and decorated with family photos. The living room window overlooks the internal courtyard. There are two single beds on either side of the front room with a color TV with cable connection in the middle. The kitchen is cluttered with wall mounted racks for storing utensils. Utensils are also hung directly on the wall and kept on extra storage shelves. The inner bedroom also has small beds besides an almirah. A rack for daily use items is kept next to the almirah. Neha’s mother stores her vegetables under one bed in the bedroom. The family seldom opens the bedroom window overlooking the internal courtyard as they feel that anyone can steal things from inside if they keep it open. There is very little space to move about in the bedroom. The family stores water in containers in the bathroom, kitchen and bedroom. The balcony is also crowded with water containers.

Box 5.6 - Experience of a boy in Madrasi Colony Shubham Jawade an 11 year old boy lives in Madrasi Colony with his father, mother and elder brother. His mother is a housewife while his father works as a driver for a private company. Shubham’s life consists mainly of playing and studying. Every day, he wakes up at 6.30am and walks to school at 7am with his elder brother. They both study at the C.M. Convent Higher Secondary School. After coming back at 12noon he goes out to play with his friends. Usually they play cricket at the nearby Ambedkar ground. They are not allowed to play inside the colony as the elders scold them for making noise and causing physical damage to their properties. Shubham studies in the evening from 7pm to 9pm. Being the youngest, he doesn’t have many household responsibilities; he sometimes helps his brother in fetching the gas cylinder or grinding flour. Shubham’s house is fairly furnished with oversized furniture. The living room consists of a double bed and a sofa set. The walls of the living room are decorated with photos of Hindu gods, a wall clock and photos of family members. The living room also consists of an old television kept on a small stand. The walls of the living room are painted in warm colors and a curtain separates the living area from the kitchen. The gas cylinder is stored below the kitchen platform along with a canister of kerosene. The kitchen is filled with water storage containers above and below the cooking platform. The bedroom has a bed for Shubham and his brother, an almirah, and a large container for storing grains. The space below the bed is used for storing vegetables. The walls contain hooks for hanging clothes. The room also has a platform on which deities are kept for worshipping. The space above and around the platform was not cluttered and seemed fairly comfortable.

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Shubham’s mother feels that the new environment in which they live is not safe and suitable for her children, especially Shubham. In the old slum, they had privacy in their house and there were hardly any strangers around. In the BSUP housing they have been assigned a third floor flat which has increased their insecurity. The terrace above the third floor is an unprotected open space. Many men from outside the community use this space for gambling and vandalism. The residents living on the third floor feel unsafe because of this. According to Shubham’s mother, earlier children interacted with some selected children and parents could keep a watch on the company their children kept. But now in the BSUP housing, the children go outside to play and are beyond the range of natural surveillance of parents. This has caused many children to fall into undesirable company.

5.16 Key Findings 5.16.1 Policy Level 5.16.1a Positive Aspects Madhya Pradesh has been active in the area of housing for urban poor in the last ten years. After the announcement of the National Urban Housing and Habitat Policy, 2007, which had ‘affordable housing for all’ as its goal, Madhya Pradesh was one of the first states to adopt Affordable Housing initiatives at the State level and introduced amendments to its development regulations to implement housing for EWS. The CDP document prepared for implementing JnNURM has sections on housing and urban shelter and seeks to address the housing shortage for urban poor on a priority basis. ‘The Strategies of Slum Improvement are focused on making Bhopal a Slum Free City by 2012’. 5.16.1b Limitations The CDP interprets the concept of ‘Slum Free City’ in a very quantifiable manner - a pucca house built in an organized development with access to basic physical infrastructure sums up the definition of ‘slum free’. The impact on quality of life, livelihood, people, elderly and children, do not form a part of the CDP. It perhaps presupposes that access to a pucca habitable unit with planned physical infrastructure would translate to improved living conditions and improve overall quality of life in all ways. However, no active measures have been defined in the CDP on improving the qualitative aspects of life and the spatial implications it would have. Neither does the CDP talk about the participation of people in the entire development process nor considers them as partners in development. The target of delivering a large number of housing units within a limited time without any real mechanism for quality control may perhaps be the reason for disregarding a participatory engagement with the beneficiaries. 5.16.1c Recommendations 

The policies in effect in Madhya Pradesh are focused on the final product to be delivered and their numbers. Policies need to address the issues related to process of delivery, and include specific guidelines for a participatory approach. This would ensure acceptance of the product by beneficiaries and better housing quality in the projects. 117


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Monitoring measures should be built in within the policy framework to ensure delivery standards.

5.16.2 Program Level 5.16.2a Positive Aspects Bhopal in completing 14 large BSUP projects in 7 years has demonstrated the capacity of ULBs to deliver housing to the urban poor in a short time following centrally prescribed guidelines. 5.16.2b Limitations The BSUP component of JnNURM has some inherent drawbacks built into it, which affects the nature of development. The programme has a defined system of distribution of the project cost between the centre, state and beneficiary. However, there is no mechanism for taking responsibility for cost escalations during construction. In the case of BSUP the additional costs were passed on to beneficiaries making BSUP housing unaffordable for most families. As a result, the beneficiary is withholding the beneficiary contribution. In Bhopal, in an attempt to provide large numbers of houses, the beneficiary participation is almost totally absent throughout the design, execution and allotment process. In such a situation, both the implementing agency and the beneficiary are at a loss. The BMC is unable to recover the beneficiary component of project cost and the resident does not get ownership rights to the dwelling unit, due to non-payment of the beneficiary component as in the case of Kalpana Nagar. This leads to lack of sense of ownership among residents who make little effort to maintain the house which gets further dilapidated leading to the housing stock getting obsolete in very little time. The programme thus fails in its objective of ridding the city of slums as these buildings would very soon convert to slums from dilapidation and obsolescence. 5.16.2c Recommendations 

The core mandate of BSUP is affordable housing. In order to achieve that budgeting for each project needs to build in realistic escalation costs and pass on the additional costs to the centre and the state and not to cash trapped ULBs and debt ridden poor households.

Beneficiary participation must be made mandatory and beneficiaries should sign off on the proposed layouts by the ULBs before start of construction.

The release of funds from the center should be linked to not only the progress of the projects but also the quality of housing delivered based on a mandatory user satisfaction audit.

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Two projects have been discussed in Bhopal to compare the gradual evolution in the methods of design and allocation adopted by BMC over time, within the broad framework of delivering a large number of units in limited time. 5.16.3a Kalpana Nagar The rehabilitation effort in Kalpana Nagar, which was the second commissioned project in Bhopal, suffers from the following drawbacks: 

Residents were not even aware that the new structure being constructed in their neighborhood was for their rehabilitation. On completion of the project, the residents were asked to shift into the new residence in three days, after which the old slum settlement was demolished. While this project did not face the problems of a transit camp and the ills which come with it, the sheer shock of sudden relocation had a negative impact on the lives of the people.

Family size was not considered during the process of unit design or allocation. Thus most units house 8-14 family members, which leads to an unacceptable quality of life. To quote a resident ‘ghar mil gaya…izzat chala gaya’ (we got a house, but lost our dignity). The project thus fails to achieve the basic objective of improving housing conditions.

No integrated design proposal was made with the components of social infrastructure and housing together. As a result an isolated housing block with no access to social amenities has come up. Residents depend on whatever facilities are accessible in the neighborhood, for their social infrastructure needs, often compromising on quality and accessibility.

Children have access to no dedicated spaces for play and recreation. Apart from the large shared open space, where no territorial definition is possible, the surrounding streets are their playground, putting them at risk of accidental injuries. They also spend time within the housing units watching television. The crammed atmosphere and stale indoor air quality are detrimental to the health of children.

Open water tanks on the terraces, are a major source of contamination and water borne diseases. Design of uncovered open water tank is not acceptable in any housing project approved by a city Corporation. The large terrace has no access through staircases; hence maintenance of water tanks is also not possible.

5.16.3b Madrasi Colony The Madrasi Colony Project, which was one of the later commissioned projects, demonstrated some differences. The key findings are as follows:  The Bhopal Municipal Corporation learned from its earlier experiences and incorporated some changes to make the projects more acceptable to the beneficiaries. 119


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The community of Madrasi Colony had a strong social worker present. She played the role of the Community Representative and established communication with the BMC. The main points of concern by the community were put across to BMC and were addressed to some extent. The concept of segregated blocks for the different communities was suggested by the people, as this was the pattern of living within their old slum. The community was able to convince the BMC about lifestyle differences of the various communities which if ignored would lead to conflict. This was followed up by the community till the time of allocation, to ensure implementation.

Though the plan form conceptually follows a cluster pattern, which is a more accepted layout for interactions at the ground level, drawbacks in detailing of provision of interactive edges and direct access to these cluster level spaces has turned the internal courtyards into parking spaces and storage spaces for the ground floor residents. The upper floor residents also throw garbage and litter the space.

The apartment typology with vertical stacking of units has been deemed inappropriate for the lifestyles in the LIG housing time and again. In Madrasi Colony the housing typology design has had a direct negative impact on the lives of the residents. The segregated terrace on the uppermost level, away from the vigilant eyes of the community folk has led to increase in substance abuse amongst the youth and unemployed elders. This secluded terrace space has become the designated place for anti-social activities, leading to outsiders also coming and using these spaces. The security of the community is also at risk.

There is no designated play area for children within the compound of this project. Children thus play in the pathways and courtyards and even use the playground across the road (not part of the project, but a neighborhood facility).

5.16.3c Recommendations 

The BMC, as the Client needs to ensure that the plan submitted by the Consultant has gone through the process of public participation and the community’s requirements are incorporated in the DPR submitted. In case of the community’s requirements not been considered, the city corporation needs to discuss with the consultant the reasons for noncompliance and be convinced of the necessity of deviation.

Project components on social infrastructure, which are to be developed in convergence with other existing schemes, need to be monitored for implementation. DPRs state the funding of dispensaries, schools, community halls and other facilities through other schemes, but on ground these components do not come up in the earmarked places, with the community being deprived of the facilities. The Corporation as the nodal agency needs to ensure the actual construction of these proposed facilities.

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In the process of house allotment, special requests by beneficiaries need to be considered. Presently no consideration has been given for families with elderly and disabled members and they have been allotted uppermost floor units in many cases. This process needs to be rationalized through dialogue and scrutiny of the household structure of the beneficiaries.

5.17 References i

McKinsey Global Initiative Analysis. (2010). India’s Urban Awakening: Building Inclusive Cities, Sustaining Economic Growth. Retrieved from http://urbanindia.nic.in/programme/uwss/MGI_india_urbanization_executive_summary.pdf ii

Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation. (2007). Housing Shortage Report. Retrieved from http://mhupa.gov.in/ministry/housing/HOUSINGSHORTAGE-REPT.pdf iii

Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation. (2012). Housing Shortage Report. Retrieved from http://nbo.gov.in/Images/PDF/urban-housing-shortage.pdf iv

Department of Public Relations http://www.mpinfo.org/mpinfonew/index.aspx v

Raj Bhavan. (n.d.). Raj Bhavan: http://www.rajbhavanmp.in/raj_hist.asp

Madhya

The

Birth

Pradesh.

of

Lal

(n.d.)

Kothi.

Retrieved

Retrieved

from

from

vi

Bhopal Municipal Corporation. (2005). Bhopal City Development Plan [Data File]. Retrieved from http://www.mpurban.gov.in/Pdf/CDP/Bhopal%20CDP_Final%20.pdf vii

Madhya Pradesh Housing & Infrastructure Development Board. (n.d.). Profile. Retrieved from http://www.mphousing.in/NewMPHB/profile.aspx viii Grant Thornton. (2011). Appraisal of Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) – Final Report Volume I. Retrieved from http://JnNURM.nic.in/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Appraisal-ofJnNURM-Final-Report-Volume-I-.pdf

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Chapter 6 - Gandhi Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra


Chapter 6 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment at Gandhi Nagar

6.1 Introduction MAHARASHTRA

Pune District

GANDHINAGAR SLUM PUNE DISTRICT

YERWADA SLUM AREA PUNE Haveli

PUNE WARD AREAS

Ward No 17 in Yerwada Administrative Ward

Source : Pune Municipal Corporation

Figure 6.1 – Location Map of Gandhi Nagar (Source: ACE 2013)

Maharashtra had strongly endorsed an ‘in-situ approach’ to slum redevelopment and ‘citizen participation’ by involving prominent NGOs in BSUP funded slum redevelopments. As the state that houses the largest slum population in India, Maharashtra has struggled to make appropriate policies to develop slums from a state-led approach of slum clearance and replacement housing blocks to more privately initiated projects. However though not a policy, from the 1990s onwards, a more bottom-up approach to slum redevelopment was promoted in cities of Maharashtra, particularly in Mumbai led by NGOs who mobilized communities to upgrade their own areas. In the BSUP housing, Maharashtra has legitimized the role of NGOs in housing delivery to the urban poor and awarded single point implementation contracts to several NGOs. BSUP in Pune had been in the forefront of this NGO-led in-situ slum redevelopment with some completed projects that involved slum dwellers in the design and planning process. ACE has taken up two case studies from Pune led by two different NGOs: Gandhi Nagar that was implemented by Maharashtra Social Housing & Action League (MASHAL) and Mother Teresa Nagar that was implemented by CHF and Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centers (SPARC)-Mahila Milan-National Slum Dwellers Federation (NSDF) consortium. Since both case studies are from the same state and city, the background is common to both; Chapter 7 discusses the case study of Mother Teresa Nagar. 123


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6.2 Background on Maharashtra Maharashtra is the second most populous state in India after Uttar Pradesh and the third largest state by area after Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. According to the provisional census figures of 2011, Maharashtra is the third most urbanized state, among the major states, with an urban population of 45.23%, behind Tamil Nadu (48.45%) and Kerala (47.72%).i The State covers an area of 307,731 square km (118,816 square m) or 9.84% of the total geographical area of India and accounts for 9% of India’s total population.ii The native language of the state is Marathi. 6.2.1 History of Urban Poverty and Rehabilitation Practices in Maharashtra Maharashtra’s development presents a dichotomous picture. On the one hand it is the richest state in India with GDP of $224.120 billion; contributing 14%iii to the nation’s GDP and on the other hand it has the largest slum population in India; 1.81 croresiv and the highest slum child population of 1.7 million children, between the age group of 0-6 years, staying in slums.v Earlier the state housing board, the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) provided housing to all sections of the society, with 75% allotments to the EWS (economically weaker sections) and LIG (low income groups). However post 1986 a greater proportion of housing was earmarked for high income groups. The changing role of the state from being a provider of housing to that of a facilitator of market driven housing contributes to the problem of proliferating slums. As housing supply by the public agencies dwindled and that by private agencies became out of reach of the poor, existing housing conditions deteriorated as more and more people sought one room tenements. Rental markets were locked specially in Mumbai city, and the only option for many low income families was to encroach on public and private open lands and build structures, which they could afford.vi 6.3 Background on Pune Pune’s origins can be traced to a tiny agricultural settlement called Punyak or Punnya-Vishay in the 8th century A.D. During the Peshwa rule in the 18th century Child Population (0-6 561,004 the city expanded considerably and under the British rule years) it became an administrative nerve center for the army Sex Ratio 899 bases set up by the British in the outskirts of the city. Child Sex Ratio (0-6 years) 883 Even today, there are three cantonment areas within the Average Literacy 91.42% geographical limits of the Pune Municipal Corporation Source: Census of India 2011 (PMC). Besides being known for its military bases, Pune has gradually evolved into a dynamic city of academic, cultural and economic importance. Pune is today acknowledged as the knowledge and cultural capital of Maharashtra and is also known as the ‘Oxford of the East.’vii Table 6.1 - Social Indicators – Pune Urban Population Population 5,049,968

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21st century has seen Pune emerge at the forefront of the Indian software technological revolution. As industry developed and the employment base widened, migrant population from all over India flocked to Pune. In the early 18th century, when Pune was under British control, the city was barely 5 sq km in size. Today, it has catapulted to emerge as the ninth largest city in the nation and the second largest city in Maharashtra. According to PMC’s Environment Status Report (2004-2005)viii, Pune has registered the highest decadal growth rate of slum population in Maharashtra. Two important events in the city’s history affected its growth and development and radically altered the trajectory of Pune’s urban growth and slum population growth.  Flood of 1961, when huge amounts of water unleashed by the collapse of the Panshet dam swamped Pune and destroyed several homes. The inflow of flood affected people from surrounding villages into Pune impacted the city’s morphology. They took shelter either in existing slums or on government lands. After the flood, Pune recorded the highest growth rate of slum population for 1961-1971 which was 160.26%.  Establishment of the industrial township of Pimpri-Chinchwad in 1982.ix The slum growth rate after the establishment of Pimpri-Chinchwad was 50.93% (1981-1991).x 6.3.1 Slums in Pune According to a Slum Atlas1 prepared by MASHAL2 in xi According to the Pune City Development Plan (CDP) , the slums in Pune 2011 with support from CHF have the following general characteristics: International, Pune has • Employment: The working population in slums comprises of skilled around 1,150,000 people construction workers (fitters, electricians, and painters), unskilled construction workers (bigaris), unskilled workers, vendors (food and vegetable), private job (211,423 families) residing in holders (factory workers), skilled workers (drivers) and domestic helpers slums in the city. The study (females). Very few slum dwellers are professional workers and government was conducted by using servants. actual mapping of slums • Housing Type: Most slum houses in the kutcha category are built of patras. along with a ground survey. All the notified and unnotified slums have access to water supply, sanitation facilities, street lights and other social infrastructural facilities like schools, There are 477 slum pockets primary health care facilities, etc. in Pune city out of which 211 • Location: The majority of the slums of Pune are located on private lands. are notified slums. A glaring fact is that the total declared slum population of Pune occupies only 2.34% of the city’s total area (244 sq km). The density in slums is about 219048 (person/sq km) as against 8234 (person/sq km) in non-slum areas. This reflects the amount of pressure on the infrastructure services and the living conditions of the slum dwellers. Box 6.1 – General Characteristics of Slums in Pune

1

The atlas contains information and maps of all the identified slums spread across the city and includes information about the area of slum, number of houses and population. 2 MASHAL is a NGO based in Pune. It primarily works in the area of housing for the urban poor and has partnered with CHF International to collect and collate information on the physical and socio-economic status of Pune’s urban slums and its inhabitants. By mapping spatial and socio -economic data onto a Geographic Information System (GIS)—such as data about immunizations, health insurance and clinics— the municipality can make informed decisions about the services needed by those living in the slums. 125


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The study conducted by MASHAL records highest number of slum structures in Sangamwadi ward. The ward has 23,278 slum structures. The slums in Yerwada area have the maximum concentration of slum population in the city. The two case studies we are focusing on, Gandhi Nagar and Mother Teresa Nagar come under Yerwada ward. 6.3.2 CDP’s Provisions for Pune For slum development in Pune the CDP has a number of provisions for improving the living standards of the urban poor like providing slum dwellers with reasonable footprint (plinth area), rehabilitating slums located in low-lying areas and hilltops on a priority basis, relaxing FSI norms, earmarking 12% of the total investment in water supply development and improvement for urban poor and slums of Pune, training for women in slums and urban poor towards selfemployment and other income generating activities and improving and ensuring access to sanitary facilities. 6.3.3 CDP’s Vision for Children Although the CDP mentions the city’s young population a number of times, no children specific provisions have been defined in the CDP. The Action Plan for Implementation in the CDP does have a provision for providing a boost to education through land use planning. 6.4 Case Study: GANDHI NAGAR, Pune Table 6.2 - Fact File Gandhi Nagar Yerwada ward, Pune 23150 square meters 3926 169589 per square kilometer (lower than Pune’s which is 219048 per sq km) Land Ownership State Government BSUP Implementing Agency MASHAL Number of Houses 644 Number of houses built under 87 BSUP PMC’s Internal Earmarking of Funds earmarked but not specified in funds for Urban Poor % Source: Gandhi Nagar Map, ACE Location Area Population Population Density

People began to settle in Gandhi Nagar in the 1970’s. According to the Naik family (who were one of the first few residents) when they moved to the area it used to fall outside Pune’s city limits. Houses were made of tin sheets; roads were not paved and basic services like water and sanitation were lacking. Demolition and eviction drives were regular.

Things began to change in Gandhi Nagar after local corporators; Ranpise and Karne Bapurao Gangaram were elected. Development was slow but steady. Residents were involved in every aspect of development, from giving up land for wider, organized roads to not encroaching on drains. Post 1997, Corporator Gangaram focused on improving local infrastructure. At present Gandhi Nagar has a closed drainage system, underground electricity network, underground water supply and telephone connection network due to these efforts.

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6.4.1 Community Profile The 2000 Shelter Associates and Baandhanixii survey gives a socio-economic profile of the Gandhi Nagar neighborhood. The male to female ratio is 100:88 which is lower than the state average (1000:925). 13% of the households were headed by women. 92% of the residents were from Maharashtra while the rest had relocated there from other parts of India. The majority, 80% of the residents are Marathi speakers while Hindi/Urdu, Marwari, Gujarati and other languages are used by the remaining 20%. 6.4.1a Health Verifiable data pertaining to health of the residents in Gandhi Nagar is missing. Dr. Jadhav who runs a clinic in Gandhi Nagar gave some insight about the health status of residents. According to him, post development there has been improvement in overall health. The underground drainage system, presence of toilets inside the houses, decrease in open defecations had all contributed to the improvement. Alcoholism was a major problem in the community and because of it liver related illnesses. According to Dr. Jadhav, tuberculosis, hepatitis B, typhoid, viral fever and intestine infection are the common diseases while the number of HIV positive patients has increased rapidly since he started practicing 15 years ago. 6.4.1b Education Children have been the invisible population in almost all surveys. Based on the interviews and focused group discussions carried out by ACE researchers it was found that almost all the children in Gandhi Nagar attend school at least till the age of 14. After the age of 14, depending on the families financial conditions the child either drops out to help generate income for the family or continues with his/her higher studies. 6.4.1c Livelihoods Table 6.3 – Typical Occupations of Gandhi Nagar Residents Type of Occupation % Employed Government Job 7 Private Job 24 Self Employed 13 Skilled construction worker 3 Unskilled construction worker 11 Professional 3 Skilled worker 22 Unskilled worker 4 Source: Shelter Associates and Baandhani Survey, 2000

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6.4.1d Children and Work Irrespective of the family size and structure, work of children within the family remains gendered. Majority of Preeti a 13 year old girl is a student in Class VII at Babu Jagjivan Ram English Medium School. Both her parents work for a living the girls interviewed by ACE said and she is all alone in the house from the time she comes back they helped their mothers by cleaning from school around 12noon till her parents come back from work the house, washing clothes or filling around 7pm. Her mother recently started working. She helps in the water before or after school. household chores by cleaning the house, helping her mother with cooking, fetching grocery and water as their house is still under Household work takes up most of construction. their time after school. Boys help out at home by running errands, and She is not allowed to move around in the community on her own shopping for daily needs. There are and is confined to her house or the lane in front of her house. She no working children under 14 years likes visiting her grandmother as there is a big ground in front of her house and she can play there. though boys do drop out of school after 14 to engage in daily wage work. None of the surveys for the BSUP project included children as primary respondents and no data was collected about children’s work. The BSUP funded new houses have piped water at home. This has considerably reduced the burden of domestic work performed by children as they no longer have to queue up to fill water from a community tap. Box 6.2 – Experiences of a 13 year living in Gandhi Nagar

6.5 Socio-Cultural Life 6.5.1 Religion and Rituals - Gandhi Nagar predominantly consists of Maharastrian Hindu families. Religion and rituals are an integral part of the community life. There is a small Ganesh temple in Gandhi Nagar where prayers are offered. Within the house, daily rituals consist of burning incense sticks and offering flowers at the feet of domestic deities. Ganesh Puja and Dandiya are popular festivals that are celebrated in a grand way in the community. The youth networks or Mitra Mandal comprising local adolescent boys organizes both these festivals. Girls do not play any role in organizing these festivals. Girls are allowed to participate in Dandiya though their participation is limited to dancing to traditional music in the evening of the festival. 6.5.2 Extended Family Networks - Family structures in Gandhi Nagar assumes different forms - nuclear, joint or extended families living under one roof or having separate households. In many households because of economic necessity both the parents work leaving the child to fend for himself/herself during the day. Neighbours keep an eye on each other’s children and ensure their safety. All the children admitted feeling safe in their immediate lanes. 6.5.3 Social Issues - Gender divisions can be found in children’s perceptions about the problems that plague the neighbourhood. When asked to list problems in their community, boys mentioned that the use of water pumps has led to a decline in the overall water pressure in the area. According to girls, violence, alcoholism and eve-teasing were some of the immediate concerns. Eve teasing acts as a barrier for the girl’s mobility. They mentioned that violence in the community happens both at the community and the family level. At the community level they 128


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mentioned alcohol fuelled brawls by the men and boys are a regular affair with police intervening to contain them, while at the family level domestic violence was referred to. The researchers were told, “You should come in the evening and see” by one of the girls alluding to the rampant alcoholism in the community. During an interview a boy with a younger sister also mentioned that, ‘girls have lots of pressure from home and she cannot roam around outside so easily’. 6.6 Existing Slum Environment 6.6.1 Location Analysis of Gandhi Nagar (See Figure 6.2 for more details) Table 6.4 – Location Analysis of Gandhi Nagar Advantage Disadvantage 1) The slum is well connected and accessible. 1) The slum is bounded by Airport Road and Nagar Road. Both these roads have a heavy flow of traffic making it a traffic hazard 2) A number of schools and hospitals are zone for pedestrians. proximal to the community. 2) Its proximity to Jay Prakash Nagar is a cause of concern to a number of the residents as they feel that the boys from that neighborhood are a bad influence on their children.

Figure 6.2 – City Level Facilities near Gandhi Nagar (Source: ACE 2013)

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6.6.2 Analysis of Physical Environment Prior to Redevelopment

Provision Settlement Structure

Physical Infrastructure

Table 6.5 - Analysis of Physical Environment prior to Redevelopment Characteristics The existing slum had grown organically over decades but after Karne Bapurao Gangaram became the local corporator he convinced the people to give up some of their lands to widen the roads and provide basic services to the people. There were a few open spaces around the slum where the children used to play, but on that ground now stands the offices of a multinational. Water Supply - PMC supplies water to the community. Even before BSUP in Gandhi Nagar the xiii household to tap ratio was 1:1. Electric Supply - 95% of the households had an electricity connection out of which 86% had xiv metered connections. Sanitation - The person to toilet ratio was 55:1. There were 6 toilet blocks with 72 stalls in them and xv 36 public taps on 18 stand posts.

Social Infrastructure

Community Hall - There is a community hall located above the Primary Health Center in the Anna Bhau Sathe building. Karate classes for children, computer classes for adults as well as children and sewing classes for women are conducted in the community hall. Senior Citizen Center - A senior citizen center called the Virangula Kendra is located in the government school next to the community where the elderly can watch television, sit, talk, do yoga and other exercises. Library - There is a library on the second floor of the Anna Bhau Sathe building. It is open between 3 and 5 in the afternoon and has a caretaker who is appointed by the local corporator. The library only has Marathi books. The children use it for studying, doing their homework and reading. Medical Services - There is a Primary Health Center (PHC) in Gandhi Nagar wherein residents can avail medical services for a nominal fee of Rs.10. It is open from 9am to 12noon and 3pm to 5pm on all days. Residents also have access to a number of government (Rajiv Gandhi Hospital, Sassoon General Hospital) and private hospitals (Matoshri Hospital, Bhujbal Accident Hospital and Kelkar Hospital). Consultations in government hospitals are free while fees in private hospitals vary. Anganwadi - There are two anganwadi’s in Gandhi Nagar. One of the anganwadis is situated on the second floor of Anna Bhau Sathe building. It is a new structure. The anganwadi is a large hall with several windows and has a raised platform at one end of the hall with a blackboard hanging over it. Wooden laminates have been used for the flooring and the walls are tiled and plastered. The other anganwadi is a makeshift one and is run out of a rented room. It’s a hall with one window and a latticed opening near the ceiling at the back of the hall. The plaster is peeling from the walls and cots, sofas and other kinds of furniture are stacked haphazardly at one end. There is an extended portico outside the anganwadi which is secured by shutters. There is a rusted metal pole inside the portico. The inside walls of the portico are covered with paan (edible betel leaf combined with areca nut) stains and discarded wrappers dot the floors. In both the anganwadi’s children receive supplementary nutrition. The food is prepared by the residents of the community itself and the parents are satisfied with the quality of food served.

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Education - There is a Government School right next to Gandhi Nagar where instruction is imparted in both English and Marathi. There are also three private schools, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose School, Don Bosco High School and Abdul Hamid Urdu School within a 1000m radius from Gandhi Nagar. The government schools are free for the children and also provide them with school bags, uniforms, books, notebooks and a mid-day meal. The women in the community prepare food for the mid-day meal and the residents are satisfied with the quality of food provided to the children. The fees in the private schools can vary between Rs.14000 and Rs.16000 annually. A number of children in Gandhi Nagar also go for private tuitions after school and the fees for the tuition can vary between Rs.2500 and Rs.16000 annually. 1. Anna Bhau Sathe hall

2. Senior Citizen Centre

LIBRARY/ AANGANWADI COMMUNITY HALL PHC

1

Aanganwadi 2

Community Hall

Figure 6.3 – Community Facilities in Gandhi Nagar (Source: ACE 2013) Youth Clubs - There are no formal youth clubs. However, there are Mitra Mandals (Group of friends) for older boys and they are responsible for collecting donations and organizing various festivities like Dahi Handi, Shivaji Jayanti, Ganesh Chaturthi etc. Gymnasium - A gym has been built in Gandhi Nagar by the local corporator but it does not have any equipment. House Typology

xvi

40.31% of the houses were pucca, 38.25% were kutcha and 20.41% were semi pucca in 2000.

6.7 Children’s Use of Gandhi Nagar 6.7.1 Play of Younger Children - Gandhi Nagar offers a better physical environment for children as compared to Mother Teresa Nagar. Sustained efforts by the local corporator led to wide, paved or concrete roads and closed drains within the community which afford a safer place to play close to home. Young boys and girls can be seen playing a variety of games in the streets (see figure 1.3). Girls commonly play hopscotch, ride on bicycles or play tag with the 131


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younger siblings. Typically women wash their clothes and utensils outside the houses and keep a watch on the street making it safer for children, especially girls, to play outside without coming to harm. Boys love to play with marbles. Boys in addition to playing in the streets go to the playground of the government school for playing sports and group games. There are no open spaces in Gandhi Nagar nor did the BSUP funded slum redevelopment create any designated play space for children.

Figure 6.4 - Play Areas of Children inside Gandhi Nagar (Source: ACE 2013)

6.7.2 Mobility within the Community for Boys and Girls - Girls in Gandhi Nagar have restricted mobility even within the community. They only have license for independent mobility on fixed routes and times, to go to school, after school tuition and college. Boys are free to go anywhere and are allowed to be outside in the local area till late. Girls, particularly adolescent girls, are only allowed to hang around their homes. The reasons for this are increased domestic burdens of girls that require their presence at or near home, over-protection strategy to keep girls safe from sexual harassment (commonly referred to as “eve-teasing” in public places), lack of safe places for girls, and cultural assumptions about proper behaviour of girls. Girls themselves have internalized these dominant beliefs as expressed in their interviews where they said, “boys hanging around pass lewd comments at us and we feel scared of the drunken men roaming in the streets”. Girls also pointed out that inadequate street lights in the neighbourhood create pockets of darkness at night which makes the public realm unsafe for them.

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6.7.3 Mobility outside the Community for Boys and Girls - Both boys and girls have visited areas outside their community. However there is a marked difference in the mobility patterns of boys and girls. Boys have ventured further outside (more than 1 km) on their own or with friends whereas girls have seldom gone beyond a kilometre of the local area even with friends. Girls sometimes go to a nearby temple or to the Bund Garden both of which are close to Gandhi Nagar. Girls are only allowed to step out further with their families. Both boys and girls have travelled outside Pune to visit their extended families living in villages or other towns. 6.8 The Process of Slum Redevelopment in Gandhi Nagar PMC received over Rs.300 crores for relocating shanties in replacement housing blocks at off site locations.xvii This city wide project as executed by the PMC involved construction of new multi-storied buildings on an alternative site reserved for the EWS and owned by the PMC. The buildings remained unoccupied post redevelopment. According to slum dwellers, location of the building was detrimental to their livelihood options. MASHAL was involved by the PMC as they had prior experience3 to motivate people to abandon their single storied slum structures and shift into the multi storied apartments. MASHAL contacted the beneficiaries, held public meetings but the slum dwellers were still reluctant to relocate. MASHAL then brought this to the notice of the Commissioner of PMC, Pravin Perdesai and suggested that people desired to stay in the same location and in-situ housing development would be in line with people’s expectations. The people had also expressed a willingness to contribute funds and get involved with construction. MASHAL helped PMC in preparing the Detailed Project Report (DPR) under which kutcha slum structures on government lands would be converted into pucca structures with the involvement of the beneficiaries (See figure 1.4 for proposed BSUP layout plan).

3

MASHAL had previously worked on various slum projects in Pune like the Slum Relocation Project in Patil Estate, Zopadpatti in 1991 which involved helping the slum dwellers who were evicted from Willium Nagar in evolving suitable layout plans and appropriate construction methods; Slum Sanitation Project for PMC in 1999 in which 60 community toilet blocks were constructed with the support of the people and included separate children’s toilets and caretaker rooms and prepared Environment Status Reports for all the cities in Maharashtra. They have also mapped slums in Mumbai, Pune and Nasik. 133


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Figure 6.5 - Proposed layout of Gandhi Nagar in-situ Redevelopment using BSUP funds (Source: ACE 2013)

6.8.1 Consultative Process For the implementation of the BSUP project several meetings were held in the Anna Bhau Sathe Community Hall between the beneficiaries and the government officials like the local corporator, MLA, MASHAL etc. The local corporator explained the government scheme to the people. The people in Gandhi Nagar had experience with the VAMBAY scheme so they were more receptive towards BSUP. The corporator explained the basic difference between the two schemes. In BSUP the beneficiaries had to make an initial payment of Rs.10,000 into a joint account of the beneficiary and the NGO. MASHAL took measurements of people’s kutcha houses in the initial stages of the rebuilding process to ascertain each family’s footprint. The costs of the development effort were explained to the beneficiaries. In addition to the beneficiary contribution, it was explained to them that the BSUP scheme did not have any provisions for transit accommodation so the cost of staying in a rented accommodation would be an increased burden on them and they should only enroll for this scheme if they could afford the rent. A meeting was held every 15 days to explain the design typologies, architectural models and to incorporate the design changes suggested by the beneficiaries. MASHAL showed the blueprints and model homes to the beneficiaries and they could make design inputs (see figure 1.5). Each house was different. MASHAL had a large number of architects, RCC design contractors at their disposal and people’s needs were taken into account. The tiles used for flooring, number of shelves, number of windows, RCC or mild steel staircases were some of the changes which people could make depending on their needs. The local government in Pune has a very strong Urban Community Development (UCD) department which was started by Gerry Pinto (founder member of MASHAL). The UCD has a network of 134


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about 5500 Resident Community Volunteer’s (RCV) in every slum. The RCV’s are mostly women and they were instrumental in mobilizing the community for this redevelopment.

Figure 6.6 - BSUP Houses in Gandhi Nagar (Source: ACE 2013)

6.9 Housing Quality Evaluation 6.9.1 Security of Tenure The residents as of now have not received any papers establishing their ownership over their houses. They have receipts which talks about them having deposited a certain amount of money with the government under the BSUP scheme. All the houses have a nameplate with the woman’s name on it, this is in compliance with JnNURM-BSUP norms and MASHAL is enforcing this policy in Gandhi Nagar. According to Corporator Gangaram the file for the property cards had passed through the offices of the Municipality and the District Collector and reached the Revenue Department but because of a fire in the Revenue Department the whole process is being redone and hence the residents have not been issued property cards. 6.9.2 Affordability Box 6.3 - Cost to a family to make the flat livable Pradnya is an 11 year old girl living with her father, mother and 8 year old brother in Gandhi Nagar in a house which is far from being complete. Her mother is a homemaker and her father is an auto rickshaw driver who also gives sound systems on rent and calls himself a local DJ. Her house still needs electrical work; tap fittings, painting, terrace door fitting etc. Her family has temporarily installed a meter and drawn an electricity connection but there are no electricity points yet. Apart from the Rs.30000 for the BSUP house, her family has paid Rs.25000 to get a parapet constructed on the terrace, another Rs.25000 to enclose the balcony, Rs.5000 for the third staircase and Rs.4000 on electrical wiring because they were not happy with the electrical wiring being provided under the scheme. While she goes to a 135


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Under the BSUP scheme the central government bore 50% of the costs, the state government 30%, local bodies 10% and the beneficiaries 10%. The total cost of the house was Rs.3 lakhs. The residents had to pay differentiated amounts depending on their Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) status. General category beneficiaries had to pay Rs.36,000 while SC/ST category beneficiaries had to pay Rs.30,000. The beneficiaries could pay the amount in installments and Bachat Gats (saving groups) and SHGs like Ujjwal, Surya provided loans to the beneficiaries at interest rates ranging from 2-4%. However, some residents have invested up to Rs.2 lakhs in strengthening the foundation of the building in cases where they were sure of building beyond the second floor and in changing the floor tiles, doors, in putting grills, in making shelves and getting sinks/basins installed. government school where there is no tuition fees, both her younger brother and elder sister (lives with her grandmother) attend private schools which costs her family Rs.9000 per year. To pay for the house and the additions her family has taken a Rs.75000 loan from Ganlaxmi Patpedhi at 2% interest. Her father pays Rs.2500 as EMI out of his monthly income of Rs.12000- 18,000.

Electricity and water connections were covered under the BSUP scheme in Pune. MASHAL did the entire electrical wiring for the families and each family was provided with six electrical points with an option of additional points for Rs.200/point. For the electrical wiring the scheme had a provision of Rs.3000/house. The community already had an underground electricity network prior to VAMBAY and BSUP. Most of the residents already had individual power meters for which they had paid Rs.5000. The monthly expenditure on electricity depends on the consumption patterns of each house and may vary between Rs.300 and Rs.600/month. While the BSUP houses were being constructed most of the families were living in rented temporary hutments, paying between Rs.1000-Rs.5000/month. The families were living in these temporary accomodation for almost two years and had to bear the burden of staying in the transit accomodation. A lot of families whose houses were built in the first phase rented out a floor to the families whose houses were under construction. 6.9.3 Availability of Services, Facilities and Infrastructure 6.9.3a Access and Boundary Condition - The area has a Government school, a private society, Jay Prakash Nagar slum, the ongoing work of a five star hotel and multiplex complex, a small access road which leads to the 30m wide Airport road and another access road which leads to the 50m wide Nagar Road flanking it on various sides. There is one primary lane in Gandhi Nagar about 12m wide which connects with several secondary lanes (9m wide) and tertiary lanes (6m wide). The primary lane connects the Airport road to the Nagar road and has a heavy flow of traffic making it a traffic hazard and a dangerous crossing zone for pedestrians. The access road which leads to Airport road has a blind turn and the cyclists have to ride very close to the wall to avoid getting hit by the incoming traffic. 6.9.3b Layout and Street Network – Gandhi Nagar has a wide and well laid out road network which is kept clean daily by PMC workers. 136


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6.9.3c Open Spaces - There is no designated open space for playing or gathering in the community. Younger children and girls are usually seen playing outside their home or in their lanes. Older children play in tertiary lanes. Primary lane space is used by adolescent boys and younger men to play cricket. Movement of girls is confined to tertiary lanes. The individual houses as well as the buildings constructed under BSUP in Gandhi Nagar have terrace access and they are secured with parapets. There is a small space for sitting outside the individual houses where the residents have put a low sit out using concrete which is also used for washing clothes and utensils. (See Figure 7.4) 6.9.3d Power Supply - The community already had an underground electricity network prior to VAMBAY and BSUP. Most of the residents already had individual power meters for which they had to pay Rs.5000. The power supply in the community is reliable and electricity is available 24x7. Monthly expenditure on electricity depends on the consumption patterns of each house and may vary between Rs.300 and Rs.600/month.

Underground Drainage, Electricity , Water Supply and Telephone connection network

6.9.3e Water Supply - The houses constructed under the BSUP scheme have been provided with a 500 liter water tank per family. The families had the option of paying extra and upgrading it to a 1000 liter water tank. The residents use tap water for drinking and have no complaints about the quality of water. In Pune the water passes through three separate water treatment plants and most of the inhabitants of the city drink tap water directly.

Figure 6.7 – Status of Infrastructure in Gandhi Nagar

The water supply is irregular and inadequate and most families have to store water in pots, big drums or any other utensils which are available. The water pressure in the area is low. Families had to install pumps in order to pump up water to overhead tanks which increases their electricity bills. The redeveloped houses have a bathing room and a WC but most residents continue to wash their clothes and sometimes their cooking vessels outside their houses under the taps (faucet) in the lanes. The water runoff from this is a cause of conflict between neighbors. 6.9.3f Sanitation - All the houses that have been built under BSUP have been provided with toilets inside the house. As per the requirements of the residents some houses have separate 137


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bathing and WC facilities while in others they are combined. Apart from these there are six blocks of public toilets which costs a family Rs.25/month. The community toilets are cleaned by a caretaker who has been provided with a room right next to the toilet block. 6.9.3g Drainage – Gandhi Nagar has a closed drainage system. 6.9.3h Garbage Disposal - Garbage is collected from the door of every resident at a cost of Rs.25/month. 6.9.3i Local Transport - Residents have easy access to public transport like bus and auto rickshaws. Bus stop is within a 500 meter radius of the community. 6.9.3j Emergency Access - The roads are well laid out and wide enough to allow access to ambulances and fire trucks in case of emergency. 6.9.3k Streetlights - The neighborhood has 27 streetlights and most of them are functional. They are well spread out throughout the community. According to adolescents, street lighting could be improved as there are patches of darkness in some areas. 6.9.3l Daily Needs Shopping - For daily needs residents rely on local shops in the community which sells chips, candy, cigarettes, eggs, bread, toiletries, biscuits etc. 6.9.3m Cooking Fuel - Gas cylinders are used for cooking food and wood fires are used for heating water during winter. Wood fired stoves are used outside the house in the street. Plastic bags, newspapers are some of the materials used to get the wood fire going. The smoke from the wood fire affects the outdoor and indoor air quality of the community. 6.9.3n Social Infrastructure - Gandhi Nagar enjoys access to 4 schools within 1km of the area. 1 PHC and several government and private hospitals, 2 anganwadi’s, 1 community hall, 1 senior citizen center, 1 library, 1 gym and several youth clubs are present there. These entire social infrastructures which are discussed in detail under Table 1.8 – Analysis of Physical Environment prior to Development existed before BSUP. No additional social infrastructures were created or existing ones improved through BSUP. 6.9.3o Facilities for Children - There were no parks and playgrounds in the community prior to development and no new play and recreation facilities have been created through BSUP. The children use the streets to play or the grounds of the Government School adjoining Gandhi Nagar. The grounds of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose School which is at a distance of about 2km and the government land under the Grocery Supply Department are also used as playgrounds by children. Bund Garden and Indira Prasth Garden are two parks closest to Gandhi Nagar.

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Apart from the anganwadi and the library, the students who do well in school receive monetary rewards from the corporation and also from the SHGs. The SHGs give Rs.2000 for Std X students and Rs.15000 for Std XII students who do well in their exams. Students are also given bicycles for travelling. 6.9.4 Habitability 6.9.4a Larger Houses – The houses are 270 sq ft. plus terraces. BSUP housing provides bigger houses to families than previous government schemes like VAMBAY which had a provision for 225 sq ft houses. Residents with extended families upon payment of the required amount have received separate tenements. 6.9.4b Habitable Spaces - The BSUP houses typically comprise of a ground floor, first floor and a terrace but some houses which have been built on smaller plots have a second floor as well. The houses include a kitchen, a living room and a toilet. The kitchen and living area have been segregated as per the requirements of the families. The windows and doors open towards the street and there is adequate natural light and ventilation. Windows have also been provided in the bathrooms and kitchens. The children use the roofs for flying kites, studying etc. 6.9.4c Adequacy of building materials and construction Roof - The roof has been built using concrete and is accessible and secured with parapets. The materials used are weather appropriate. Walls - Burnt clay bricks and concrete have been used to construct the walls in the first phase and fly ash bricks have been used in the second phase of construction. Cracks have already begun to appear in the walls as well as gaps between the beam and the wall because care was not taken in aligning the walls to the RCC framework. Floor - Vitrified tiles have been used for flooring of the houses. The families had the option to change the tiles upon payment of Rs.5000.

Figure 6.8 – Mild Steel Staircase and Condition of the walls

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Windows - Sliding glass windows with aluminum frames have been installed in the houses and no security grilles have been provided. Most of the families have installed grills in the windows. Staircase - Mild steel staircase or a RCC staircase has been constructed in the houses depending on the preference of the families and the footprint of the house. If the house has been constructed on too small a footprint then mild steel staircases have been provided otherwise the staircases are made of RCC and have a railing and a wall on the first floor to prevent falling from the first floor. The landing is sufficient and the staircases are well lit and weather protected. 6.9.4d Inadequate Storage Facilities - A 10 feet long loft has been provided in each house for storage but people have built extra shelves and cupboards. The space under the mild steel staircases is also being used for storage. Most of the families do not store kerosene, the few that do store it in the kitchen usually under the kitchen sink. The families also keep the medicines out of the reach of children either storing it in cupboards or on top of the refrigerator. Most of the families have built additional shelves in the kitchen. 6.9.4e Adequate Kitchens - The cooking is done above floor level in most of the houses on the slabs provided in the kitchens but people use wood fire outside their houses to heat water during winter. The rising cost of LPG and the scarcity of supply as well as the additional electricity cost of a geyser is the reason people still use wood fires to heat water. 6.9.4f Fire Safe Houses - The houses have been constructed using fire safe material. The electrical wiring used in the houses has been reported to be of inferior quality. This can be a fire hazard. 6.9.5 Accessibility Age - The BSUP project in Gandhi Nagar has been unable to create a barrier free environment for the residents. The houses which have been built on a smaller footprint have mild steel staircases which are not easy to use for the elderly, children as well as the differently abled. There is an increased chance of accidents on those staircases because of the gaps between the treads. Children - There is no space for children to play in Gandhi Nagar. They use the streets for playing. The streets of Gandhi Nagar are kept clean by the PMC and the drains are closed so playing in the streets does not pose a health hazard. According to Corporator Gangaram, earlier the children used to play in an empty plot which had been demarcated as a playground. The reservation was reversed and the plot became a commercial land and on this plot now stands an office building. The girls have limited mobility even within the community and use the space just outside their houses to meet with friends and play. The new development failed to take into account the play and recreational needs of the children.

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6.9.6 Cultural Adequacy The houses built under BSUP are by and large culturally adequate. The cultural and religious needs of the community have been a factor in designing the layout of the house. For example for a Muslim family the toilets were designed so that they don’t face Mecca and also the houses did not have their backs to Mecca. Maharashtrians prefer that the toilet and kitchen areas are segregated and this was also taken into consideration when designing the layout of the house. 6.10 Community Perceptions of New Development Box 6.4 – Increased Cost of Living due to Redevelopment Mrs. Taware is a 55 year old housewife who lives in Gandhi Nagar with her husband, daughter, two sons, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren. In addition to the Rs.30,000 her family has put in almost Rs.145,000 for constructing the house (additional loft cost Rs.5,000, increasing the capacity of the water liter from 500 to 1000 cost Rs.1000, iron railings for the staircase, cover for the staircase to the terrace, floor tiles, kitchen tiles etc.). They also had to buy all new furniture because their old furniture was too big for their new house. The inflation is increasing their cost of living and the new house is putting additional strain on their income. The electricity bill is much higher than what they had earlier; her family’s last electricity bill was Rs.1200. The increased numbers of power outlets, light bulbs, water motor costs etc. have contributed to the increased electricity bills.

The new development in Gandhi Nagar has evoked different reactions from different beneficiaries. While there is agreement across the board that the pucca houses which have been built are much superior to the old kutcha or semi-pucca houses, a number of beneficiaries are not happy with the quality of construction, the materials used and increased costs.

6.11 Children’s Experience of the Redevelopment Box 6.5 - Experience of a 20 year old boy living in Gandhi Nagar Kalpesh a 20 year old boy enrolled in the B.Com program at Wadia College, Pune lives in Gandhi Nagar with his parents and younger brother. According to him the new houses are better as they have bigger rooms with slab and tiled flooring as opposed to the earlier cement and koba flooring and tin roofs and tin sheet walls. He doesn’t feel embarrassed about bringing his friends home now. The community is kept clean, there are no mosquitoes etc. The new houses keep dry in the monsoons whereas water used to enter their old houses and destroy their belongings. The tin sheets also used to fly away during heavy rains and winds. Kalpesh feels that even though the houses have improved the environment of the slum has not seen any changes like timely water supply, water motors installed by people causes a problem as it diminishes the water supply for the other residents etc. There was no water problem before the construction of the new houses as most of the houses did not have water motors. The houses have been laid out in a planned manner and there is space between the houses to park vehicles and everyone keeps their yard clean. The development has been 141


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beneficial for the girls. They don’t have to face the difficulties of a community toilet anymore. During the development, all the houses were not demolished and reconstructed at the same time, so there were conflicts between neighbors because of cement and other construction material falling into their homes, the roads being blocked because of the construction material. After growing up, he wanted to move away from the redeveloped ‘slum’.

Incremental redevelopment efforts over the years including BSUP have managed to create better physical infrastructure and housing in Gandhi Nagar. Children view this change positively. According to twenty one year old Kalpesh, ‘I don’t know what will happen in the future but before we could not bring our friends home. Now we can say with pride that our home is good’. Sixteen year old Praveen also feels good about his improved living environment. For girls the most positive aspect of redevelopment is an increased sense of security in the local area. This may be due to the common perception that majority of anti social elements or people with criminal records have left the community and shifted to other slums post redevelopment. According to the girls the best aspect of the redevelopment is piped water connection and toilets at home. Now they do not have to stand in queue at public toilets or at community standpipes for water. The new houses have raised plinths to prevent flooding. This ensures that children and their families sleep peacefully without being worried about water entering their houses as was evident in the words of one of the boys ‘ it feels nice to sleep peacefully at night without fear of our homes flooding’. Though children did not participate in the Tejas Kamble a 9 year old has just shifted into his new house with his family after redevelopment process living in a temporary accommodation for two years. His family has spent almost or in designing houses, Rs.150000 on the new house but is not happy with the work that the contractor children had strong views has done. There are cracks on the wall; there is a huge gap between the beam on the ceiling and the wall. The water line has not been connected because about the type of according to the contractor it is not part of the scheme. His house has only two redevelopment that had electrical points as compared to the six installed in other houses. His family’s taken place. According to request for an extra window on the ground floor was denied and the ground floor both boys and girls flatted does not get adequate natural light through the one window that has been provided. On the first floor the house has four large windows and his mother feels residential bocks promote that they don’t have any privacy because of that. Tejas feels that because of the alienating environments poor quality of construction the house feels like an old house instead of a new marked by social one. isolation. In in-situ upgradation of slum redevelopment as was done in Gandhi Nagar, social cohesion is strengthened where people are part of everyday life of their neighbours. Most houses in Gandhi Nagar follow an open door policy where neighbours are welcome to walk in anytime and the community helps each other in times of need. Children were in favour of the in-situ redevelopment in Gandhi Nagar. Box 6.6 - Experience of a 9 year old boy living in a BSUP House

Despite the positive attributes of in-situ redevelopment, some children of Gandhi Nagar pointed out that the new housing created houses ‘better than the previous house but environment has not changed’. Lack of focus on overall environmental improvements is inevitable when the approach to in-situ redevelopment simply replaces “kutcha” houses with “pucca” houses. Children were clear about the identity of their neighbourhood and wanted to move out if 142


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possible. “After all this is a slum area, who would like to stay here forever? Even after redevelopment this is still considered a slum. If I stay on, I will live all my life in a slum.” 6.12 Key Findings 6.12.1 Policy Level In Pune the PMC is the single planning authority for planning and implementing development works in the city. But now the State Government has formed a special authority for implementation of slum rehabilitation in the city called the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA). The SRA is responsible for surveying entire slum areas under its jurisdiction, analyzing the surveyed data and preparing a Master Plan in detail formulating a Sustainable Slum Rehabilitation Program. This means encouraging and administering Slum Rehabilitation Schemes (SRS) on privately owned lands and implementing SRS on government owned lands through public-private partnerships and or government grants. 6.12.1a Positive Aspects 

The Pune CDP has provisions for improving basic services like water supply, sanitation facilities, and solid waste management for the urban poor.

Training of women in slums and urban poor towards self employment and other income generating measures with the help of NGOs is also recommended in the CDP.

The stakeholders comprised NGO representatives, industry associations, educationists, environmentalists, councilors, representatives of the informal sector (such as ‘Maulkarin Sanghtna,’ Rickshaw Panchayat, Hamaal Panchayat) and representatives of Mohalla Committees. The stakeholder consultation also involved representatives of the Pune Cantonment Board, Department of Town Planning, Central Institute of Road Transport, Municipal Union, and Pune Municipal Transport besides the PMC officials and to an extent was an inclusive process.

A citizen survey was conducted among 1196 slum dwellers across all the wards in Pune to gauge the satisfaction levels of the slum dwellers concerning the basic services provided to them.

6.12.1b Limitations 

The Pune CDP talks about a convergence of services but in Gandhi Nagar all the basic services like water supply, closed drainage, underground electricity network, well planned roads, garbage disposal were already present along with social infrastructure like community halls, primary health centers, primary education centers and anganwadi’s. No BSUP funds were used to upgrade the existing social infrastructure. 143


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The CDP talks about the process being participatory but in the case of Pune children’s perceptions were not taken into consideration. The house layout of the beneficiaries was tailored according to individual needs but children were not a factor in any of the decision making process. The lack of a playground or any open space for children to play was mentioned by every child that was interviewed by the researchers.

6.12.1c Recommendations 

A number of the slum dwellers suggested that the government should have just given them the money to build their own house like it was done under VAMBAY and in that way they would have gotten the house they wanted.

6.12.2 Programme Level 6.12.2a Positive Aspects 

The involvement of MASHAL in Gandhi Nagar along with the active support of the local corporator helped in mobilizing the community to participate in the redevelopment.

6.12.2b Limitations 

No escalation clause was included in the contract for project implementation. The project has hence become unviable for the NGO involved in implementation of the project. To provide an illustration MASHAL was paying Rs.6 per brick at the start of work which in 2012 costed Rs.10. The contractor’s payments were also not made in a timely manner and this has led to losses for the NGO. 5% VAT (value added tax) has also been imposed on the project which effectively means that the NGO is paying Rs.15000 for each house that is being constructed.

Very few NGO’s are willing to bid for these development contracts because of the delays which happen in government projects plus the lack of escalation costs makes the project unviable for them. NGO’s involved in these projects had to incur losses amounting to Rs.1.5 crores.

People were not involved in the construction process to offset some of the beneficiary cost through work.

6.12.2c Recommendations 

There should be an escalation clause in the contracts.

A detailed socio-economic profile of the community should be the starting point of the redevelopment process. 144


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6.12.3 Project Level 6.12.3a Positive Aspects 

The project was successful in providing larger more habitable houses to the residents.

The whole process was very participatory (included adults and not children and youth) and the residents were consulted at every stage of the process and their consent was taken.

The RCV’s were instrumental in mobilizing the community.

6.12.3b Limitations 

Security of Tenure - The Pune DPR talks about allotting the rehabilitated tenement to the beneficiary family but this has not been done in Gandhi Nagar. The construction of a five star hotel plus office complex next to Gandhi Nagar in addition to the delay in receiving their property cards has raised the fear of eviction and demolition in the minds of the residents.

Failure in Addressing Children’s Needs - Children’s everyday environmental needs were not addressed. This is a direct fallout of not engaging children in the participatory process. The streets in Gandhi Nagar are kept clean by the PMC workers but a number of residents throw their garbage on the streets and the children play in the same streets which are littered with garbage. A number of manholes in Gandhi Nagar have small holes besides them and they tend to overflow during the monsoons, layering the street with drain water. The girls especially do not have any spaces to play. Even though the parents contend that Gandhi Nagar is a safe community, the girls are restricted to their homes, or the streets in front of their houses for play activities. The boys are given more latitude when it comes to exploring their local environment.

6.12.3c Recommendations 

Include children and youth in community processes of local area development.

The existing social infrastructure should be upgraded. While one of the anganwadis is a big, spacious hall the other anganwadi is in need of serious repair work.

Security of tenure should be provided within a specified timeframe to all residents.

6.13 References i

Census of India. (2011). Press Release: Rural - Urban distribution of Population (Provisional). Retrieved from http://pibmumbai.gov.in/English/PDF/E2011_PR1143.PDF 145


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ii

Census of India. (2011). Size, Growth Rate and Distribution of Population. Retrieved from http://censusindia.gov.in/2011-prov-results/data_files/india/Final_PPT_2011_chapter3.pdf iii

Indian Defence Forum. (2012). GDP of States in India and Relative Contribution to Indian GDP. Retrieved from http://defenceforumindia.com/forum/economy-infrastructure/43090-gdp-states-india-2012a.html iv

Marpakwar, P. (2011, May 6). Maharashtra: Slum capital of India. The Times of India. Retrieved from http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-05-06/india/29516346_1_slum-population-slumrehabilitation-authority-nsso v

Deshpande, V. (2011, October 15). Every eighth urban child in India lives in slum: report. The Hindu. Retrieved from http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2541052.ece vi

Bombay Metropolitan Regional Development Authority. (1994). Project Profile of Mega City Programme, Bombay. vii

Pune 109. (n.d.). Pune History. Retrieved from http://www.pune109.com/history.html

viii

Maharashtra Pollution Control Board. (2004). Report on Environmental Status of Pune Region (20042005). Retrieved from http://envis.maharashtra.gov.in/envis_data/files/envreportPune.pdf ix

Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation. (2013). City Highlights – Location. Retrieved from https://www.pcmcindia.gov.in/location.asp?MID=0&PID=0&MenuID=68&Title=Location x

Maharashtra Pollution Control Board. (2004). Report on Environmental Status of Pune Region (20042005). Retrieved from http://envis.maharashtra.gov.in/envis_data/files/envreportPune.pdf xi

Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. (2006). Pune City Development Plan 2006-2012 Volume I. Retrieved from http://www.punecorporation.org/pmcwebn/informpdf/cddp/cdp2.pdf xii

Shelter Associates and Baandhani Survey, (2000). Gandhi Nagar. Retrieved from http://shelterassociates.org/sites/default/files/Gandhinagar.pdf xiii

Ibid.

xiv

Ibid.

xv

Ibid.

xvi

Ibid.

xvii

MASHAL. (n.d.). Slum Projects. Retrieved from http://mashalngo.wordpress.com/slum-projects/

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Chapter 7 - Mother Teresa Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra


Chapter 7 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment at Mother Teresa Nagar

7.1 Introduction MAHARASHTRA

Pune District

MOTHER TERESA NAGAR SLUM PUNE DISTRICT

YERWADA SLUM AREA PUNE Haveli

PUNE WARD AREAS

Ward No 17 in Yerwada Administrative Ward

Source : Pune Municipal Corporation

Figure 7.1 – Location Map of Mother Teresa Nagar (Source: ACE 2013)

7.2 Case Study: MOTHER TERESA NAGAR, Pune Table 7.1 – Fact File of Mother Teresa Nagar Location Yerwada ward, Pune Area 12592 square meters Population 2550 Population Density 202509 per sq km (lower than Pune’s which is 219048 per sq km) Land Ownership Pune Municipal Corporation BSUP Implementing Agency CHF, SPARC, Mahila Milan Number of Houses 494 Number of houses to be built under 330 BSUP PMC’s Internal Earmarking of funds Funds earmarked but not for Urban Poor specified in % Source: Mother Teresa Nagar Map, ACE

Mother Teresa Nagar is a 60 year old settlement that used to be a burial ground. The slum has had various changes in name over the years. Earlier farmers from neighboring areas used to visit this area for selling bullock carts and the area was known as Yerwada Gadital. In the past 20 years the settlement was known by different names like Ganesh Nagar and Kamraj Nagar. The former local corporator of the area John Paul carried out various social works in the name of ‘Mother Teresa’ and from then on the area has been known as Mother Teresa Nagar.

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7.2.1 Provisions in the Common Pune DPR for In-Situ Rehabilitation The Pune DPR for In-Situ Rehabilitation (Incremental Housing) Scheme for Urban Poor Staying in Slums was prepared by Omkar Associates and covers 8 slums – Bhatt Nagar, Yeshwant Nagar, Wadarwadi, Netaji Nagar, Mother Teresa Nagar, Nagpur Chawl, Shelar Chawl and Sheela Nagar. The DPR proposes ‘integrating and converging’ housing, infrastructure improvements and social services with existing programs for health, education, and access to savings and credit institutions. The nodal agency for implementing BSUP in Maharashtra is MHADA and the implementing agency for Pune is Pune Municipal Corporation. The DPR proposes the construction of 4000 houses at a cost of Rs.12004.90 lakhs, of which beneficiary contribution is Rs.1320.54 lakhs. The DPR has provisions for transit accommodation for the slum dwellers. The DPR makes it mandatory for the builders to provide 360 tenements per hectare. Each dwelling unit will have a carpet area of 25sq m (270 sq ft) and will include:  1 multipurpose room  1 bedroom with balcony  1 cooking alcove with wash area  1 bath and water closet To ensure security of tenure the DPR proposes the allotment of tenement in the name of the wife and the husband on a registered lease agreement basis for a period of 99 years. It also proposes the formation of a co-operative housing society and transferring the land, buildings and un-built spaces in the name of the society which would have as its members all the families who had been allotted tenements. The slum dweller will not be permitted to sell/transfer/rent/lease the house for a period of 10 years (except in the case of heirs). 7.2.2 Community Profile The 2000 Shelter Associates and Baandhani surveyi gives a socio economic profile of Mother Teresa Nagar. The male to female ratio of Mother Teresa Nagar is 100:96 which is higher than the state average (1000:925). 25% of the households are headed by women. 92% of the residents were from Maharashtra while the rest had relocated there from other parts of India. The majority, 55% of the residents speak Marathi while 37% speak Hindi and the remaining 8% speak Telegu and Gujarati. 7.2.2a Livelihood Table 7.2 – Typical Occupations of Mother Teresa Nagar Residents Type of Occupation % Employed Government Job 9 Private Job 15 Self Employed 23 149


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According to the community mapping done by Mahila Milan the monthly household income varies between Rs.3000 and Rs.22000 and the average monthly income is Rs.5078.

Skilled construction worker 5 Unskilled construction worker 14 Professional 1 Skilled worker 9 Unskilled worker 20 Source: Shelter Associates and Baandhani Survey, 2000

7.2.2b Health There is no reliable data available about the health of the residents of Mother Teresa Nagar. An interview with Dr. Qureshi who runs a health clinic near Mother Teresa Nagar gave an overview about the common ailments of the residents. According to Dr. Qureshi even though the housing conditions of the residents in Mother Teresa had improved there had been no substantial changes in environmental conditions. The open drains were a breeding ground for mosquitoes and that led to malaria and dengue. Typhoid, jaundice and viral fever were some of the common diseases. Alcoholism was also rampant in the area. 7.2.2c Education Table 7.3 - Education Levels of Mother Teresa Nagar Residents Level of Education % of Population Illiterates 20.99 Nursery 0.58 Primary Education (Class 1-7) 38.42 Secondary Education (Class 8-12) 39.5 Graduates 0.33 Technical Diploma 0.16 Source: Mahila Milan Survey

The survey carried out by Mahila Milan prior to the start of the construction process has recorded the education status of almost 1200 residents of the community. The table below gives the details of the

survey. 7.2.2d Religion

Religion Hindu Muslim Buddhist Christian

According to the Mahila Milan Survey of 258 people in Mother Teresa Nagar, there were 101 Hindus, 78 Muslims, 65 Buddhists and 13 Christians. Figure 7.2 – Major Religions Practiced in Mother Teresa Nagar (Source: Mahila Milan Survey)

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7.2.2e Children and Work Box 7.1 – Work of a 14 year old girl

Like Gandhi Nagar the work done by children is divided along gender lines. While Diksha a 14 year student of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose girls help out with household chores boys School lives in Mother Teresa Nagar with her father, do the outside work like shopping for daily mother, elder brother and sister. Her father is unemployed needs. Most of the children in Mother and her mother works as a governess in a neighboring colony. In the absence of her mother her 16 year old sister Teresa attend school at least up to the age cooks, cleans and looks after the house whilst also of 14. Thereafter depending on their studying in Class X. Diksha helps her sister with the families economic situation they either drop cooking and in addition to that is responsible for washing out of school to supplement their family’s the clothes, utensils and filling water before and after school. income or continue with their studies. Boys who drop out typically become newspaper delivery boys. 7.3 Socio-Cultural Life 7.3.1 Religion and Rituals – Hindus, Muslims and Christians can all be found in Mother Teresa Nagar. The number of temples is higher as compared to mosques and churches. There are Mitra Mandals for both boys and girls who celebrate popular Hindu festivals like Diwali, Dahi Handi, Navratri and so on. It was observed while interviewing children that none of the Mitra Mandals celebrated Eid and none of the members were Muslim. One of the good things about Mother Teresa Nagar unlike Gandhi Nagar is freedom of girls to move around in the community, and participate in celebration of major festivals. 7.3.2 Extended Family Networks - There are different units of families in the community varying in composition and number. Some of the families are joint with ten members or more staying under one roof while others are nuclear family of four members. As majority of the families have migrated from other districts in Maharashtra, extended family members stay in other towns and villages. The extended family or the neighbours take care of children as most of the families have been staying in the community for generations and as a result have formed strong familial bonds. 7.3.3 Social Issues - Unlike other communities children in Mother Teresa have very positive views about their community. None of the girls complained or mentioned about any form of abuse, eve teasing or problem in the community. Boys also had nothing negative to say about the community. Children only complained about lack of space within the area for playing. Incidences of violence are few, comprising of squabbles between neighbours over garbage or water runoff.

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7.4 Existing Slum Environment 7.4.1 Location Analysis of Mother Teresa Nagar (See Figure 8.3 for more details) Table 7.4 - Location Analysis of Mother Teresa Nagar Advantage Disadvantage 1. The slum is well connected and 1. The slum is bounded by Sheila Salve Road and Nagar Road. Both these accessible. roads have a heavy flow of traffic making it a traffic hazard zone for pedestrians. 2. A number of schools and hospitals 2. Open drains run throughout the slum and are prone to flooding during the are proximal to the community. monsoons. 3. No emergency access because of the narrow lanes.

Figure 7.3 – City Level Facilities near Mother Teresa Nagar (Source: ACE 2013)

7.4.2 Analysis of Physical Environment Prior to Redevelopment Table 7.5 - Analysis of Physical Environment Prior to Redevelopment Provision Settlement Structure

Characteristics The slum in Mother Teresa has grown in a haphazard manner where people have encroached on the drains and as a result the lanes have become very narrow. There are very few open spaces within the community.

Physical Infrastructure

Water Supply - PMC supplies water to the community. In 2000, Mother Teresa Nagar had 28 ii public taps on 14 stand posts and the household to tap ratio was 3:1. There is no updated data on this and the Mahila Milan Survey does not have any information regarding the water supply. Electric Supply - In 2000, 98% of the households had electricity connections and 77% had iii metered connections. There is no updated data about this.

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iv

Sanitation - Mother Teresa Nagar did not have any public toilets in 2000. This possibly implies that open defecation was common in the neighborhood. At present there is one public toilet.

Figure 7.4 – Physical Infrastructure in Mother Teresa Nagar Social Infrastructure

Community Hall - A hall built by a former local corporator called John Paul Hall is used for gatherings and marriages. There is no designated community hall in the area.

Figure 7.5 – (L) Anganwadi and (R) John Paul Hall Anganwadi - In Mother Teresa Nagar the anganwadi is located on the ground floor of a shabby building. The plot next to the anganwadi is in a dilapidated condition and plays host to a number of illegal activities at night. The construction of the anganwadi room doesn’t provide for adequate amount of natural light and there are no toilet facilities for the children who urinate in the open drains outside. Schools - There are a number of government and private schools within a radius of 5 kms from Mother Teresa Colony. In the government schools the medium of instruction is Marathi and the tuition is free. Students are provided with books, uniform, notebooks and a midday meal. The tuition fees of the private schools range between Rs.14000 and Rs.16000 annually. A number of children also go for private tuitions and they can cost anything between Rs.6000 and Rs.12000 annually. Medical Services - There is no Primary Health Center (PHC) in Mother Teresa Nagar. There are a number of government and private hospitals whose facilities are availed of by the residents like Rajiv Gandhi Hospital, Sassoon General Hospital, Matoshri Hospital, Bhujbal Accident Hospital and Kelkar Hospital. The first two are government hospitals and are free whereas the rest are private hospitals whose fees may vary. Youth Clubs - Mitra Mandals are informal networks of children enjoying the patronage of the

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local corporator. Their main function is to organize various festivals like Shivaji Jayanti, Dahi handi, Holi, Diwali etc. The youth clubs were divided on the basis of age, one was for bigger th th boys and the other for boys between standards 5 -9 . The girls have a separate Mitra Mandal called Om Namh Shiva Bal Mitr Mandal for Ganesh Chaturti and Vishnu Mata for Navratri. They gather money for events, purchase materials and do the decorations for the festivals. The club members elect a President for a one year term. House Typology

37% of the houses were kutcha (built using tin sheets, timber frames, mud etc.), 30% were pucca and 32% were semi-pucca while for the remaining 1% the condition of the house was v not recorded.

7.5 Children’s Use of Mother Teresa Nagar Play of Younger Children - Mother Teresa Nagar unlike Gandhi Nagar lacks a paved and organised street network. The drains are uncovered, congested and there are little open spaces between the houses. This leaves the younger children with little space for play and no options of exploring the area unsupervised as they might fall into the open drains. Young children, both boys and girls, can only play outside their house or on secondary lanes which are a little wider (See Figure 8.6). As roads are congested and narrow children are not in danger from vehicular traffic and can play safely. Within their individual houses also children have no or little space to play. The mild steel staircase without a safety railing on the first floor is an immediate threat to the physical security of children. Numerous cases of children and adults falling through that gap have been reported. Children cannot be left unsupervised inside or outside the houses.

Figure 7.6 – Play of Younger Children (Source: ACE 2013)

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Range of movement and activities for boys and girls within the community - Both boys and girls in Mother Teresa Nagar have a sense of independence when moving within the community. The girls who were interviewed reported that they did not feel threatened while moving around in the community on their own or in a group. Older girls go to Bhimashankar, Bund Garden and Shankar temple to play in groups as there is no space within the community. Boys on the other hand go to Bund Garden, Sheela Salve Nagar and grounds near Bhoot Bangla (haunted house) to play. It is a constant endeavour on part of boys and girls to find an open space for playing in and around the area. The adults in Mother Teresa Nagar do not scold the children when they are playing outside their houses and creating noise while in Sheila Salve Nagar where the boys go to play the residents chase them away for making noise. Due to the lack of space in their community the boys and girls also use the compound of a neighbouring housing society for play, however the chances of them being denied that space is high. Younger girls are mostly accompanied by their mothers or both parents when going around the community or to the markets. However, boys have more freedom of movement. There were differences in the layers and detailing done by the boys and girls in the community mapping exercise carried out by ACE researchers. The boys were more familiar with the intricately laid out lanes and various areas in the community as opposed to girls. Range of movement and activities for boys and girls outside the community - The boys are more familiar with the areas outside the community as opposed to girls as seen from the community mapping exercise. The maps drawn by the girls just has the bare essentials, with important landmarks, friends houses and places they visit on a daily basis like school, temple, grocery store, playing ground, sweet shops etc. In the boys maps the whole area is marked along with the neighbouring areas. Their maps contain shops, various lanes, important landmarks, hospitals, playgrounds, areas where they can go and areas where they cannot go, police station and police chowki (beat office). The details in the mapping exercise varied for boys and girls but girls at no point hinted towards feeling restricted in their movement. Girls also go out and explore areas but in a group and at times accompanied with their parents or some other adult. Both boys and girls alike are not allowed to go near Shabnam Hotel and to the main road because their parents feel these areas are not safe. 7.6 The Process of Slum Redevelopment in Mother Teresa Nagar SPARC1 along with Mahila Milan2 were the NGOs appointed to carry out the process of redevelopment for seven slums including Mother Teresa Nagar in collaboration with CHF 3 who worked towards capacity building of all the stakeholders. A surveyor was appointed by the 1

SPARC (Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centers) is a Mumbai based NGO working towards providing professional support to grassroots organizations to build their capacity and develop solutions for urban poverty. 2 Mahila Milan (Women Together) is a decentralized network of poor women who manage credit and savings in their communities. 3 CHF International is a development and humanitarian aid organization working towards providing affordable housing to low income families in over 25 countries. 155


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NGOs and they did a plain table survey of the slums in which all the slums were mapped. The Mahila Milan team using this map as their reference point numbered each structure in Mother Teresa Nagar. The structures were classified according to their use – commercial, institutional or residential, after which a socio-economic survey and biometric survey of the slum inhabitants was done. This was done with the view of constructing a database regarding area of the house, number of family members, occupation etc. For example if an electrician lived in the slum he/she could be employed by the contractor for the project. Thus the project would generate local employment and increase local participation. The construction jobs were especially offered to the residents who could not afford their initial loan amounts. The houses were then designated as kutcha or pucca by the members of SPARC and the architects involved in the project. The owners of the kutcha houses were considered as beneficiaries under the BSUP scheme. Initially in-situ houses were proposed for Mother Teresa but according to the then corporator the beneficiaries aspired for flats and not individual houses. Clusters were created to cater to this. After the building type or flatted house models were shown to the community the corporator changed his stance and demanded that individual houses be provided to the beneficiaries. To make the process more democratic a chit was designed by Prasanna Desai (architect of the project) and people were asked to choose between individual houses and building type or flatted houses. The majority of the beneficiaries opted for the individual houses. However, where the existing footprint was too small, building typology was adopted to amalgamate the small plots to accommodate all of the families in flats of 270 sq ft each (See Figure 8.7).

Families in the colored plots agreed to The architect Prasanna Desai designed redevelopment. As plot sizes were small they special interlocking building typologies to opted for a flatted building. take care of the issue. Figure 7.7 - Interlocking House Design (Source: In-situ Slum Rehabilitation Scheme for Urban Poor under BSUP, JnNURM, Yerwada, Pune. Prasanna Desai PowerPoint Presentation)

7.6.1 Consultative Process In Mother Teresa Nagar community meetings were held to explain the design typologies to the beneficiaries. The team of architects led by Prasanna Desai explained the designs with the help of architectural models. Once the people were satisfied with the designs they had to give their 156


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consent by signing the approved plan. Mahila Milan representatives along with the architect team visited every beneficiary house to explain the individual house plans. There were some houses which were locked in4 between and not ready to give consent. Hence, Panchayat or group meetings of the beneficiaries, local MLA, Mahila Milan representatives, local corporator and the architect team were conducted and there was a community wide discussion to get consent for the project. Full scale bamboo and cloth models were built to help people better understand the proposed layout of their new houses and open up space for new ideas and to make the house more beneficiary friendly. There were also a problem with people not wanting to give up their space and therefore no infrastructural upgradations could be carried out. Another problem arose when as soon as one house was built people demolished their house with the hope of getting a new house faster. To counter this group meetings or Panchayat was called for and it was decided that unless the beneficiaries received the demolition slip, no house would be demolished. After demolition, the architects realized that the foot print was different from the surveys and all the drawings had to be redone. People also kept making changes in their house plans. The average number of times the people modified their individual house plans was 5-6 times. There were also houses which were stuck between the pucca houses and kutcha houses; in such cases interlocking house schemes were devised. The redevelopment in Mother Teresa was tailor made transformation of each kutcha house into a pucca house (See Figures 7.8 and 7.9)

Figure 7.8 - Base map of Mother Teresa Nagar showing BSUP houses (Source: ACE 2013)

4

Locked in – The houses on both sides of these houses had given their consent but the owners of these houses were not ready to be a part of the BSUP scheme. 157


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Figure 7.9 - Custom designed houses in Mother Teresa Nagar showing BSUP houses (Source: ACE 2013)

7.7 Housing Quality Evaluation 7.7.1 Security of Tenure The Mother Teresa land belongs to the PMC. The residents as of now have not received any papers establishing their ownership over their houses. They have receipts which talks about their having deposited a certain amount of money with the government under the BSUP scheme. There is no building number; however some of the houses have got a name plate on their doors. 7.7.2 Affordability The total cost of the house was Rs.3 lakhs. The residents had to pay differentiated amounts depending on their Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) status. General category beneficiaries had to pay Rs.36000 while SC/ST category beneficiaries had to pay Rs.30000. However some residents have invested up to Rs.2 lakhs towards strengthening the foundation of the building in cases where they were sure of building beyond the second floor. Some families have also modified their house which includes changing the flooring tiles, doors, putting grills, making shelves and getting sinks/basins installed. The beneficiaries could pay the amount in installments and Bachat Gats (saving groups) and Self Help Groups provided loans to the beneficiaries at interest rates ranging from 3-4%. The residents whose houses were built in the first phase were provided with transit accommodation while others had to stay in kutcha houses for over a year and pay a rental of 158


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Rs.3000/month. Even though the DPR has budgetary provisions for transit accommodation none were provided to the residents whose house got built in later phases. According to the then local corporator, Avinash Salve, “Transit camps are not the business of the PMC.� vi The residents had to pay Rs.5000 and Rs.1500 for installing a power meter and a water meter respectively. The architects adhered to every demand made by the residents as far as possible, as per the directive given to them by the Corporator. The residents had to pay extra for any changes in tiles or extra shelves. The new houses have negatively impacted the savings of the residents. Some of the residents, even though they are already under debt (paying off the house loans), have remodeled their homes adding refrigerators, television sets and sofa sets to make their homes more habitable. The running cost of the houses varies between Rs.3000 and Rs.7000/month. 7.7.3 Availability of Services, Facilities and Infrastructure 7.7.3a Access and Boundary Condition - Mother Teresa Nagar has Sheila Salve Road to the north, Nagar Road to the west and private societies to the east and south of it. The Sheila Salve Road is 12m wide and forms a boundary between Mother Teresa Nagar and Sheila Salve Nagar. There are two primary lanes in the colony about 3-4.5m wide which connect with several secondary lanes (2-3m wide) and tertiary lanes (below 2m). Both the Nagar Road and the Sheila Salve Road are traffic hazard zones and dangerous crossing zones for pedestrians as there are no sidewalks. The major intersection on the main Nagar road has a traffic signal but the heavy flow of traffic makes it extremely difficult to cross the road. 7.7.3b Layout and Street Network - The neighborhood has grown organically since it was established. The entire slum is serviced by a network of narrow lanes that provide access to the individual houses. There are very few open spaces in the community. 7.7.3c Open Spaces - Younger girls and boys play in the streets near their houses mainly on the tertiary lanes. Older girls and boys use the primary and secondary lanes for play activities. The individual houses as well as the buildings constructed under BSUP in Mother Teresa Nagar have terrace access and they are also secured with parapets. There is a small space for sitting outside the individual houses. Some of the residents have a sit out made of concrete outside their houses which they use for sitting, washing clothes and utensils. There are no open spaces or playgrounds in the neighboring areas. An open space which used to exist earlier is now a college building under construction. Boys play near Bhoot Bangla (haunted house) which is at a fifteen minute walking distance and they also play in the open space of an adjoining private society. (See Figure 7.6). 7.7.3d Power Supply - Under BSUP wiring for the houses has been done by the builder. The power supply is reliable and if there is power cut it is announced in advance. The monthly expenditure on electricity depends on the consumption patterns of each house. Due to the small size of the window opening and the congested narrow lanes which they open into, people living 159


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in the ground floors need to use the fan 24x7 during summers which runs up their electricity costs. 7.7.3e Water Supply - The houses constructed under the BSUP scheme have been provided with a 500 liter water tank per family and the water supply is also regular. The tap water is used for drinking and according to the residents there has never been a problem with the quality of water supplied. In the individual houses the water tanks are properly covered and have been placed on the roofs of the houses. The water supply is 24x7 and the children can access water using the taps. The residents use the tap water for washing purposes. In order to utilize the running water inside the houses the residents are required to pump up the water to the overhead tanks which increases their electricity bills. The redeveloped houses have a bathing room and a toilet but most residents continue to wash their clothes and sometimes their cooking vessels outside their houses under the taps (faucet) in the lanes, leaving the lanes perennially wet. 7.7.3f Sanitation - All the houses that have been built under BSUP have toilets inside the house. As per the requirements of the residents some houses have demarcated bathing and WC facilities while in others they are combined in the individual houses. In the buildings the bathing and WC facilities are separate. Apart from these there is one block of public toilets which costs a family Rs.10 per day. The community toilets are cleaned by a caretaker who has been provided with a room right next to the toilet block. 7.7.3g Drainage - Mother Teresa Nagar has open drains to dispose of the sewage. According to the residents the slum will get a closed drainage system after all the houses have been constructed under the BSUP scheme. 7.7.3h Garbage Disposal - A number of open gutters, which are often clogged with wrappers, newspapers, plastic bags and other garbage thrown by residents, run along the houses. The Municipal Corporation sends cleaners regularly to clean these gutters. In spite of this, in case of clogging the residents approach the local corporator to arrange for cleaners. The new houses are at a higher level and are safe from flooding. The garbage that gathers during the day in a household is collected by a sweeper who charges Rs.30/month per household. However, not all residents’ avail of this facility, they dispose of their garbage in the bin on the main road. During monsoons the frequency of these gutters flooding and dirty water overflowing into the lanes is higher. The residents don’t appear to have a shared sense of ownership over the common areas like the lanes. Littering and spitting in public places is a common practice among both adults and children. The litter falls into the open drains and often clogs it up. It is left up to the sweeper to perform the tedious and dreaded task of removing sewage soaked garbage which would otherwise have been dry if disposed of properly. Some residents also dump their garbage in front of their neighbor’s houses and this is a source of conflict in the community.

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7.7.3i Local Transport - Mother Teresa Nagar residents have easy access to public transport like bus and auto rickshaws. 7.7.3j Emergency Access - The lanes in the community are too narrow for ambulances and fire trucks. People are carried out in stretchers or rickshaws during medical emergencies to ambulances parked on the main road. 7.7.3k Streetlights - The neighborhood has 20 street lamps and they are spread throughout the community. 7.7.3l Daily Needs Shopping - Small shops for daily needs items can be found around Mother Teresa Nagar while others are located at a distance of less than five kilometers. Chips, candy, cigarettes, eggs, bread, toiletries, biscuits etc. can be found in the small shops located there. 7.7.3m Cooking Fuel - Gas cylinders are used for cooking food and wood fires are used outdoors for heating water. Plastic bags, newspapers are some of the materials used to get the wood fire started. 7.7.3n Social Infrastructure - Mother Teresa Nagar has access to a number of schools and colleges within a 5 km radius, a number of government and private hospitals, 1 anganwadi, 1 community hall and several youth clubs. The social infrastructure listed above existed before BSUP redevelopment and no BSUP funds have been used to upgrade or create new social infrastructures. 7.7.3o Facilities for Children - The neighborhood does not have any open spaces for children to play in. The children use the streets for their play activities. The children visit the Cheema Garden and the Bund Garden on Sundays as it is at some distance from the neighborhood. Apart from the anganwadi no other facilities have been provided for children. 7.7.4 Habitability 7.7.4a Larger Houses – The houses are 270 sq ft plus terraces. BSUP housing provides bigger houses to families than previous government schemes like VAMBAY which had a provision for 225 sq ft. The average number of people in the house is 5 while the number of people per households varies between 1 and 15. 7.7.4b Habitable Spaces - The BSUP houses typically comprise of a ground floor, first floor and a terrace but some houses which have been built on smaller plots have a second floor as well. Most of the houses include a kitchen, a living room and a toilet depending on the individual preferences of the beneficiaries. The children use the roof for flying kites, studying etc. In the building type, there are ground plus three floors. The houses are segregated into one living room and one kitchen. The bathing and WC area are also separate.

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The windows and doors open towards the street and there is adequate natural light and ventilation in the space that they have except for the ground floor houses where due to the small size of the window opening and the congested narrow lanes which they open into, people need to use the fan 24x7 during summers. Windows have also been provided in the bathrooms and kitchens. 7.7.4c Adequacy of Building Materials and Construction Roof - The roof has been built using concrete and is accessible and secured with parapets. The materials used are weather appropriate.

Figure 7.10 – Mild Steel Staircase and open landing

Walls - Fly ash bricks in combination with a concrete frame structure have been used to construct the buildings. Cracks have already begun to appear in the walls. Floor - Vitrified tiles have been used for flooring of the houses. The families had the option to change the tiles upon payment of Rs.5000. Windows - Sliding glass windows with aluminum frames have been installed in the houses and no security grills have been provided. Most of the families have installed grills in the windows. Staircases - In the individual houses the staircases are made of either mild steel or RCC depending on the needs of the individual residents. The staircases have railings but the first floors where they open into have no parapets around the staircase to prevent people from falling down it. The buildings have RCC staircases and there are parapets around it to prevent accidents. 7.7.4d Lack of provisions for home based work - Under BSUP no commercial structures could be built and hence there is no provision for providing space to families to carry on their home based work.

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7.7.4e Inadequate Storage Facilities - A 10 feet long loft has been provided in each house for storage but people have built extra shelves and cupboards. The space under the staircase is also being used for storage. Most of the families do not store kerosene, the few that do store it in the kitchen usually under the kitchen sink. The families also keep the medicines out of reach of children either storing in cupboards or on top of the refrigerator. 7.7.4f Adequate Kitchens - The cooking is done above floor level in most of the houses on the slabs provided in the kitchens but people still use wood fire outside their houses to heat water. The rising cost of LPG and the scarcity of supply is the reason people still use wood fires to heat water. 7.7.4g Fire Safe Houses - The houses have been constructed using fire safe material. 7.7.5 Accessibility The BSUP project in Mother Teresa Nagar has been unable to create a barrier free environment for the residents. The houses which have been built on a smaller footprint have mild steel staircases which are not easy to use for the elderly, children as well as the differently abled. No parapet has been provided around the floor cut outs for staircases. One elderly woman complained how she had fallen through the hole at night and had to get stitches on her head. There is also an increased chance of accidents on those staircases because of the gaps between the stairs. 7.7.6 Cultural Adequacy The houses designed at Mother Teresa Nagar evolved through a dynamic process where the personal preferences, which are often culturally mediated, shaped the final designs. 7.8 Community Perceptions of New Development Box 7.2 - Experiences of a 45 yr resident of Mother Teresa Ashok Kamble a 45 year old resident of Mother Teresa Nagar is happy with the new set of rooms that they have - one room, one kitchen and an attached toilet. In their old house drain water used to flow into the house. It was dangerous for children to live in tin sheet houses and they used to change the tin sheets every year or cover them with plastic sheets. The builders had a contract with the PMC and in that contract it states the things which are going to be present in the new house. The contract wasn’t shared with the beneficiaries. Ashok wanted a wall to demarcate the kitchen and the room but the builders have charged him extra for it as it is not covered under the scheme. The beneficiaries who had money had two rooms constructed. The builders envisioned 270 sq ft as one hall, kitchen and toilet without any demarcations. In such open homes people cannot have any privacy and even to change clothes they have to use the bathroom. Railings for the staircases were not provided; extra money had to be paid for them as they were unsafe for children. 163


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The various beneficiaries had different takes on the subject of redevelopment. While they all agreed that the pucca houses were superior to the earlier kutcha houses the residents felt that no environmental upgradations had been done. In the kitchens they have not given the side strip which prevents water from falling onto the floor. The kitchen floor is perennially wet because of this and anybody walking into the kitchen is at a danger of falling down. They have not provided drainage lines, Ashok got them by giving additional money. The staircases are too narrow to shift luggage but because of the size of the house it is not possible to increase the length and width of the staircase.

7.9 Children’s Experience of the Redevelopment Box 7.3 - Experience of a 12 year old girl living in a BSUP house

In Mother Teresa though children were not directly Payal a 12 year old lives with her mother, grandparents, uncle, aunt, sister engaged in planning and and brother in a newly constructed BSUP house in Mother Teresa Nagar. designing, they were indirect She goes to the Karnal school. Her old house was made of tin sheets and she prefers the new house because there is more room to play. She likes participants in the many playing on the terrace with her sister and brother. Her house has a mild steel meetings along with their staircase and accidents involving her and her sister have already happened family owing to the intensive because of the staircase. She hurt her back and had to be taken to the process followed by SPARC, doctor. Her father passed away some years ago, her mother works as a Mahila Milan and Prasanna house maid, her grandmother works as a sweeper and her uncle also works while the aunt takes care of the children. Her grandmother walks her to Desai. All the children who school in the morning and in the evening she comes back with her brother were interviewed said they and sister. Since she is studying in a govt. school she gets a mid-day meal saw design of their houses, there which consists of rice and dal and sometimes bananas. Her aunt and used to accompany their cooks food for the family and Payal eats roti, sabzi, rice and dal when she returns from school. She is allowed to watch television for sometime after parents though they did not coming back from school after which she plays with her sister on the terrace ‘understand anything’. Like as her mother does not allow them to go outside and play. Her aunt helps children in Gandhi Nagar, her with the homework. children here also feel in-situ typology is best as opposed to On being asked what she doesn’t like about the area, Payal said she didn’t like that people kept throwing garbage in the open gutters when they should the building type. According to be using the garbage bins. She also said that people fought sometimes in boys and girls their relatives the community. Her family had a fight with the neighbors over a kite. The who stay in building type do neighbors kite had fallen on her terrace and the boys ran into their house to not even know their retrieve the kite. When her mother objected they fought with her mother and used foul language and since then she and her siblings don’t play with them. neighbours, none of the children even come to play outside, they are restricted to their houses and spend their time watching TV. The children are happy with the redevelopment as water does not enter their houses during monsoons and they can sleep peacefully. Prior to redevelopment, water used to enter their old houses and damage and destroy their possessions. Even though there is no water logging inside the house, the problem of water logging persists in the community as the open drains overflow. There is political awareness among both boys and girls in Mother Teresa Nagar. They know their councillor, previous councillor and contact their local councillor directly if there is 164


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problem in the area. One of the boys during focused group discussion said he and his friend had gone to the local councillor asking him to cover the drains in the area. Box 7.4 - Experience of a 17 year old boy whose house was built under VAMBAY

There is also a flipside to the development process from children’s point of view. Post Sunny Oha a 17 year old is a Class XI student at Wadia’s. His house was redevelopment there is not built under VAMBAY where his family received an Rs.50000 subsidy from the government to build a 225sq ft house. He lives in Mother Teresa Nagar enough space for them to with his father, mother and younger sister. Apart from the Rs.50000 his play which was there prior to family spent an additional Rs.2.5 lakhs to make the house habitable. His redevelopment. Now lanes father has a government job and also works as a caterer. His adulation for are more congested, narrow his father was very evident and he wants to follow in his father’s footsteps and most of the times strewn and go into hotel management. His father earns Rs.14000 in his govt. job plus whatever he makes in the catering business and out of that in a period with construction material, of 6 years has managed to purchase a flat worth Rs.12 lakhs in a middle leaving children with little income neighborhood to secure a better future for his family. options for play in the area. The Mother Teresa Nagar DPR has also failed to incorporate any specific provisions for children. Most of the children wanted a ‘space to play’ in the area. 7.10 Key Findings 7.10.1 Policy Level 7.10.1a Positive Aspects 

At a policy level an in-situ slum upgradation was adopted for 30 slums in Pune.

Improving the physical environment of the entire slum as part of in-situ development requires policy guidance.

Exhaustive surveys (plain table, socio economic and biometric survey) were done in the first phase of the project to identify the kutcha structures and the beneficiaries.

Transit accommodations were budgeted in the DPR.

7.10.1b Limitations 

In Mother Teresa Nagar all RCC framed constructions were termed pucca while per common consensus all load bearing structures even in good condition were termed kutcha.

Certain eligibility criteria like the beneficiary would receive the funds only if his/her house was demolished and reconstructed but would not receive the funds if he/she had reconstructed the house only 6 months back with his/her own funding or other loans. This practice amounted to punishing the self-initiated.

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According to the architect of the project, Prasanna Desai, “the conditions of some of the more congested areas was similar to that of a patient having terminal cancer. It was more about fire fighting to provide basic amenities at the cost of certain other essentials which were seen as luxuries by the beneficiaries themselves.”

No transit accommodation was provided beyond the first phase.

The in-situ rehabilitation fails to consider the effects of the incremental housing on increasing neighborhood density and crowding. In Mother Teresa Nagar the current houses have encroached upon the existing drains and narrowed down the lanes further. If housing increments are carried out in the existing conditions it would block the sunlight completely from the lanes, in case of an earthquake the houses would collapse like a pack of cards. The high density clusters have a negative impact on the quality of life causing physical and psychological stress in adults as well as children. Provisions for playgrounds, space where children can study and for small scale livelihoods could have been possible solutions to the problem of overcrowded houses.vii

The houses are unaffordable for most or only the more affluent can afford BSUP houses since the running cost of the houses varies between Rs.3000 and Rs.7000 while the average monthly income of Mother Teresa Nagar residents is Rs.5078.

7.10.1c Recommendations 

The criteria for determining whether houses were kutcha or pucca needs to be fine-tuned. A lot of houses which were load bearing structures and in good condition were demolished as they were termed kutcha. All aspects of the individual tenements should be carefully evaluated and that should influence the identification of critical tenements.

In-situ and incremental housing policy should specify the maximum numbers of floors that a slum house could build and only after obtaining a certificate of structural safety from an engineer/architect. This process could be facilitated by women’s groups and Mahila Milan.

BSUP housing has to be made more affordable for the poorest families by linking them to other available schemes and subsidy programs as well as integrating employment generation and skills training programs with BSUP.

7.10.2 Programme Level 7.10.2a Positive Aspects 

A comprehensive socio-economic survey was carried out in Mother Teresa Nagar by the members of Mahila Milan and that survey was taken as the starting point for the redevelopment process.

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7.10.2b Limitations 

The Pune DPR for the 8 slums is a very generic document.

The existing facilities in the slums were not surveyed and it incorrectly reports that Mother Teresa Nagar has a PHC while none exists and hence no provisions were made for building one.

The PMC’s survey (plane table survey, ownership details, city survey records, socioeconomic survey with GIS base) was to form the basis for preparing a blueprint for an integrated Slum Rehabilitation plan for the city but the DPR was formulated before the survey could be completed.

Even though the Pune DPR talks about a convergence of services like drainage system, power supply, green measures etc., in Mother Teresa Nagar except for converting the houses from kutcha to pucca no environmental upgradations were done. The roads are too narrow and in case of fire a fire tender cannot enter the community. The drains are open and overflow during the monsoons causing water logging and related diseases. While the objective of providing basic services like internal toilets, improved light and ventilation, water supply was achieved, the public roads could not be widened and community spaces could not be carved out because of the reluctance of the beneficiaries to part with the ground level area.

7.10.2c Recommendations 

A comprehensive plane table survey, GIS based socio-economic survey should be the basis on which future DPR’s are formulated.

The existing slum social infrastructures should be mapped and upgraded or built.

The redevelopment should be more comprehensive than just converting the kutcha houses to pucca.

7.10.3 Project Level 7.10.3a Positive Aspects 

The entire community (except children and youth) was involved in the redevelopment process. 5-6 meetings were conducted with the architect to explain the process.

People were involved in the construction of their own houses and this generated employment through the construction process.

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7.10.3b Limitations 

Security of Tenure - The BSUP program lists tenure security amongst the first basic services and the Pune DPR also has provisions for allotting the rehabilitated tenement to the beneficiary family but this process has not been initiated in Mother Teresa Nagar.

Green Design Measures - The rain water harvesting and solar powered electricity are just provisions in the DPR and have not been implemented even though they are listed as mandatory.

Inadequate provisions for home based work - The BSUP scheme does not have provisions for building structures for commercial purposes and as a result people who are engaged in home based work have suffered.

Failure to address the needs of the community - A holistic development would call for better access and community facilities but the absence of a shared sense of community in Mother Teresa Nagar effectively blocked any possibility of carving out community amenity spaces and wider access. The NGOs working in the field need adequate time to interact and educate the beneficiaries about better housing and the importance of community spaces before they decide on the options presented to them. Currently the intense participatory process only catered to individual family’s needs at the cost of the community’s needs and long-term interests of the community and the environment.

Failure to address children’s needs - Children’s everyday environmental needs were not addressed as a direct consequence of not involving children in the process. The streets in Mother Teresa Nagar are narrow and lined with open drains and because of lack of open spaces, the streets are the children’s play areas. Here open drains present an environmental hazard for the children.

The new houses that have been built should be damp proof, well lit and well ventilated, have proper sanitation facilities, have access to water and electricity. Though these principles are well accepted the requirements for making such a dwelling are not well understood by the beneficiaries. This resulted in structures next to each other but not sharing a common wall, thus the walls remain non-plastered and with crevices which would lead to leakages, insect breeding etc.

7.10.3c Recommendations 

A holistic approach should be adopted for redevelopment which involves more than just converting kutcha houses to pucca.

Community participation should include children and youth in all aspects of the development process.

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

Experts and NGOs need to create awareness about environmental hazards related to not adopting a holistic approach to redevelopment with the larger and long-term interests of the community as a focus.

7.11 References i

Shelter Associates and Baandhani Survey. (2000). Mother Teresa Nagar. Retrieved from http://shelterassociates.org/sites/default/files/MatherTeresanagar.pdf ii

Ibid.

iii

Ibid.

iv

Ibid.

v

Ibid.

vi

Ghosh, A. (2010, June 10). Concrete Future. http://business.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?265718

Outlook

Business.

Retrieved

from

vii

Bartlett, S., Hart, R., Satterthwaite, D., De La Barra, X. and Missair, A. (1999). Cities for Children (pp 68-92). London: Earthscan Publications Ltd.

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Chapter 8 - Kongar Nagar-I, Kalyani, KMA, West Bengal


Chapter 8 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment at Kongar Nagar-I

8.1 Introduction Kalyani is a planned new town with a high performing municipality in Kolkata Metropolitan Area (KMA) in the district of Nadia in West Bengal that participated in BSUP funded slum upgradations from the inception of JNNURM I. A strict land socialization policy in Kalyani promotes an inflexible leasehold structure that stifled the town’s growth as people are unable to sell Figure 8.1 - Location of Kongar Nagar-I (Source: ACE 2013) properties in the market. As a result the formal town of Kalyani has not grown, but slums have proliferated. Kongar Nagar (KN)-I is a slum that started as a refugee settlement in Kalyani. It has recently been upgraded under BSUP adopting an in-situ approach to housing and infrastructure development. Only families having freehold title to their land and with one katah1 of land per household could participate in BSUP in Kalyani. Residents were encouraged to build their own houses and many did in the later phases of BSUP implementation. The BUSP houses in Kalyani typically were in addition to existing houses on relatively large plots as compared to other slums across India. KN-I is a low density neighborhood, with courtyard type housing and significant environmental resources such as vast open fields immediately adjacent to the slum, a large playground and abundant trees in sharp contrast to the crowded slums in the core city of Kolkata. These conditions promote a rare free range childhood for KN’s children. Not only did the slum upgradation project not utilize the opportunities present at the site and in its surroundings, but in adopting incorrect strategies for housing and infrastructure improvements contributed to marginalization of many families including the poorest families as well as to the gradual degradation of the natural environment and resources. The study analyzes the case of BSUP funded slum upgradation in KN-I from the perspective of children’s wellbeing and rights with the intention of understanding how despite conducive conditions slum redevelopment may fail children and families and how improved policies and inputs can address these failures in future slum redevelopment initiatives.

1

Katah is a measure of land commonly used in West Bengal. 1 katah is 720 square feet.

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8.2 Background on West Bengal West Bengal is the fourth most populous state in India, accounting for 7.55% of India’s population. The State covers an area of 88,752 sq km or 2.67% of the total geographical area of India. According to Census 2011, West Bengal has an urban population of 31.89%. West Bengal had always been in the forefront of education, social reforms and political activism in India. The native language of the state is Bengali. The state ranks 19th amongst all Indian states in terms of human development. Post India’s independence, development in West Bengal focused on two particular but inter-related strategies at the state level: land reform which includes security of tenure and redistribution of vested land; and decentralisation with people’s participation through Panchayat institutions. 8.2.1 Kolkata Metropolitan Area – A Snapshot Table 8.1 - Social Indicators – KMA Urban Population Population 14,112,536 Child years)

Population

(0-6

1,063,394

Sex Ratio

928

Child Sex Ratio (0-6 years) Average Literacy

946 88.33%

KMA extending over 1887 sq. km. is the largest urban agglomeration in West Bengal and Eastern India. It comprises 3 Municipal Corporations including Kolkata Municipal Corporation, 39 Municipalities, 77 Census Towns, 16 Outgrowths and 458 Rural Moujas2. KMA holds a population of 14.77 million, according to 2001 Censusi.

Source: Census of India 2011

Kolkata being the most important city in eastern India had for a long time attracted migrant workers. A group of middlemen, called Thika Tenants saw a business opportunity in leasing chunks of land of various sizes at different locations from feudal lords and constructing low-rise high density housing with cheapest available materials and starting slums characterized by a three-tier ownership system, viz., (a) landowner, (b) hut owner (thika tenants) and (c) tenants or occupiers of huts. As the pace of industrialization increased, the demand for such housing increased and more thika tenants established slums in and around Kolkataii. In other parts of KMA, the migrants settled in mostly unwanted un-serviced vacant lands and built houses with the cheapest available materials. With time, the living conditions in slums became deplorable due to lack of basic services. Slums typically fall in two categories - registered slums (bustees): slums recognized by the municipal authorities; and unregistered slums: slums that are not recorded in the municipal records as slums. Over 40 % of KMA’s slum residents have been slum dwellers for two generations or longer, and more than half originate from the Kolkata hinterlandiii. With the majority engaged in the informal sector, with average household size of five to six persons, three quarters of the Kolkata slum population are BPLiv. The self employed are among the better-off section of the slums, with manual laborers such as rickshaw pullers and construction laborers being the lowest paidv.

2

Mouja is a revenue collection unit in a revenue district.

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8.3 BSUP in Kolkata Metropolitan Area (KMA) During the pre-JnNURM years, UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) funded the Kolkata Urban Services for Poor (KUSP) program in providing basic amenities and services to the urban poor in prioritized slums in 42 ULBs in KMA. Besides this, Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) supported infrastructure development in selected small and medium towns outside the metropolitan agglomerations also benefitted slum development initiatives in KMA. Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) has so far taken up a large number of schemes under BSUP involving construction of 1,27,079 DUs along with basic infrastructure at an estimated cost of Rs.3133.10 crores3 in KMA. At the end of March, 2012, 52% of the DUs have been completed and 31% are in progress. 8.4 Kalyani - The First Planned New Town in KMA The town of Kalyani, one of the 42 ULBs in KMA, is located in the district of Nadia in West Bengal. The town emerged in the urbanization map of West Bengal in the year 1951 as a garden city due to the efforts of Chief Minister of West Bengal, Dr. B. C. Ray, to ease the population pressure of Calcutta. Kalyani was planned in six blocks integrating the green openness of its rural settings with modern urban infrastructurevi. It is located on the eastern banks of the river Ganges. However, its planning failed to integrate the river in the city’s fabric. Open land separates the 2km distance between the planned urban limits of the town from the river. Anticipating the need for bricks to build a new town, land was sanctioned for setting up brick kilns outside the town. Though most of these kilns have shut down, chimneys still dot the skyline outside the town. Blocks A and B were designated as residential areas, Block C as University area and Block D was designated as an industrial area. Blocks E and F presently fall under the jurisdiction of adjacent Gayeshpur Municipal Corporation. During the period 1951-1961, the national growth rate of population was 21.6%. The corresponding rate was 32.8% for West Bengal. Among the districts, Nadia, received large numbers of Bangladeshi refugees, and experienced one of the highest growth rates at 49.81% in West Bengal during this periodvii. The second large inflow of people happened during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War. During both these periods of mass movement across the border, Kalyani received large number of migrants. Most of these refugees never left and settled down in Block C and its neighboring areas, and beyond the Picnic Garden on the edge of Block B, in the land between the town and river. In 2001, the town had a population of 81,996 distributed over an area of 29.14 sq. km. Today the estimated population, according to the municipality, is 1,25,000.

3

1 crore = 10 million

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The town was recognized as a municipality of KMA in 1995. Currently it has a dichotomous existence. On one hand, it has a well planned area for residential, industrial and educational uses and on the other hand, over 48% of the population lives in unplanned refugee colonies, presently designated as slumsviii. Kalyani is one of the well administered municipalities of West Bengal. It had won several awards and recognition including the “Environmental Excellence Award” for 2004 and 2005, “Best Municipality of the Year 2004” and “President’s Award for Open Defecation Free City” in the year 2008. 8.4.1 Slums in Kalyani 52 slums are listed by the Kalyani municipality with a total estimated population of 48,635 in the year 2006ix. Nearly 70% of the inhabitants live in kutcha huts which are characterized by bricks or darma4 walls and roofs made of tin or asbestos or GI sheets or clay tiles. According to the DPR for BSUP in Kalyani Municipality 89% of the population in the slums belong to SC/ST/OBC categories. Slum populations register Hindus (98%) as the dominant religious group with few or no presence of Muslims. The BSUP evaluation studyx reveals that the sex ratio for slums in Kalyani is 862 which is substantially lower than 918 in KMA. The literacy rate among the slum dwellers in Kalyani is about 59%. The occupational profile of Kalyani slums indicates that 10% are self employed, 35% are wage laborers (construction workers etc.), 9% are in government/private service (university and hospital employee), 35% in other services (fish selling business) while 11% are unemployed. The study also reveals that the average household income is about Rs.4750/month while average income in KMA is about Rs.5198. 72% of the slum households belong to BPL category with incomes ranging from Rs. 1501- Rs. 5000. 8.4.2 Community Led Health Initiatives (CLHI) in Kalyani Prior to 2006, open defecation was a major health and sanitation problem in slums in Kalyani as in 39 other municipalities in KMA. To deal with this public health hazard, a toilet construction program was initiated under KUSP. Hardware sanitation subsidy of Rs.9900 was given to selected poor families where toilets were constructed by the ULBs under KUSP. Under the CLHI program, an alternative approach of community empowerment had been tried in a few selected slums on a pilot basis in Kalyani. As part of CLHI, a Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach was introduced as an entry point strategy for KUSP to build community capacity and social solidarity in slums for initiating collective local action. Prior to the initiation of BSUP, communities of at least 15 slums involving about 6000 people have successfully eliminated open defecation without external subsidy. Most families constructed their own toilets successfully with their own resources. It is significant to note that in some of the slums natural sanitation entrepreneurs emerged who constructed toilets for others

4

A cane and bamboo screen used as partitions.

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on credit and small service charges creating a good example of convergence of environmental sanitation and employment generation. 8.5 BSUP in Kalyani 8.5.1 Key Features of KMA CDP In the case of KMA, a single CDP was prepared to cover 42 ULBs. The CDP of KMA is based on the Vision Plan 2025 for KMA and the draft master plans associated with the vision plan for key sectors of Drainage, Sewerage and Sanitation; Traffic, Transportation, Railways, Waterways; Education, Health, Employment & Industry; Environment, Wetlands, Urban Amenities & Heritage; and Water Supply. Both the CDP and the Vision Plan 2025 were prepared by KMDA in association with private consultant, Bengal Integrated Infrastructure Development Limited. A single plan for KMA was considered necessary to ensure synchronization of various municipal schemes among different municipalities to achieve optimum benefit. The CDP of KMA is a confusing document with no clear vision for JNNURM funds or time span and merely seems to promote the policy directions provided in the Vision Plan 2025 and ongoing governmental initiatives.

The CDP recognizes that the urban poor occupy an important place in the agenda of urban development. It also recognizes that slum dwellers lack basic infrastructure facilities and services that negatively impact health and wellbeing of the community. CDP thus proposes that a comprehensive Slum Improvement Program be undertaken. Though not explicitly stated, the following components are directly related to children’s wellbeing:     

Provision of shelter and other physical infrastructure at affordable price so as to improve the sanitation and living conditions in the existing slums and other squatter settlements. Provision of adequate healthcare including family welfare, immunization, child healthcare etc. Development of facilities for communities’ development and recreation. Program for basic education and training. Ensuring maintenance and up-gradation of the existing housing stock of the poorer sections.

8.5.2 DPR and Children The West Bengal Municipal Act 1993 requires municipalities in the state to prepare Detailed Development Plans (DDP) covering a period of five years xi. But very few ULBs prepared DDPs. KUSP program succeeded in getting necessary government support and implementing DDPs as a mandatory action at the ULB levelxii. Kalyani municipality in particular was very involved in the preparation of the first generation DDP following a participatory process involving the widest range of stakeholders, building on existing grassroots structures such as Ward Committees, NHGs, NHC and CDS. However the DPR for BSUP under JNNURM was prepared by KMDA based out of Kolkata as a common document for all slum redevelopment projects without much local municipal participation. 175


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The DPR expresses some concern for children in the sections on physical infrastructure specially water supply, road infrastructure and street lighting as follows: Water Supply and Sanitation - DPR recognizes that water and poverty are linked and insufficient sanitation affects the health of children. Roads - DPR states that poor roads are a strong barrier to the development of slums and cause hardship to children. Street lighting – The mobility of women and children is restricted to daytime in the absence of streetlights. The DPR proposes that streetlights are provided every 30 meters of road length. Community Centers - The proposal rationale for social infrastructure highlights the importance and multipurpose use of community centers in acting as community halls, PHC for children and primary education centers. 8.6 Case Study – KONGAR NAGAR-I, Kalyani Kongar Nagar-I & II are the refugee settlements identified as slums by the municipality. People migrated from Bangladesh and settled on the silted bank (Char) of River Ganges called Majher Char5 in the outskirts of Kalyani. Initial settlers survived by selling fish. According to government policy, the Refugee Rehabilitation (RR) Department of the state granted majority of the slum dwellers in Kongar Nagar 1 security of tenure through Freehold Tenure Deed (Patta) to plots measuring 2 to 5 katahs. Table 8.2 - Fact File Kongar Nagar-I Location Ward no. 6, Kalyani Area 3.720 hectares Population 1440 Population Density 387 persons per hectare Land Ownership State Government Nodal Agency KMDA BSUP Implementing Agency Kalyani Municipality Number of Houses 230 (plots) Number of houses built under 41 (100 houses have been BSUP sanctioned) Source: Kalyani DPR and ACE Fieldwork Findings

8.6.1 Community Profile Initially, Kongar Nagar-I had 240 families which had grown to 600 households today. Almost in every family, one household comprises of a widowed parent. Assuming around 6 persons per extended family, the population is about 1440. All families are Hindu. 99% of the population belong to SCs namely Namashudra6 and Jaliakoibarta7. The ward councillor reported that less

5

Majher Char is a Bengali word which when translated means the middle bank. Namasudra is the name of a Hindu community originally from certain regions of Bengal, India. They were traditionally engaged in cultivation and as boatmen. They lived outside the four-tier ritual varna system and thus were outcastes. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namasudra. 7 Jaliakoibarta - is the name of a Hindu community originally from certain regions of Bengal, India. They were traditionally fishermen. They lived outside the four-tier ritual varna system and thus were outcastes. 6

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than 5% of the population figure in the existing BPL list and he complained about gross irregularity in the said listxiii. 8.6.1a Livelihood The primary male earning members are mostly daily wage earners: rickshaw pullers, hawkers and brick field workers. Some men sell fish either from market stalls or by walking the streets. Women, who work outside, mostly work as housemaids. Many women, including housewives, are engaged in rolling and closing beedis8 either from home or at the beedi making factory located in the heart of KN-I. Women are paid Rs.10 per 1000 beedis if they come to the factory and Rs.9 per 1000 beedis if they do it from home. For rolling, women and children are given white colored beedi paper and the Janata labels for rolling the empty shell and sticking the label. However once the beedis have been rolled the empty shells are sent back to the factory where a few men fill in the tobacco. The beedis then need nimble fingers for closing and this task is only allowed in the factory for fear of tobacco theft. From the FGDs with the community and interaction with local councillor, it appears that average monthly income of a household varies from Rs.3500-4000. Almost every household has a television and multiple bicycles. About 1% of the households have motorized two-wheelers. 8.6.1b Education Most children from KN-I attend school even though most families are first generation learners. The community has a high school called Satyapriya High School located between KN-I and Majher Char. In this school all students are offered midday meals, free books and annual grants for uniforms under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan programme by the municipality. The percentage of school dropout has reduced from 20-25% a decade back to about 5%. The teaching at school is perceived to be inadequate by families and children leading to majority of children taking private tuitions. According to the head master, the school makes special efforts to facilitate the study of weak students through free extra tuitions to pass board examinations. The children did not mention this at all during FGDs. A multi-purpose room in the Satyapriya High School Even though the Right to Education Act, 2009 now requires schools such as the SSK to grounds called the “Dressing Room� (as it is next to shut down due to their non-formal status and the open stage in the ground) functions as a Shishu inadequate infrastructure, municipalities Shiksha Kendra (SSK) in the afternoon and as a across the country are struggling to provide school for working children in the evening. There is basic infrastructure in these non formal schools, which serve a vital bridging function one more ill-equipped SSK in Kongar Nagar-I in the community. providing primary schooling with 3 classrooms and 3 teachers serving 200-300 students. The fact that the

8

Beedi is a thin Indian handmade cigarette filled with tobacco flakes and wrapped in a leaf or paper and tied with a string or a sticker. Beedi consumption outpaces that of conventional cigarettes although these tobacco-filled leaves deliver more nicotine, carbon monoxide, and tar and carry a greater risk of oral cancers. Beedis accounted for 48% of Indian tobacco consumption in 2008. As with many other types of smoking, beedis increase the risk of certain kinds of cancers, heart disease and lung disease. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beedi

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AW in KN-I has infrastructure but no teachers due to political disputes suggests that closing down SSKs without replacing them with functional formal schools may further compromise children’s right to any education in slums like KN-I. 8.6.1c Health There is a government health center in Ward no. 6 from where health workers are sent for home visits 5 days a week to immunize children. All children are immunized at birth. Women and children can also visit the health centre for checkups and queries related to pregnancies. Most women give birth in hospitals. Women were aware of entitlement schemes such as Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) but also had complaints about the impractical operational aspects of the same. One woman who had recently tried to avail the benefits of JSY said: “The money is actually given in two parts. One part is given during pregnancy for check-up purpose and the other part is given after the delivery of the child in a hospital. One has to appear for 4 check-ups to get the first part of the money. I had gone for the first two check-ups. Then when I asked for the money on my third check-up they said I won’t get it before the fourth check-up is over. They would pay some Rs.500 if it is a boy and Rs.1000 if it is a girl child. So I did not get the money because I had my delivery next month and couldn’t complete four checkups. I was going to deliver in a nursing home and not in a hospital, so the second half was also not paid. I didn’t need the money anyway because more money was being wasted on transportation while going for these check-ups.”9 According to the head master of the local high school 80% of the children in the community suffer from malnutrition. A local doctor and the SSK teachers also corroborated this with reported incidences of anaemia among the children. The community does not face major problems accessing healthcare infrastructure due to the proximity of the Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital which the slum dwellers visit in case of serious illness. The certificate of the local councillor helps them receive free treatment there. However, disability and mental health issues are unattended and ignored by the formal systems. 8.6.1d Work of Children Box 8.1 - Paid work for children in KN-I Sangeeta is 13 years old. She lives in a kutcha house with a large front yard, next to the beedi factory. During her school winter break, she started working at the factory like her mother and elder sister. She went to work by 7:30am and closed, pre-rolled and tobacco stuffed beedis, a task requiring considerable skill and only entrusted to a few workers within the premises of the factory. By lunch time when she went home, she would have typically closed about 2000 beedis. She worked in the afternoon as well till 4:30pm. Sangeeta hoped to continue this work when school reopened working only a morning shift and maybe bringing back beedi papers home to roll in the evening. Children are paid Rs. 7/1000 beedis for rolling and closing at the factory and Rs. 6.50/1000 for doing it at home. 9

Some children in Kongar Nagar-I are employed as child laborers. The boys work in sweet shops or in the market while the only option open to girls is to work as household help or roll beedis. A number of children are employed at their parent’s workplace and attend school after

Interview with ACE Researcher, 7th July, 2012.

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work in the morning. Sometimes when young boys come along with their mothers to the beedi factory, they are paid to weed out bad pieces and count and pack the sorted pieces in boxes. At home, boys help out with washing utensils, while girls help in cleaning the house, fetching water, cooking and looking after younger siblings. 8.6.1e Conflicts in the Community Kongar Nagar-I is a peaceful community. However women, children and the local councillor reported that the men in the community create problems under the influence of alcohol, substances and also indulge in gambling. These leade to domestic violence. Children witness violence both at home and public places. There is conflict over plot boundaries. The Kalyani town culture of elaborate boundary walls to delineate the extent of legal territory and for protecting the property from intruders does not exist in Kongar Nagar-I. People plant trees along plot boundaries. When the trees fall or the trunks expand, neighbours fight over the notional shrinking of territory. Ward councillors and not the police intervene in such cases to attempt an amicable resolution. 8.7 Poverty Alleviation Schemes The institutional mechanism for poverty alleviation under the Swarna Jayanti Shehari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY) is present in KN-I but is not totally effective. KN-I is under CDS-210 in Kalyani. There are 10 NHGs (with about 200 women members) and 2 NHCs under them. According to the ward councillor, NHGs are ineffective as thrift groups or for empowering women through employment. Only during emergency or distress, members take loans from NHGs. Most households were not even aware of the existence of NHG, NHC or CDS. The community members were not able to identify an RCV who heads the NHG, and were not aware of the RCV’s role. Under KUSP Program, CDS-2 received the contract for infrastructure development in the slums. They made huge profits but later on refused to share it with the members contrary to the rules of CDS. This created ill feelings about collective ventures in the community and loss of confidence in participating women in future employment opportunities provided by CDS. The failure of poverty alleviation schemes and financial distress of the community led to the mushrooming of illegal saving groups locally known as chit funds in the area. These groups provide loans at people’s doorsteps and also collect money from homes. Despite bad experiences with such agencies, the community relies on them for most of their money needs related to construction, treatments, marriages etc. 8.8 Community Organizations In spite of being a refugee colony of people from Bangladesh, KN-I does not have strong community organizations based on shared values and roots. Even though a dedicated Bustee Works Management Committee (BWMC) has been set up for implementing BSUP comprising the local councillor, chairman-in-council, municipal engineers, town project officer, community 10

CDS-2: Kalyani has two operational Community Development Societies, CDS-1 and CDS-2. The slums in ward 6 fall under CDS-

2.

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organizers and members from the local slums, it failed to engage locals particularly unemployed youth in local area development. A youth club (Yuba Sangha) operates out of a room in adjacent Kongar Nagar II. It organizes festivals and cultural functions in the local area. However, it does not play any role in organizing youth to engage with local issues or politics. Other than political parties and powerful ward councillors who intervene in conflict, no CBOs exist in KN I. Kalyania an NGO based out of the main township provides free training in fine and performing arts to the slum children. 8.9 Recreational and Cultural Activities The presence of vast open spaces near the slum enables the community to enjoy many diverse cultural and recreational experiences. Boys of all ages are into sports and regularly play football and cricket in the fields. In August a district level championship football match was held under floodlights where 16 different teams from West Bengal participated. Religious festivals are also celebrated in a grand manner especially the 5 day long Durga Puja11 when three different pandals are erected in the fields. Other smaller puja events such as Saraswati Puja12 are celebrated from small pandals in the streets. During the Ratha Yatra13 festival, children decorate mini raths or chariots and pull miniature deities of Lord Jagannath14 down the streets. During the winter, fairs and carnivals are held in the Picnic Garden, which is adjacent to the slum for about 10 days around Christmas and New Year. The slum dwellers actively participate in these events. The children of the locality go to the youth club -Yuba Sangha where various games and cultural programs are organized for them. Over the weekends girls in groups go to the large park in ward no. 9 for free singing and dancing lessons offered by an NGO. The quality of these easily accessible fields is deteriorating every month as the collected garbage is dumped here. This is a serious concern as these fields are an integral part of community life.

11

Durga Puja is the biggest festival in Bengal and is celebrated over 5 days in the months of September or October. This is also known as Dussehra and Navaratri in other parts of India. Durga is the Goddess of divine power against all evils. 12 Saraswati Puja or Shree Panchami is a Hindu festival during which devotees worship Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, music, art and culture. Traditionally during this festival children are taught to write their first words. 13 Ratha Yatra (Chariot Festival) is linked to the famous Ratha Yatra of Lord Jagannath in the Puri temples. Locally it is celebrated as a cultural festival by children who pull small deities of Lord Jagannath and his two siblings, Subhadra and Balaram in decorated mini chariots within homes and neighborhoods. 14 Jagannath meaning "Lord of the Universe", is worshipped by Hindus in the Indian states of Odisha, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Tripura and by Hindus in Bangladesh. Jagannath is considered a form of Lord Vishnu.

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Figure 8.2 - Deteriorating environmental conditions of the fields outside KN-I. Picture on the left was taken in July 2012, and picture on the right was taken in December 2012.

8.10 Existing Slum Environment 8.10.1 Location Analysis of Kongar Nagar-I Advantage 1)

2)

3)

Table 8.3 - Location Analysis of Kongar Nagar-I Disadvantage

The slum is located in ward no. 6 on the outskirts of Kalyani close to the Seemanto Railway station. The railway line connected to Sealdah is nearby and is beneficial in terms of connectivity to the metropolitan core. Most facilities are available with 1-2 km walking distance from the slum

1)

2) 3)

The slum lies on the outskirts behind the Picnic Garden which serves as an effective barrier between the slums and the city and keeps the slums and their problems out of view of the city. As the slums are located in the low lying areas close to the river Ganga, they are prone to flooding. Slum lies to the west of the town near the river and hence all facilities are concentrated to the east.

KONAR NAGAR - 1 SLUM – 2KM FACILITY RADIUS MAP

LEGEND School Train Station Garden College Temple

Market Ferry Bus Stop

River

Kalyani Simanta Station

KONAR NAGAR SLUMS

Kalyani Government Engineering College

Places People Visit Satyapriya High school

Picnic Garden Bidhan Chandra Girls High school

Santa Ashram Central Park Fair Grounds

N

Figure 8.3 - Facilities around KN-I (Source: ACE 2013) 181


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8.10.2 Analysis of Physical Environment Prior to Redevelopment Table 8.4 - Analysis of Physical Environment prior to Redevelopment Provision Settlement Structure

Characteristics Like other refugee colonies in KMA, this slum also has a rural character with an organic layout of plots accessed by streets of varying widths. Big and medium trees are distributed throughout the slum. As the plot sizes are comparatively large almost every house enjoys a private courtyard. A beedi factory is the only exclusive major work centre located in the middle of the community.

Physical Infrastructure

Roads - Prior to BSUP infrastructure development, the roads were kuchha (compacted mud) or brick paved. During monsoon the roads used to flood making the low lying area inaccessible. Drainage - Before KUSP and BSUP, there was no drainage system which led to regular flooding of the slum. Water used to drain to the low-lying ponds or to the fields outside. Water Supply - Initially the households depended on community stand posts and deep tube wells for drinking water but later the municipality provided piped water to every plot. Electric Supply - 70% of the households had access to electricity prior to BSUP. Sanitation - All households had constructed individual toilets with septic tanks under KUSP prior to BSUP intervention. Garbage Disposal - For last 5 years, municipality has made arrangement for door to door collection of solid waste in the slum. Though garbage is still thrown in the streets, the open drains and the ponds.

House Form

The houses were mostly single storied with sloping roofs.

House Layout

Houses are constructed in plot sizes varying from 2.5 katah to 5 katah. The Patta is in the name of the patriarch or the matriarch (in case of a widow) of the family. Typically there was one room, one kitchen and one toilet. Rest of the plot was used as a multifunctional courtyard for growing trees, drying clothes, playing area for children and other household chores. As the family grew additional rooms were constructed in the plot.

Materials of Construction

Roof - Sloping roofs in traditional houses were made of clay tiles over bamboo rafters, asbestos sheets, tin and GI sheets. Few houses had flat concrete roofs. Walls - Walls were made of darma or 3 inch or 5 inch thick brick work. Floor - Most of the houses had mud floors. Some had improved the floors by paving with bricks or finishing with plain cement concrete. Windows - Considering the small size of rooms very few houses had windows. The door was a source of light. Windows if present were made of bamboo frames and darma shutters. In some cases, about 8 inches to 1 feet of space was left open below the roof to act as ventilators. These were secured with bamboo grills.

Problems with Existing Houses

• Houses that did not have windows had poor natural light and ventilation. However, houses with ventilators were quite climate appropriate as the higher openings allowed cross ventilation and filtered natural light. Sometimes, people would replace a few tiles in the roof with glass pieces to allow natural light.

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• The roofs were made of poor quality tiles and metal sheets and would often leak during the intense rainy season. Tiles would often break due to falling branches during strong winds. Every two or three years residents had to repair the roofs to weather protect their homes. • Prior to the construction of permanent drains, flooding used to occur every season threatening the community’s health especially children‘s health. • The presence of open drains, garbage filled ponds and rough unkempt open spaces makes Konar Nagar-I a breeding ground for mosquitoes.

8.10.3 Children’s Experience of Kongar Nagar-I 8.10.3a Access to Nature Children of Kongar Nagar-I and its surrounding slums have access to natural environments which is typically not available to children living in urban slums. The availability of vast rolling green fields allow children to enjoy a free range childhood with quality spatial resources in their everyday environments. Proximity to the river Ganga and the widespread fields sensitizes children about nature; KN-I children’s favorite place in the locality is the shade under the Banyan tree between the slum and the fields. Children reminisced about times spent sitting for hours under the shade of the tree where they were free to do whatever they liked, without any restrictions. Children often spotted snakes in the fields and joined adults in killing them or chasing them away. Boys take slingshots at birds or tease grazing cows as they play around the animals. 8.10.3b Gendered Nature of Play While the fields are an important part of their daily play and recreational use, there is age and gender discrimination on the field. Boys and girls are not allowed to play together post puberty. The field with two goalposts is under the control of adolescent boys who play football. Lack of employment opportunities leads many boys to help out in shops or in the fish selling businesses rather than attending college. Others are waiting for jobs to come their way while they live with their parents in the family home and enjoy sports with friends. Adolescent girls however have no recreational or sports opportunities due to social norms that demands girls take care of domestic chores such as cooking, cleaning and looking after their siblings. Girl’s upto adolescence play on the streets outside their homes and in the fields. A mark is made on the field, boys play on one side of it and the girls play on the other side. Boys play cricket, football, and many traditional local games such as kumeer-danga, gollamari, golla-chor and mangsho-mangsho while girls play gollabari and rong rong.

Figure 8.4 – Girls Play in Local Streets 183


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Girls are free to play in the streets inside the neighborhood. They engage in group games claiming the street completely (see Figure 8.4). Boys too play in the streets near their houses. Boys complained about being unable to play ball games in the streets as neighbors shout at them and the balls tend to fall in the dirty open drains. They reserve their ball games for the fields, and play hide and seek between houses and tag in the streets on KN-1. All children learn to cycle from an early age as every house has a cycle for parents to go to work. 8.10.3c Play and Sports Facilities There is a designated playground for children in Kongar Nagar-I with a token slide, swings and see-saw. All these play equipments are in bad shape and no children play here preferring the streets inside the slum or the fields outside. Also the area around this playground is considered unsafe as men play cards along its periphery and adolescent boys hang out here. Children often get hurt due to the presence of broken bricks and glass shards on the fields. Men use spaces around bushy edges and clumps of trees in the middle of the fields that offer privacy for drinking and gambling. The area has an abundance of broken bricks due to the brick kilns located nearby. 8.10.3d Daily Lives On a day-to-day basis, a child living in this locality spends his/her day attending school, private tuitions, playing and helping in household work. In their spare time, they enjoy playing and watching cartoons and serials on TV. Boys prefer to go to school rather than staying at home as they have friends in school and can study and roam around in the school grounds. The boys are satisfied with the school teaching which they feel is better than private tuitions. Though they like the school infrastructure, they want more fans to be installed and walls to be painted. Even though the boys are hit at school with canes when they misbehave or answer incorrectly, they are happy and want to continue at this school. The girls on the other hand are not satisfied with the school teaching and feel private tuitions are better. They are content with the school infrastructure, but want to go out of Kalyani to pursue further studies. While the school is co-ed, boys and girls are made to sit separately. For some classes, there are separate rooms for boys and girls so that interaction is kept to a minimum. 8.10.3e Mobility around the Community The girls of the community only use public transport when accompanied by their parents. Boys are allowed to travel alone in buses and use it frequently. There is a restriction on girls playing at night in the streets as they say it is unsafe. The boys feel the streets are well lit and they play and roam around at night. Boys cycle to the Seemanto railway station, the Picnic Garden and nearby places in Kalyani. Girls cycle around in the fields or in and around the immediate neighborhood.

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8.11 Process of Slum improvement in Kongar Nagar-I Slum improvement in KN-I was taken up in the 2nd and 3rd phase of BSUP. BSUP in Kalyani was not a total redevelopment of the old slum but in-situ additions with permanent units of 272 sq ft in 1st phase and 2nd phase comprising of two rooms, a kitchen and toilet; and 372 sq ft comprising two multipurpose rooms, a toilet and bath in the 3rd phase for the households owning a patta. This model is quite different from the walk-up apartments adopted in Kolkata. (See Figures 8.4 and 8.5) Being aware of the serious deficiencies in construction executed by contractors, the municipality promoted the strategy of self managed construction of DUs (as also recommended in the DPR) from the 2nd phase onwards and strongly advocated it in the 3rd phase. People were asked to finance the construction and claim reimbursements from the municipality in six stages of construction: i) plinth, ii) walls upto lintel, iii) roof, iv) doors and windows, v) plastering and vi) securing electric connection. This process worked well till the government changed in West Bengal. Families had to wait close to a year to get reimbursed for a stage, by which time the cost of construction escalated. Families could make changes to the typical house designs prepared by the municipality, but had to seek permission from the municipality before constructing. The municipal engineers did the necessary revision drawings and families did not have to hire architects. Typically changes only related to deleting toilets and/or kitchens to increase the area of the two rooms. In reality, very little deviation was permitted from the typical design. Most families hired local contractors or masons to build their houses.

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Figure 8.5 – Extent of BSUP housing in KN-I (Source: ACE 2013)

OLD HOUSE

BSUP HOUSE

Figure 8.6 – BSUP house is an additional structure on beneficiary owned plot in KN-I (Source: ACE 2013)

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8.11.1 From Vision to Reality Kalyani municipality embraced BSUP housing on a war footing with a target of completing 5799 houses in three phases by 2012. As BSUP houses cannot be given to the poor without securing a contribution from them, the municipality created linkages with banks to provide loans at 4% interest rate. All families in Kongar Nagar-I had secure titles or pattas to their land which was used as collateral for loans. Typically families took loans of about Rs.20,000. However, there were several issues in realising the vision of BSUP in Kalyani as discussed below: 

Marginalization of the poorest in the race to achieve high target - Initially, the priority of allocation of houses was to BPL families. However, with the high target fixed by the municipality (2311 sanctioned houses in phase II and 3488 sanctioned houses in phase III) and the increased cost of a DU, only families who could afford to pay the balance from own sources were allotted a house. The estimated cost of a two roomed house by the municipality at 2006 rates (which was estimated using 2002 PWD schedule of rates) was Rs.1.6 lakhs based on which they made payments to families. However, in reality in 2011 the cost of the actual construction came to Rs.3 lakhs. Hence target achievement and beneficiary contribution became the primary criteria for allocation. This was not the original focus of BSUP as it targeted the poorest of the poor. Most families had to take loans from banks or moneylenders to bear the additional cost caused by delays in payment. This increase in debt burden of the family meant women and children particularly the girl child had to engage in additional work.

Beneficiary selection criteria not based on ground realities - Kalyani municipality talked about making the process easy for beneficiaries to avail new houses under BSUP. Family sizes had increased and new households inside larger families were formed since receiving freehold land titles from RR department for plots measuring 2-5 katahs for a family. To amicably settle disputes between brothers, the municipality recognized individual household’s claim over the land and divided the land title in coordination with the RR department to facilitate multiple houses on a plot. The condition they imposed was that after partition of land, each household’s share of the plot must be at least 1 katah of land. This condition has ensured that many families could not avail of BSUP housing even if they could afford to pay the additional costs involved with construction in BSUP III. Two case studies will illustrate this point and highlight the limitations of planning and design in BSUP in KMA.

Case 1: Raimohan Sarkar family: a relatively higher income family The wife of Raimohan Sarkar (now deceased) and her three adult married sons live on a 3 katah plot as an extended family of 13 members. They have managed to incrementally build and upgrade their home as per their evolving needs. Each household has a habitable room, a kitchen and share two common toilets and multiple courtyards. This family is one of the higher income families in KN-I; the sons run their own businesses and are able to afford the BSUP 187


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houses. However the current BSUP logic of beneficiary selection prevents this family from enjoying the benefits of a new BSUP home as the land area when divided by 4 households is less than 1 katah per household.

Figure 8.7 – The self built family home of Sarkar family who are ineligible in BSUP due to the land criteria prescribed for each household. (Source: ACE 2013)

Case 2: Adhar Das family: a relatively low income family Adhar Das is a rickshaw puller who shares a 1.8 katah plot with his brother who is a daily wage labourer. The families of both brothers comprise 11 members and they have managed to set up two individual DUs with separate rooms, toilets and kitchen around a common courtyard. This is a needy family where the women and children are involved in rolling beedis to supplement the uncertain incomes of their husbands. These families too are left out of the BSUP process because of the 1 katah rule per family.

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Figure 8.8 – The self built family home of Das family who are ineligible in BSUP due to the land criteria prescribed for each household. (Source: ACE 2013)

Both these cases reveal that the BSUP logic of 1 katah as the minimum land requirement for creating habitable homes is faulty. The self designed incremental homes of both families show that habitable and comfortable homes are possible in less space by sensitive design that takes into account the needs and everyday practices of families. 8.12 Housing Quality Evaluation 8.12.1 Security of Tenure Only families having patta or a freehold land tenure deed in their name qualified for BSUP housing in Kalyani. This in a way marginalized poorer and landless families who needed a secure home more urgently. 8.12.2 Affordability BSUP housing in KN-I is unaffordable for many poor families. With significant cost escalations from the estimated cost of Rs. 1.60 lakh for a house based on 2002 PWD schedule of rates to about Rs. 3 lakh during construction from 2008, the poorest of the community cannot afford to have a BSUP house as beneficiaries had to bear the increased costs. Also as minimum plot size for BSUP housing is 1 katah of owned land, many did not qualify for this program. 8.12.3 Availability of services, facilities and infrastructure

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8.12.3a Access to Site – The slum is located on the outskirts of Kalyani, close to the Picnic Garden which is a city level recreational space. The slum is bound by peripheral vehicular roads on three sides. The northern face is bound by rolling fields while there are ponds located on the southern end. To the south of the slum is the Satyapriya High School. 8.12.3b Street Network – The peripheral roads are vehicular and raised above the surrounding areas. The internal roads are accessible by foot, cycle, motorbikes and rickshaws. Not all roads in the slum have been paved, especially tertiary streets. The internal paved streets act as useful play spaces for children. 8.12.3c Open Spaces – The residents have access to rolling fields, high school grounds and a designated park for children. The children prefer to play in the streets or fields as the play equipment in the park is broken. The quality of the fields is deteriorating due to dumping of garbage and discharge of open drains. The house level open space is the courtyard which was larger in old houses and now have reduced considerably as a space between the old and the new houses. 8.12.3d Power Supply – 70% of the households have access to electricity. The supply is reliable with occasional power cuts in the evening. Monthly expenditure on electricity varies between Rs. 250-350 per family. 8.12.3e Water Supply – There is a single tap municipal water connection with fixed timings of supply, 6:00am-8:00am, 11:00am-1:30pm and 5:00pm-6:30pm. The tap is located close to the streets as a standpipe and residents have paved the area around it to wash clothes and utensils and small children bathe here. Most families store water in drums, bottles or buckets. Some have installed PVC external reservoirs on the roof. 8.12.3f Sanitation – All houses under BSUP have been provided with toilets connected to a septic tank. Many houses had built toilets under KUSP program and did not build toilets under BSUP. Community facilities for children like SSK are yet to benefit from improved sanitation. 8.12.3g Drainage - The spinal road running through the slum was concreted under BSUP and an open storm water drain was added next to it. The drain discharges directly into the ponds or through a culvert under the streets into the fields. There is constant mixing of foul water (kitchen waste and waste water from washing) and storm water which is degrading the ponds and fields. 8.12.3h Garbage Disposal – Garbage is collected daily from the houses. However, after collection it is dumped in the fields. Due to lack of sewage treatment plant in Kalyani, the city’s garbage is also dumped in the fields outside KN-I. Open dumping results in degradation of environmental resources. 8.12.3i Local Transport - Depending on distances people use cycles, autos, buses and sometimes trains to go to their work places. However, all the children study in the schools within the community and walk to their schools. 190


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8.12.3j Emergency Access - Fire tender or ambulance access is limited to the peripheral roads. The by-lanes are too narrow for vehicular movement. In case of emergency, cycles or autos are used. Kitchen fires are very common and residents put out these fires themselves with buckets of water. 8.12.3k Streetlights - Boys reported being able to play outside at night as the new streetlights adequately light up the street. Even women of the locality reported feeling safe in the streets till late at night. Some of the girls though complained about inadequate street lights in some areas. 8.12.3l Daily Needs Shopping - For daily needs residents rely on house-front shops within the community which sell milk powder, grocery, snacks etc. For major perishable items and medicines, residents have to go to the local market which is at a distance of 1 km from the community. Children are often sent to fetch these items. 8.12.3m Cooking Fuel - Most of the families use firewood and charcoal. Some use kerosene pumped stoves. Very few households have access to LPG. Due to this, indoor air pollution is caused, which increases the risk of chronic respiratory diseases for children. 8.12.3n Social Infrastructure - Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College and Hospital is located at a distance of 1 km from the community. There is one SSK located at the entrance of the slum. There are two Anganwadis, one deep inside the slum and the other next to the Satyapriya High School. There are two temples on the outskirts of the slum. The Teen Nath temple in the middle of the fields is perceived to be an unsafe place by children as men use its premises for drinking and drugs. As the fields have several low lying areas that get filled with water during monsoons, the municipality closes the school for fear of children hurting themselves while defecating outside. 8.12.4 Habitability 8.12.4a Larger Houses - The BSUP houses are typically built as an additional unit in a plot with an existing house. In some cases, the families further expanded the BSUP houses with additional rooms or covered verandahs to serve as storage space or kitchen or toilet. This alleviates the effects of crowding and provides a dignified living environment. 8.12.4b Habitable Spaces - The BSUP houses typically comprise of two rooms, a toilet and a bath. In several cases, during day time the room is used for cooking and at night it is used for sleeping, so the room is multifunctional. Otherwise the cooking is done outdoors in the courtyard. Even though families now have pucca houses, they still typically have kutcha kitchens. Lack of segregation of functional rooms results in unhealthy living conditions, especially for children due to poor indoor air quality. 8.12.4c Adequacy of building materials and construction

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Roof: The roof is made of concrete and since it is not accessible, the roof is not secured by parapets. Walls: Houses are made of load bearing brick walls. Cracks have already begun to appear in the walls of houses constructed in BSUP Phase I by contractors. Floor: Plain cement concrete floors typically used with neat cement finish.

are

Windows: Framed windows with openable shutters have been installed in the houses. No security grills have been provided. Most of the families have installed security grills in the windows at their own cost.

Figure 8.9: Typical BSUP housing with few windows.

The BSUP units have been constructed using permanent materials and the community no longer has to incur interests on loans taken for house repairs. The materials used are weather appropriate. However, inadequate numbers of windows, practically no ventilators and incorrect placement of windows prevent cross ventilation in the rooms causing thermal discomfort in the hot humid climate of Kalyani. 8.12.4d Inadequate Cooking Facilities – Since there is no separate kitchen, either cooking is done inside a multifunctional room or outside. Inside the house, mostly cooking is done on the floor as very few houses have raised cooking slabs made. Most families use firewood, charcoal or kerosene stoves as only few families can afford cooking gas. 8.12.4d Fire Safe Houses - The houses have been constructed using fire safe material. However, the inadequate cooking arrangements make the houses prone to kitchen fire. 8.13 Community Perceptions of New Development The adults in the family are mostly happy with the BSUP improvements. They have seen this area change from a forested back of beyond place about 30 years ago to a place they can be proud of, a place with paved streets, drains, pucca houses and streetlights. Most women, even though they had to bear the burden of loans and work harder even a year after their houses had been made, seem happy with their new houses. They are proud that they were able to secure a permanent roof for their sons who can keep improving the new houses as they want. There is a strong gender bias in BSUP with beneficiaries typically being a self selected group with sons. Families with only daughters are burdened with procuring dowry for their marriage and loans for new houses are not considered practical.

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Men complained about the lengthy process and the rising costs of construction that is increasing the debt of families. Women complained about the size of rooms and the overall layout of the house. The new houses have not reduced their burden of work as they have to move between disconnected rooms and across open courtyards to different functional spaces. Most people missed having a staircase in the house and said that it would have been useful during floods to have access to a higher space. But all seemed particularly appreciative of having a pucca house to pass on to their children and improve the marriage prospects of their sons. Box 8.2: Case Study on gender marginalization in BSUP

OLD ROOM NEW ROOM 1 NEW ROOM 2

Figure 8.10: Documentation of gendered spatiality of BSUP houses This BSUP house is in addition to a kutcha one roomed house. The plot being in the name of the elderly mother, the two new rooms are used as follows: New room 1: Used by elderly female head of family for sleeping, eating and all other activities. New room 2: Used by young unmarried son, the plot owner’s grandson. This is a well furnished room with brightly painted walls, a four poster bed, built-in cupboards and a TV. This room also has an attached toilet made with BSUP funding. Old room: The boy’s parents live here with his adolescent sister. They use the old toilet at the back of the house. The mother continues to cook in her shack like kitchen and sends food to her son in his room. The daughter studies in Satyapriya High School and helps with housework, which includes cleaning of the new BSUP house where she is not allowed to stay.

8.13.1 Children’s experience of BSUP in Kongar Nagar-I

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Boys were divided in their opinion of the BSUP houses; some liked them and some liked the previous kutcha houses better. The primary reason for dislike of the new houses was cited as thermal discomfort; the houses get too hot in summer and boys reported waking up in sweat in the middle of the night. The older houses even though made of inferior materials had over the years been fine tuned by residents such as by putting in long ventilators under the sloping roofs to improve cross ventilation etc. The BSUP houses made no attempt to improvise the house plans for thermal comfort. Due to cost escalation, both contractor built and self-built houses cut corners to save on cost. Very few windows were provided in these houses as a direct consequence. Most girls we interviewed did not live in a new house. There seemed to be a preference in families with sons to invest in a new house to secure the future of the male child. The girls however aspired for BSUP houses primarily because they looked pretty with fresh yellow paint and red borders. The neighborhood map drawn by the girls showcases these houses prominently along with the greenery and the openness in their local area. The girls also pointed out the lack of adequate medical services in the local area and were keen for a good health centre nearby. In KN-I due to large plot sizes, BSUP housing is typically not a replacement of older semipermanent houses but an addition to them. In the case of no daughter, the mother stays in the old house but cleans the new house for the son and cooks for him from her kitchen. Box 8.3: Story of a girl child aspiring for a BSUP house Pia is a 13 year old girl who prefers to stay in KN-I with her maternal grandparents rather than with her parents in neighboring Kanchrapara. Pia’s grandparents live in an old house with darma walls and asbestos sheet roof. She prefers KN-I due to better infrastructure developed here over time through KUSP and BSUP than in Kanchrapara which has seen little development as it lies outside the municipal boundaries of Kalyani. Pia aspires to live in a BSUP house. She has 3 – 4 close friends in Kongar Nagar-I who study with her in Satyapriya High School. The girls study and play together in the neighbourhood or in the fields outside. She helps her grandparents with household chores. On Sundays she attends Kalyania at ward no.9 where she learns to draw, sing, dance, and act. Pia loves the natural environment and open landscapes of KN-I. Though she is studying, she works in the beedi making factory. She does this work during her spare time at home and delivers them to the factory. During vacations she makes more beedi shells and earns more money which she uses for her personal expenses and also to support her family.

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Box 8.4: Story of a boy living in a BSUP house Prakash Sarkar is 13 years old and moved into a BSUP house in 2011. He studies in Satyapriya High School in Class VII. His family stayed with his grandmother in her old kutcha house on the same plot during transit. The BSUP house was meant for his father and his uncle and their families. Prakash likes the old house better for its thermal comfort. The BSUP block has been constructed perpendicular to his grandmother’s old house. The lack of a covered corridor outside the house meant the family had to step out in the courtyard formed between the old and the new houses for going from the rooms to the kitchen that was constructed later as an addition to the BSUP house in a closed verandah next to the toilet. Even though the house has a flat concrete roof, Prakash is unable to access it as no staircase has been provided and the flimsy bamboo ladder acquired by the family for this purpose has rotted in one year. Prakash’s day is all about study and play with some beedi counting thrown in when he accompanies his mother to the factory to deliver the beedis she had rolled. Prakash has many friends both at school and in his neighborhood. Prakash is considered a play leader in the neighborhood and displayed leadership qualities in organizing the local children for a transect walk for the ACE research team.

8.14 Key Findings 8.14.1 Policy Level 8.14.1a Positive Aspects West Bengal was the first Indian state to set up a metropolitan planning committee, Kolkata Metropolitan Planning Committee (KMPC) in the country. KMPC prepared a Development Plan for slums which recommended certain strategies that are incorporated in the CDP for slums of KMA:  Provision of security of tenure to slum dwellers and if required amending the provisions of Thika Tenancy (Acquisition & Regulation) Act 1981. 

Development of permanent housing along with provision of physical and social infrastructure through an integrated community development process preferably using low cost technologies and funds from different slum development programmes and other sources including borrowing from financial institutions.

Employment generation and participation of women in economic activities.

Checking school drop out of slum children from primary schools particularly from most marginalized social groups through direct interventions by ward education committees, RCVs and NGOs.

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8.14.1b Limitations 

The CDP of KMA was prepared for an entire metropolitan area comprising 42 ULBs with no involvement of municipalities for formulating the CDP.

The CDP was prepared by KMDA with the help of IL&FS in three months time. No specific recommendations have been made for JnNURM in this document. The CDP is in fact directly extracted from the Vision Plan 2025 and the sectoral master plans prepared by KMDA and reviewed by KMPC.

The Vision Plan 2025 and sector plans are not statutory documents and only advisory in nature. In fact after the BDP of Kolkata prepared by CMPO in 1966, no statutory plans or urban policy documents had been prepared for Kolkata.

The first generation DDPs prepared under KUSP were robust documents that involved the municipalities in the planning process. KUSP envisaged the DDP as a comprehensive business plan of the ULBs that set out a broad vision and strategy while also providing the framework for allocating project funds and government support. The CDP did not build on the DDPs at the municipal level.

8.14.1c Recommendations 

DDPs are a natural foundation for creating a JNNURM vision through convergence of KUSP and BSUP in the KMA ULBs. This should be done in the next edition of JNNURM; vision for BSUP in CDP of KMA should be prepared in the context of the DDPs of the KMA municipalities in addition to the Vision Plan 2025 and the sector wise master plans.

BSUP needs to adopt a process based approach towards slum redevelopment backed by accurate assessments of housing conditions of the poor such as through preparation of slum atlases of KMA to ensure sustainability of the model. Currently BSUP in Kalyani adopts a project based approach to slum redevelopment.

Using CDS and NHG networks a strategy for participation of local community in urban planning and development within the ULB needs to be formulated under JNNURM.

Since integrated planning is a mandate of JNNURM, CDP needs to specify new priority areas as well as articulate which previous policies and programs are to be taken forward within the mission period of JNNURM and indicate budgets for the same.

8.14.2 Programme Level 8.14.2a Positive Aspects

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DPR proposes a Bustee Project Cell, which will be responsible for management of assets and a renewal fund is being created for the same.

BMWC was setup for operation and maintenance of proposed infrastructure.

The municipality created linkages with banks – if a family had land title/patta, then they were helped to get loans to pay the initial amount.

The municipality tried to make the process user friendly. In case of married sons living on the same plot, the municipality facilitated the partition of the plot in coordination with RR department subject to each share was 1 katah of land.

8.14.2b Limitations 

The municipality was focused on meeting the BSUP target comprising on time delivery of a large number of pucca housing units. As per the ULB’s own admission, there is no thinking or innovating time. The ULB did not seek any inputs from external agencies such as from consultants and NGOs and due to lack of capacity within the ULB there was little scope for customizing houses as per each family’s needs or for addressing critical environmental issues linked to inadequate drainage and sanitation or convergence of physical and social development.

Inclusive planning and design, particularly involving women and children, have been overlooked. In fact there is active discrimination against the girl child in the BSUP housing process.

Despite the envisaged role of BWMC in the construction, O&M of infrastructure, in reality conventional contractor based system was chosen for the implementation.

No mechanism for capacity building in the community to sustain and maintain infrastructure was created in BSUP, nor was the capacity built through KUSP in CDS groups utilized in BSUP.

The houses are unaffordable for most or only the more affluent can afford BSUP houses. Even though bank linkages were provided by the municipality, the escalating construction costs meant families needed to take more loans either from the bank by mortgaging their title deeds or from moneylenders operating in the slums. Cost of Phase 3 BSUP housing amounted to Rs. 3 lakh and contribution of municipality being fixed at 2006 rates was only Rs. 1.6 lakh.

Not all families can avail of BSUP as each household needed to have at least 1 katah of land.

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The DPR for upgradation of 6 slums in Kalyani under Phase II was used as a basis to develop all 52 slums of the entire region. The technical checklist in the DPR does not seem to cover important services like: fire safety measures, community toilets (assuming toilets to be provided with each DU), sewerage system, health care, educational facilities and parks. Since the DPR is so generic, there is a huge gap in the DPR and the ground reality of the slums.

8.14.2c Recommendations 

Existing institutional structure of urban poverty alleviation comprising CDS, NHG, NHC and RCVs should be responsible for identification of beneficiaries and facilitate convergence of social sectors including child development and promoting gender inclusiveness in the slum improvement programs.

Children’s neighborhood networks should be developed through Bal Sabhas and youth neighborhood networks should be strengthened through existing Yuba Sanghas. Children and youth should be trained and made an integral part of local area development decisionmaking through these networks.

BWMC and CDS should be trained and involved in the construction process. In view of the success of past experiences of Kalyani Municipality in CLHI and KUSP, a community based institutional mechanism should be developed for construction supervision, O&M of infrastructure development in the slums.

8.14.3 Project Level 8.14.3a Positive Aspects 

Kalyani municipality from Phase II of BSUP started a campaign to encourage families to build their own house in order to give freedom to families to schedule the construction at their own pace and develop houses as per their own needs.

8.14.3b Limitations 

Despite the build your own house campaign, design innovations which characterize the self built houses in Kongar Nagar I and its neighboring slums outside of BSUP were missing in the BSUP houses. This may be due to the fact that engineers who drew up the plans did not deviate from the BSUP typical plan and families had no competence to engage with plan making with the municipality.

The ponds inside the slum and the fields outside the slum receive the dirty water from the open storm water drains laid under BSUP. Due to mixing of foul and storm water in these open drains and no provision for filtration before discharging into ponds or the fields, environmental quality of the area is compromised. 198


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The families are burning biomass fuels (firewood, charcoal, animal dung) inside and outside dwellings. This cooking practice severely compromises the air quality and safety of families particularly very young children.

The single tap that is connected to municipal water supply at the plot level typically is not located in a hygienic place in the plot.

Children of KN-I have direct access to natural resources and playfields. There is a designated playground for children with a token slide, swings and see-saw. All these play equipments are in bad shape and no children play here preferring the streets or the fields. No new facilities were created for play or recreation nor were the broken equipment repaired.

Failure to improve existing children’s facilities such as the AW, the existing park and the SSK through BSUP.

8.14.3c Recommendations 

Develop culturally and climatologically adequate housing by involving people in house designs as well as site planning. This would mean seeking design expertise of local architects as well as building capacity of the ULB to work with individual families to develop diverse house designs and provide building permission for the same from the municipality.

Existing SSK should be improved or built as a new facility as a demonstration of good child friendly spatial organization and design.

To stop garbage accumulation and further deterioration of public health, a bio-gas plant should be started on a priority basis.

8.15 References i

KMDA. (2011). Introducing http://www.kmdaonline.org/pdf/aar11/introducing_kma.pdf

KMA.

Retrieved

from

ii

Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. (2006). City Development Plan of Kolkata Metropolitan Area. Retrieved from http://JnNURM.nic.in/cdp-of-kolkata.html iii

Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. (2012). An Impact Evaluation Study of BSUP Programme Intervention in Kolkata Metropolitan Area (KMA). Retrieved from: http://www.kmdaonline.org/whats_new/revised_ceo,report_bsup_impact_study-02-12.pdf iv

Ibid

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v

Ibid

vi

Rakshit, B. N. (2007). Kalyanir kichhu godar katah (translated from Bengali as: some stories about Kalyani’s origin), Purokatah (Municipal Newsletter), October. vii

Sarkar, J.P. (2010). Cross-Border Migration in Developing Countries in Rajan, S.I. (ed). India Migration Report 2010: Governance and Labour Migration. Routledge: New Delhi. viii

KMDA, Kalyani Municipality, BIIDL. (2006). JNNURM - BSUP Part II - Detailed Project Report. Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. ix

Ibid

x

Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. (2012). An Impact Evaluation Study of BSUP Programme Intervention in Kolkata Metropolitan Area (KMA). Retrieved from: http://www.kmdaonline.org/whats_new/revised_ceo,report_bsup_impact_study-02-12.pdf xi

Roy, U. and Ganguly, M. (2009). Integration of Top down & Bottom up approach in Urban and Regional Planning: West Bengal Experience of Draft Development Plans (DDP) and beyond. National Town & Country Planners Congress, 2009, Goa, India. Retrieved from http://www.atiwb.gov.in/U1.pdf xii

Roy, U. (2008). Addressing Water Supply and Sanitation Issues by Participatory Planning: Case Study of Draft Development Plans (2007-12) of Urban Local Bodies in Kolkata Metropolitan Area. Indian Institute of Environment in Kolkata. Retrieved from http://www.atiwb.nic.in/U5.pdf xiii

Ward Councillor Babulal in a personal Interview with Souvanic Roy and Sudeshna Chatterjee on December 28, 2012.

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Chapter 9 - Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar, Odisha


Chapter 9 - BSUP Slum Redevelopment at Nayapalli

9.1 Introduction JnNURM has enabled Odisha government to actively promote affordable housing for the urban poor in the state. Odisha advocates an in-situ approach to slum redevelopment by involving prominent NGOs in BSUP projects. As one of the least urbanized and least developed states in India, Odisha has an opportunity to create better living conditions for the poor through BSUP. ACE has Figure 9.1 – Location Map of Nayapalli (Source: ACE 2013)

taken up one case study in Bhubaneswar where a well known NGO, SPARC Samudaya Nirman Sahayak (SSNS), has been awarded a single point contract to implement BSUP funded slum redevelopment in Nayapalli Sabar Sahi Bustee. Despite resources favoring redevelopment and vast experience of the NGO in working with the urban poor across the country, Nayapalli slum redevelopment sub-optimally achieved the objectives of BSUP. This case study analyzes the process of Nayapalli slum redevelopment to understand its impact on children and families. 9.2 Background on Odisha Odisha is the ninth largest state in India and home to 42 million people, of which 45% live below the poverty line. Children in the state account for 22.41%i of the total population; however their survival rate is the lowest in India. Odisha has been plagued with high incidences of IMR and MMR, while at the same time the state’s approach to health remains diagnostic than preventive. The situation is worsened as affordable healthcare is out of reach for the poor. Level of urbanization in the state is 16.68% thus making it one of the least urbanized states in India. However, there has been steady increase in urban population1 including urban poor population in the last decade owing to limited employment opportunities in rural areas. Most of the urban poor live in a dismal situation as housing for the poor has not been the focus of Odisha’s development work. The state has largely participated in ongoing schemes/programmes of Government of India, including those funded under bilateral and multilateral assistance programs. 1

The urban population in the last from http://www.census2011.co.in/census/state/orissa.html

10

years

has

increased

by

26.80%.

Retrieved

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9.3 Housing Policies in Odisha Orissa Housing Board which was formed in 1968 has done little to provide affordable housing for the EWS in both urban and semi-urban areas to alleviate acute housing shortage. The Housing Board’s focus had been on providing housing for LIG and MIG householdsii. With the launch of JnNURM and BSUP and a national focus on slum free cities, housing for the urban poor received attention in Odisha with the Housing and Urban Development Department acting as the nodal agency for JnNURM in the state. The Odisha government also embraced the recommendations provided in the National Urban Housing and Habitat Policy (NUHHP) 2007 in promoting affordable housing for all through the new The Odisha Property Rights to Slum Dwellers and Prevention of New Slums Bill, 2012 by Housing and Urban Development Department of Government of Odisha. The Bill provides for the “identification, redevelopment, rehabilitation and prevention of slums and to provide residential houses with infrastructural facilities, assigning property rights to identify slum dwellers”. All landless slum-dwellers, belonging to the EWS category, shall get “a legal document of entitlement” and shall be entitled to a dwelling place at an affordable cost. The document of entitlement to the dwelling place will be in the name of the female head of the household or in the joint name of the male head of the household and his wife. The beneficiaries cannot transfer or sell the property to anyone else. This can only be passed as an inheritance. In case of compulsion, the property can only be sold to State Government or the ULB.iii 9.4 Background on Bhubaneswar Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha came into existence in 1948, following the master plan prepared by German planner Otto H. Koeingsberger. The city Child Population (0-6 years) 79,706 was planned for a population of 40,000 based on the neighborhood planning principle as a low-rise lowSex Ratio 883 density city on 1884 hectares of land. Bhubaneswar Child Sex Ratio (0-6 years) 903 today accommodates more than 800,000 people in an Average Literacy 93% area of about 13500 hectares. Greater Source: Census 2011 Bhubaneswar or the urban development area comprises the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation, 173 revenue villages, and two more municipalities spread over 39357 hectaresiv. The entire municipal area is divided into 47 administrative wards. Table 9.1 Social Indicators Bhubaneswar Urban Population Population 881,988

Bhubaneswar is additionally planned and regulated through the planning division of Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA), created by the Government of Odisha in the year 1983 under the Odisha Development Authorities Act 1982. The first Comprehensive Development Plan (CDP) for Bhubaneswar was prepared by BDA in 1994. As the city expanded, there was a need for revising this plan and the Comprehensive Development Plan (CDP) of Bhubaneswar Development Plan Area (BDPA) was prepared by IIT Kharagpur in 2010 203


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with a vision to create a world class city. The Government has set up the Project Monitoring Unit of BDA headed by M/s Jones Lang LaSalle for the preparation of a business plan of BDA and for implementation of the CDP proposal. Of the four sanctioned BSUP projects in Bhubaneswar, three are monitored by BMC and implemented by NGO and private contractors. 9.4.1 Slums in Bhubaneswar The City Development Planv of Bhubaneswar notes the lack of an updated database on the socio-economic characteristics and physical features of the slums. The CDP (2006) provides a development plan for Bhubaneswar for five years based on an outdated survey (BMC conducted survey in 2000 post the devastating cyclone in Odisha) without attempting to look at other data sources that document public health trends of an inadequate living environment. BMC website currently lists the number of slums in the city as 377, 75% of which are unauthorized and located in the heart of the city. Moreover, two new slums are being added to the city every month, with over 30% of the city's population living in slums.vi 9.4.2 Overview of CDP and DPR Government of Odisha and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) agreed to pursue a multi track program of technical assistance to improve delivery and management of urban services and enhance the financial management and financial sustainability of the state’s ULBs at the launch of Indo-US FIRE (D III) Project for Odisha in 2005 in Bhubaneswar. Preparation of City Development Plan for Bhubaneswar city was considered an appropriate project for this program. Community Consultants India Private Limited was engaged as consultants to provide technical assistance for the CDP to BMC. The CDP was prepared in three phases, and was completed in three months. The CDP was submitted to Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI) for appraisal. In its appraisal report, ASCI highlights that the CDP is a dynamic document and requires updating on continuous basis. 9.4.3 CDP Vision for Children Bhubaneswar CDP talks about ensuring ‘involvement of women and children from project formulation to implementation to achieve sustainability’ but fails to explain this further. There is a lack of consistency in the vision, especially when it comes to women and children. The exhaustive list of stakeholders who were consulted for the CDP did not include groups/individuals representing the needs of children and women. Children have not been mentioned explicitly anywhere in the document. CDP identifies socially under-privileged women and the aged as ‘vulnerable groups,’ and states that the voice of these vulnerable groups in community development programs is necessary. It goes on to state further that this needs sustained long-term efforts to develop and nurture community development societies. 204


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The CDP includes a separate section on community development highlighting the need to provide economic and employment generation activities for the employment of the urban poor in general, and slum dwellers in particular. It specifically suggests the need to develop strong linkages between education, training programs and resources and that BMC shall facilitate school-linked programs and support services. But no plan of action is outlined. It also recommends involving people in planning and decision making at the community level through grass roots bottom up approach and recommends that BMC should identify NGO’s/CBOs to develop appropriate linkages. 9.5 BSUP in Bhubaneswar Nayapalli Sabar Sahi slum is the case study chosen by ACE from Odisha. This BSUP project is implemented by NGO consortium comprising NSDF, Mahila Milan (MM) and SPARC and monitored by BMC. Nayapalli project was sanctioned in 2007 for building 73 dwelling units at a cost of Rs.174.37 lakhs of which Central government share is Rs.33.87 lakhs and state share is Rs.4.23 lakhs. 9.6 Case Study: NAYAPALLI, Bhubaneswar Nayapalli is surrounded by high income to middle income neighborhoods which include AG colony, Shastri Nagar, Resource Madhusudan Nagar, Acharya Vihar, Bhauma Nagar to name a few. The settlement is referred as ‘gaon’ or village by its residents, despite being located in the heart of the city. Nayapalli Sabar Sahi is dominated by the tribal community called Sabars or Shabars. It was a rural area until it became part of the city in 1985. People owned forested land as their families had lived there for many years. Unlike other slums where people migrated from many different districts of Odisha, Nayapalli is relatively ‘homogeneous’ in terms of affiliation to a particular social group. Table 9.2 - Fact File Nayapalli Location Ward no. 26, Bhubaneswar Area 11930 square meters Population 500 Land Ownership Nayapalli residents BSUP Implementing Agency Urban and Development Center Number of Houses 76 Number of houses built under BSUP 29 Source ACE 2012

Emerging Trends in Nayapalli:  Child sex ratio is in favor of girls which is a positive trend when compared to rest of India.  Number of girls/women drop sharply between the ages of 14-60, though some of them may have married outside the community.  Average life expectancy of men and women in the area is about 50-55 years with females having better chances of living longer. There is only one man above the age of sixty. Life expectancy in Odisha is 63.5 years (Census of 2011).  Only 3 people in the community have finished high school.

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9.6.1 DPR of Nayapalli The DPR for “BSUP for Nayapalli Sabar Sahi Bustee” was prepared by BMC and not by the on field nonprofit implementation agency (SPARC-Nirman) and as a result there were factual errors in the data and maps. For example, the number of beneficiaries listed was less than the actual number; likewise roads and streets were incorrectly marked. Hence, a new survey had to be commissioned by the implementing NGO’s local partners Urban Development Resource Center (UDRC) and Mahila Milan (MM) prior to implementation leading to significant loss of time. Table 9.3 – Community Profile of Nayapalli Particulars As per BMC As per UDRC-MM Survey Number of 110 88 households Average size of 4.4 household Total 349 500 population Above 60 1 male and 5 female 14-60 age 120 males and 68 females group 6-14 Male : 36 Female :75 0-6 Male : 18 and Female 24 Source: Bhubaneswar DPR

Highlights of Nayapalli redevelopment as per DPR are as follows: 

Complete redevelopment of Nayapalli by constructing new houses replacing identified kutcha houses, developing roads and providing basic services like water supply, drainage, sewerage and electrification.

Housing: cluster planning concept is proposed for layout. Where land area is less, double storied houses are proposed to house individual households. Majority of the house are simplex or a single storied structure while others are G+1 called duplex or G+2 called triplex. Each dwelling unit is 25 sq mt. in area.

Community Seva Kendra along with Garden and Children’s Park is proposed under social infrastructure, as the existing community centre is considered inadequate. A new and larger community centre has been proposed along with a garden and children’s park. However, the locations of the community infrastructure are not marked on the site plan.

Environmental Improvements and Green Spaces - The DPR has provisions for plantation of trees in the colony and around the individual houses, which will be taken up under the social forestry program. Trees shall be planted near the housing clusters so that, in due course, enough trees are available nearby. BMC while preparing the DPR has also taken into account the aspect of operations and management of green spaces.

BMC also aims at creating Bustee Management Society.

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Figure 9.2 - Status of BSUP Redevelopment at Nayapalli in November 2012 (Source: ACE 2013)

9.6.2 Community Profile 9.6.2a Health The survey which was done prior to redevelopment did not collect data on any component of community health or environmental hazards within the community. The health records maintained at Anganwadi also does not give a complete picture. Hence, data on health was collected through interviews with men, women, children, doctors at local hospitals and analysis of immediate environment. During interviews, it was found that treatment for illness is based on the ‘perception’ of illness. If ailment is not ‘perceived’ as fatal, then residents visit the local chemist, tell their symptoms and get medicine, thus saving money on hospital commute.2 On the other hand if the disease is considered fatal, residents prefer private hospitals over government hospitals as they have very little faith in government hospital services. As per the Anganwadi report, all children are immunized and all deliveries take place in hospitals, which is a positive trend when compared with 35.6% hospital deliveries in the state. 2

Round trip to Unit 6 hospital by auto would cost Rs.100-110 ($1.82 approx).

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Common ailments reported were cough, cold and fever with dysentery and nausea during summers. There are also cases of malaria and dengue. Among men common diseases include TB, which is probably made worse by intense drinking and smoking. There were reports of fatalities in the community due to alcohol overdose. Children under the age of 6 and pregnant and lactating mothers are given additional nutrition supplements from Anganwadi. However, there are no additional supplements for adolescent girls, even though 61.2% of women between ages 15-49 are anemic while 68.1%vii pregnant women in the same age group are anemic in Odisha. None of the children below the age of 6 are malnourished as per AW records. 9.6.2b Education There is a government school 500m from the community. This school is up to the 7th standard. After that, children have to travel up to 3kms to the nearest school. The government school provides free education to both boys and girls. After the 7th standard, girls usually walk down to the school while boys are given a cycle (by their parents) or they use their brother’s or father’s cycle to go to school. Drop-out rate is high among both boys and girls. Majority of the children drop out before completing matriculation. During the FGD conducted by ACE with boys and girls, children did not complain about the school. They found the teachers to be approachable. Children are not beaten or punished in school. Then why do so many children drop out of school? Children were unanimous in their answer - as they grow up they are unable to cope with maths and science in the higher classes. They do not have anyone at home who can help them with homework. Majority of children cannot afford tuition as their family’s income does not permit any extra expenses. Fear of failing compels most children to drop out. There are no study centers run by the government or by any non-profit organization in Nayapalli. State schools also do not have provisions for remedial classes. Box 9.1 - Case study of a 14 year old only earning member of a family Pintu is a 14 year old boy living in Nayapalli with his mother and elder brother. Pintu’s father works as a farm labor in Mali Sahi, which is 3 hours away from Bhubaneswar. Pintu’s family rents a house in Nayapalli at Rs.2000/month. He has grown up in Nayapalli and speaks fondly about his childhood. His mother stays at home, while his elder brother who is 22 years old had dropped out of school, is unemployed and an alcoholic. Pintu has never been to school. Pintu works in a local grocery shop to help support his family. Typically his day starts at 7:30am; he bathes, has a breakfast of leftover food from the previous evening or some ‘vada’ and reaches the shop by 9am. He works till 1pm and comes back home for lunch. He reports back to the shop again at 5pm and works till 11pm. Pintu gets paid at the rate of Rs. rd 100/day and works for about 300 hours in a month. He is given off once on the 23 of every month. He does not face any physical abuse at the work place. However he is scolded when he breaks something or when the owner suffers a loss because of his mistake. Pintu hands over his earnings to his mother. His older brother often fights with them for extra money and has recently

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resorted to stealing from them. This leaves very little money to run the household. Pintu’s family has a ration card that entitles them to subsidized food: 25 kg of rice, 2 kg of sugar and 3 liters of kerosene every month. However, this is not enough for the family and they buy additional food at market price. When Pintu or anyone else in his family falls sick, they go to the local chemist and ask for medicines. They seek doctor’s advice only in case of severe illness. Pintu does not drink nor smoke but he chews tobacco in the form of gutka. He consumes up to seven sachets of gutka in a day. He does not have a lot of friends as his work schedule limits his interaction with the community. He misses his friends but realizes that his work is important for his family’s survival especially since his father lives away from them and his brother is unemployed. Pintu dreams of opening his own shop in Nayapalli one day.

9.6.2c Livelihood The community at Nayapalli originated from the ‘Sabar’ tribe. This scheduled tribe was traditionally a forest-dwelling hunting tribe, not used to agriculture, and relied on the forests for their livelihood. The Sabars in Nayapalli owned the forest land in the area around their village. As the city of Bhubaneswar grew, their land was acquired by the government to build city level infrastructure like Nicco Park and Kalinga Stadium. The Sabars were left with just their community space and lost their traditional means of sustenance. The transition to alternative means of livelihood has not been easy for them as the community has no formal education or training. City development processes are not known for formally transitioning marginalized communities through vocational training and capacity building in case of loss of traditional livelihoods due to land acquisition and development. In Nayapalli this meant most of the men in the community are employed in manual labor, women in domestic work and children in both based on gender. As per the survey conducted by UDRC and Mahila Milan:  Average monthly income of a household is about Rs 2609.  15 women from the community work as domestic help. Their average monthly income is around Rs.921.  Average monthly income for males in the community is around Rs. 2600. 51 males are daily wage earners.  4 individuals are involved in business.  8 people are involved in private services however the survey does not specify the nature of their work.  12 people have government jobs. 9.6.2d Work of children Poverty in Nayapalli is stark; the low average monthly income of families makes survival a daily struggle. Men in the community do not like to work. On any given day groups of men could be seen sitting around or inside the community hall in a drunken state, smoking and/or playing cards. Men have limited or no involvement in child caring and rearing. Women have the dual responsibility of earning and looking after the household. Girls drop out of school as mothers want them to help with household work to ease their own load while boys drop out as they feel there is no guarantee for secure jobs after finishing school. According to the AW worker, girls drop out of school much earlier than boys and help their mothers by working outside as 209


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well as at home. If both mother and daughter work as maids they make around Rs.3000/month. All children start shouldering adult responsibilities at a very young age due to poverty. Boys in the area also start working early. However, contributing to their family income is their choice. Girls usually do no not have such a choice. Additionally both boys and girls also help their families by fetching water from the public standpipes or wells in the community as houses are yet to be provided with individual piped water connections. 9.7 Physical Environment of Nayapalli Prior to Redevelopment Table 9.4 - Description of Nayapalli slum environment before BSUP funded slum upgradation Provision Characteristics Settlement Nayapalli mostly had mud houses with thatched roofs. Structure Physical Water Supply - There is no house level piped water connection in Nayapalli. The community Infrastructure depends on 7 wells and 2 public standpipes. Electric Supply - Only 10 houses have electric connections. Others use kerosene lamps for lighting. Sanitation - Only 2 houses have individual toilets. The rest of the community uses the inadequate public toilets with no water or doors. As per the DPR, 67.32% defecate openly. Social infrastructure

Community Hall - A 600 sq ft space without electric fixtures despite electric connection serves as a community hall. This space is mostly controlled by men for drinking, sleeping or playing cards. Primary Health Center (PHC) - No health facility is present. Nearest Hospital - Closest hospital to the community is at UNIT 6. Anganwadis: One Anganwadi runs out of a semi-constructed rented house belonging to a government employee next to an empty plot. This is an inadequate facility with three rooms. Nearest school: the Ashram school which is a government primary school is 400 m away; a government high school is within 1km. All Nayapalli children study in these schools.

House Form

Single storied with mostly sloping roofs

House Layout and Habitability Material of Construction

The traditional hut had two rooms with a verandah and kitchen in one corner of the verandah.

Roof - The traditional huts had thatched roof with plastic covering for protection against rain. Wall - Mud walls with cow dung used for plastering the walls. Floor - Patted cow-dung flooring.

Problems

Windows and Doors - There are hardly any windows though small decorative ventilators and wooden doors are present.  The houses have poor ventilation as windows are rare.  There is almost no natural light except in front of the front door which is typically kept open.  The roofs leak. Every year residents have to repair the roofs to weather protect the house. They spend up to Rs.5000 every year on repairs.  The houses flood every year. The drain that flows through the heart of the slum overflows during heavy rain and mixes with flood water. This is a severe threat to the community health particularly for children.  Mosquitoes are a major problem. The presence of the open drain carrying sewage, garbage filled streets make the slum a fertile mosquito breeding ground.

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9.8 Children’s Use of Nayapalli 9.8.1 Play of Younger Children The physical environment of Nayapalli promotes free and imaginative play not by design but by accident (See Figure 9.3). The core of this tight settlement despite problems due to lack of sanitation, drainage, electricity, garbage disposal etc. offers a network of pedestrian only spaces that forms a web around the built structures. The streets or open spaces are not paved and there is no dearth of construction material and vegetation in the local area. For children with no toys and no pressure to study at home or be engaged in other structured activities, the outdoor spaces provide the context of everyday life and play in the community. Even when children have responsibilities at home and work, they find time to play with other children. Children as young as two or three years old engage in outdoor play (See Figure 9.4). We saw a group of young children one afternoon carrying sand in plastic glasses which they hung by long strings. The glasses had holes at the bottom. They went down one street to a pile of sand, filled the glasses and walked back to an opening across from the Anganwadi swinging the glasses. The patterns created on the ground by the trickling sand gave them immense joy. Along the way many women sat outside their doors watching and smiling at the children, occasionally scolding them. The physical environment ensured children had enough loose parts to craft fun games, while the social environment made sure they did not harm themselves while playing.

Figure 9.3 - Common play spaces of children within the community (Source: ACE 2013) 211


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Figure 9.4 - Play of Younger Children in Nayapalli

That same afternoon we saw eight 5 year olds constructing a shelter outside the Anganwadi using bamboo stumps, branches, twigs, twine and palm leaves. They were using adult tools to plane the branches and cut them. The children demonstrated high skill levels in their use of the tools. Later that evening, a group of 5-8 year olds gathered in another opening on the other side of the slum. One 6 year old girl approached the other children with lots of colored paper chits. They all encircled her, and then started attacking her playfully to get the papers out of her hand. She tossed her head back, laughed out loud and threw the papers in the air. The children then scattered away trying to catch the paper, falling over each other and laughing. The paper was money. The game involved gathering as much money as possible to be the next person to distribute it. Young boys were seen rolling tyres at the end of a stick. Girls were seen weaving palm leaves to make bracelets and crowns to play as princesses. Children attached long paper tails to their clothes and chased each other around as wild animals. 9.8.2 Mobility of Girls and Boys inside the Community Younger girls are free to play around the entire area with boys. Adolescent girls have restricted movement within the community once they are back from school. They are either house bound or allowed to visit with friends. The older girls prefer to sit and talk or play indoor games such as ludo or more traditional games such as ‘Chauka Bara’. The grid of Chauka Bara is engraved on the floor of many houses. Both women and girls play this game in their spare time in the afternoon or early evening near the threshold. Girls are not seen playing or hanging outside in the common space. During the interview girls said that they did not like the sight of drunken men hanging out in the community open spaces and felt scared of going out in the evening. At times drunken men scream at children for playing and making noise. Fights also break out between men during card games and girls find this scary. Young and older boys hang out with the men around the community hall. They also play cards with them. 9.8.3 Mobility of Girls and Boys outside the Community Boys said they could go anywhere they liked. Boys go to the Nayapalli pond to swim during the summers and to Kalinga Stadium across the road to play football and cricket. Older

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boys also go around the city. Girls on the other hand know nothing about the city and its attractions. Their interaction with the outside world happens through school and occasionally on visits to the hospital. Girls do not go out without parental supervision. Though boys go out and explore the city they have limited knowledge about the city itself. During one of the interviews a young boy was asked if he went to the mall. In reply the boy asked what a mall was. This is despite the presence of a large new mall across the main road, just 100m away from Nayapalli. Children have had limited opportunity to travel outside Bhubaneswar as most of their relatives live in Nayapalli. 9.9 The Process of Slum Redevelopment in Nayapalli DPR for Nayapalli was sanctioned in 2007. BMC invited tenders for awarding the implementation contract in the local newspaper. No response was received. One of the reasons, according to builders, was that the budgeted cost of construction for a house was unfeasible at current market rates. The costing was done at 2007 rates and the tenders were invited in 2009 without revising the cost. BMC had offered Rs.1.3 lakhs for constructing a 270 sq ft house. To understand how other states were handling BSUP implementation, BMC looked for best practices and decided to adopt the Maharashtra model where NGOs were involved in construction of houses. SPARC Samudaya Nirman Sahayak3 (SSNS or Nirman for short) with UDRC (which is part of the India Alliance of NSDF, MM and SPARC) as local partner applied for redeveloping 3 slums in Bhubaneswar and received contracts for all including Nayapalli. Redevelopment as per contract of Nayapalli includes:  Community organization and participation in the process  Construction of houses  Constructing sewage and laying drainage pipes  Laying out streets and by lanes  The process recording of the NGO reflects upon inclusion of residents in every aspect of the housing design and construction but, it is not clear what changes were made in accordance with the residents’ needs.

Phase Phase 1

Table 9.5 - Five Phases of Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment Process Soon after SSNS got the contract they started community mobilization through UDRC and Mahila Milan. Meetings were called and people were shown the plan and the proposed vision for the redevelopment. It is at this stage SSNS realized that the site survey which was done by HUDCO for the DPR was

3

SPARC Samudaya Nirman Sahayak (SSNS or Nirman for short) is a non-profit company founded by SPARC, NSDF and Mahila Milan in 1998. Its role is to support building and construction projects put together by SPARC, NSDF and Mahila Milan. The National Slum Dwellers Federation (NSDF) was founded in 1974 and has a membership of 2 million poor people from 72 towns and cities in India. NSDF helps slum dwellers to obtain secure tenure, access adequate housing and develop basic infrastructure, including water and sanitation. Mahila Milan – which means ‘Women Together’ – is a network of women’s savings groups founded by women pavement dwellers in Mumbai. Mahila Milan has strong links with the NSDF and together they work hard to build partnerships with local authorities, in order to carry out larger scale developments in slum areas. The Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centres (SPARC) is a non-governmental organisation formed in 1986 by housing and social work professionals to support the ideas and priorities of the urban poor organised via the National Slum Dwellers Federation and Mahila Milan. Source: http://www.homeless-international.org/our-work/overseas-partners/india-sparc

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not accurate. Roads were inaccurate and potential beneficiaries were left out. Hence, Mahila Milan did a new bio metric survey and prepared a fresh plan that included the details of a street network as well. Phase 2

Conducting survey, reworking the plan and resubmitting maps to BMC for clearance took almost two months. New plans were shown to the residents and were convinced to give up some of their land to improve community infrastructure such as streets and drainage system within the community.

Phase 3

Next step was re/designing the internal street network based on the existing roads in consultation with slum dwellers to minimize disruption to private property. The design of street network also considered improving connectivity with the surrounding area.

Phase 4

The leader in Nayapalli Sabarsahi slum organized regular meetings in the community. As upfront total payment was a problem for many beneficiaries, it was decided in the course of these meetings to stagger the payments over a period depending on the ability to pay, unlike usual norms of paying 100% by the completion of plinth level. Till the first week of March 2011, 50% contributions from beneficiaries were received. Some beneficiaries contributed labor in construction work which got adjusted against the beneficiary contribution. The records of such sweat payments were managed and maintained locally. Mahila Milan members and OSDF5 leaders were responsible for monitoring and supervising the process of construction. According to Mahila Milan none of the beneficiaries were ever forced to give money.

Phase 5

Fine tuning house designs. According to the NGO, people asked for changes in the house design which was done in accordance with their wishes.

9.9.1 Consultative Process Despite initial hiccups that involved reworking the base map, the NGO consortium followed a participatory process calling frequent community meetings mostly to convince people about the design. It is not very clear whether architects were involved to work with the community as in the case of Pune or if different house typologies were shown to beneficiaries. House designs primarily for ground floor based units called “simplex”, ground and first floor bases units called “duplex” and ground, first and third floor based units called “triplex” were displayed and people were asked for suggestions. According to one beneficiary, on asking for several changes in the house design, was told, “One can only make a certain number of changes in accordance with the money being given for a house”. The NGO no doubt was working under the constraints of bearing escalation costs of the project. However, unlike in Pune where the same NGO worked with dedicated senior architects who worked with each family to customize every house design and changed each design an average of 5 to 6 times on the family’s request, the process at Nayapalli did not follow a true participatory design approach and in fact alienated the community as the project got delayed due to cash flow problems faced by the NGO. According to most residents people were shown the typical design of houses, and told that no change in the design was possible. Government delayed clearing the pending bills of the NGO which resulted in work coming to a halt for almost six months. Very few houses are complete in all respect even though people have started living in them to reduce expenditure incurred due to rent. Most of the houses are far from complete: walls have not been painted, water connection is missing, and sewage system has not been put in place. In few of the houses, doors and windows are also 214


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missing. This has led to residents feeling disillusioned with the whole process and the new houses. 9.10 Housing Quality Evaluation 9.10.1 Security of Tenure As the land belongs to the residents, families have both land and property rights. However due to extreme poverty, and due to the strategic location in the city, Nayapalli is threatened by speculative development which may see residents selling off their land at marginal prices and being thrown out of the heart of the city. 9.10.2 Affordability The inadequate family income (about Rs.2000) leaves little scope of any saving. Typically men tend to spend any spare money on alcohol and families that do manage to save use such savings for medical emergencies. In this scenario paying Rs.13000 as the 10% beneficiary share was difficult. Hence SSNS asked people to pay in parts. Very few transit housing was provided by the NGO despite provision in the DPR citing lack of available land at the siteviii. People had to make alternative arrangements; typically people stayed with their relatives in the community. Additional costs are involved in making the BSUP house livable as the work done by the NGO even in complete houses was inadequate. However due to extreme poverty people were unable to make such additional investments. Even basic utilities such as water and electricity connections were unavailable to the new houses thus making childcare difficult. 9.10.3 Availability of Services, Facilities and Infrastructure

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Figure 9.5 - Status of infrastructure in Nayapalli in November 2012 (Source: ACE 2013)

9.10.3a Access to Site - Nayapalli is situated in the heart of the city of Bhubaneswar. It is 5 kilometer away from railway station and about three kilometer from the intercity central bus stop. Kalinga stadium is situated less than a kilometer away. Nayapalli exists as a pocket of poverty in the midst of new city infrastructure and planned neighborhoods. 9.10.3b Street Network - The approach road to Nayapalli is motarable up to the community center which is the entry point to the slum. The internal street network is largely narrow, navigable on foot, cycle and motorized two-wheelers. The internal streets are unpaved and uneven and organically permeate the fabric of the slum. 9.10.3c Open Spaces within the Community - Open space in the community exists in the form of open plots where houses have not been built. Towards the North West end of the slum there was an open space where children use to play. The place was taken over for storing construction material. The space near the community center has the feel of a village center but is completely controlled by men and adolescent boys. Women and children carve out spaces near the home base and the internal streets for play and socializing. 9.10.3d Open spaces within the house - There is no open space such as verandahs, balconies, and accessible terraces in the new houses. Beneficiaries enjoyed house level open spaces in their old houses as most houses had a multi-use verandah attached to the rooms. A lot of the new houses have added a patio to compensate for this loss. 216


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9.10.3e Drainage - BSUP housing included improving drainage in the community. This has not happened yet; according to UDRC this work will happen after completion of houses. Currently a couple of stretches in the slum have open drains that are clogged with household waste. As old and BSUP houses do not have piped water or toilets, women wash utensils on the streets using water from a bucket. This results in pools of dirty water and muddy puddles throughout the community. 9.10.3f Sanitation - BSUP houses have been provided with house level toilet, but the lack of a sewerage system at the community level as well as no water connection to houses makes these toilets redundant. Residents have been using community toilets despite some of the houses been built for over two years. Currently there are 12 open pits which could be future manholes of a sewerage system but no connection to houses has been achieved. In fact these unprotected pits are a source of danger at night since streetlights are few and children run the risk of falling in by accident and injuring themselves. 9.10.3g Garbage Disposal - There is no system of garbage disposal in the community. Solid domestic wastes such as kitchen waste are directly thrown on the streets or near the community hall. Waste is also thrown in the open drains. As BMC despite its mandate of garbage collection, does not perform that role in Nayapalli, the community burns the heaps of garbage regularly. This causes an awful stench as plastic, household waste, paper and wood burn. Current research indicates that burning of waste near houses is far more harmful to our health than previously thought. It can increase the risk of heart disease; aggravate respiratory ailments such as asthma and emphysema, and cause rashes, nausea, or headaches, damages in the nervous system, kidney or liver, in the reproductive and development system. 9.10.3h Water Supply - Residents of Nayapalli do not have piped water supply to their houses. They rely on public taps. There are two public taps in the community which cater to all families. Water comes daily from 10am to 12 pm. Men, women and children all help in fetching and storing water. Water is usually collected in steel pots or in multiple plastic bottles kept inside buckets. On weekends when children do not have school, they also help in fetching water from the tap. Children on weekends sometimes make more than eight rounds to fill the pots, buckets and bottles. There is no water supply on public holidays and residents rely on the wells. According to families well water is boiled before drinking. Most of the wells are uncovered. These wells have been created and owned by the community for collecting rainwater. Some of the wells have walls surrounding them, while others do not have any safety walls. Wells located at the bottom of street slopes tend to accumulate waste water and garbage as well. Wells are cleaned once a year. 9.10.3i Power Supply - Majority of the houses in Nayapalli do not have power supply. If needed people hook a wire and stretch a connection from the main line passing over the community. One cluster of houses has electricity and the residents collectively pay the charges. For these 217


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six houses electricity charges are about Rs.1500/month. Residents do have mobile phones that need charging. Residents use that facility in the community hall or keep spare cell phone batteries for emergencies. 9.10.3j Local Transport - Nayapalli’s central location in Bhubaneswar makes finding transportation to most destinations in the city easy. As the city has no public intra-city bus service, shared auto rickshaws as well as reserve autos are the common mode of transport. Shared autos ply only on fixed routes. For travelling to interior locations one has to reserve an auto, which is expensive. 9.10.3k Emergency Access - Fire tenders or ambulance can come till the community hall, by lanes are too narrow for vehicular movement. 9.10.3l Streetlights - There are 6 random street lights in the Nayapalli. 5 of these are near the community hall. This means that most of the community remains dark after nightfall. 9.10.3m Daily Needs Shopping - Most of the daily needs shops are within 1km radius of Nayapalli. 9.10.3n Facilities for Children - There are no parks or playgrounds in the local area. Children play outside their houses or in the streets. Anganwadi - There is one Anganwadi running from a rented house which is under construction. There are no toys or space for children to play in the Anganwadi. Providing nutritional support seems to be the primary function of the Anganwadi at Nayapalli rather than providing an educational and recreational space for children. There is no recreational facility available for children in Nayapalli. The uneven physical outdoor environment makes outdoor play difficult for disabled children. 9.10.4 Habitability 9.10.4a Larger Houses - BSUP provided larger homes than the typical hut of residents. Floor area of new house is 270sqft. 9.10.4b Habitable Spaces - The typical slum hut had two rooms, a multi-purpose verandah, and kitchen in a corner of the verandah. The BSUP houses provided two rooms and a dysfunctional toilet, no kitchen and no house level open space. 9.10.4c Inadequate Cooking Facilities - Food is now being cooked in one of the rooms on the floor or outside on the street. Wood is used for cooking. Kerosene is used to light the wood. Firewood and kerosene are stored in the room. 9.10.4d Inadequate Storage - There are no built-in cupboards or storage spaces in the houses. Residents had to pay extra for this (around five thousand rupee). Residents who opted for 218


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additional storage space were given overhead storage space. Not many families opted for this nor made any needed modifications to the houses due to extreme poverty. Residents said they kept kerosene in a plastic canister out of reach of children. In houses with overhead storage shelves this is possible, but not many houses had these. 9.10.4e Fire Safe Houses - Houses are made of concrete hence in principle are fire safe. 9.10.4f Adequacy of Building Material and Construction Roof - The houses have flat concrete roofs that are not accessible. No parapets have been provided on the flat roof and no provisions have been made for including a staircase later. Some of the residents who had space next to their houses on their land paid extra money and built a staircase to access the terrace. This cost them Rs.12000. Walls - The walls were constructed out of burnt clay bricks and mortar. The rooms have been plastered inside but not painted before handing over. Some of the residents painted the walls on their own. In some of the cases, walls were not plastered on all four sides; the least visible side from the public realm was typically left unfinished. This led to water seepage during the monsoon. Floor - Floor is finished in grey cement. Women find it easier to clean this floor in comparison to the mud floors of their old huts that needed patting with cow dung every day. Windows - New houses have at least one window in every room. Small ventilators have been provided above the windows closer to the ceiling. To protect the windows from outside deep sunshades have been provided though some of these are still missing in completed houses. Windows have been provided with security grilles and solid steel shutters. No mosquito mesh has been provided. No effort had been made to place windows to maximize daylight penetration into the rooms or aid cross-ventilation in combination with the door. Doors - Solid steel doors have been provided with no mesh door and open directly on the street Staircase - In duplex type blocks that had units in two floors, a folded slab staircase was part of the house. However no safety railings or parapets were provided to these staircases. 9.10.5 Accessibility Elderly - The predominant housing type comprised ground floor units though some double storied houses were also built. As each family owns the land and duplexes were typically built in case of multiple households in a landholding family based on mutual understanding, elderly members had no choice of units in case their families received a first floor flat. Gender - Nayapalli redevelopment did not mainstream gender concerns. Women and girls continue to live with indignity and at risk to their health due to unsanitary and unsafe public 219


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toilets in the community. Inadequate and inhabitable houses make domestic work and childcare difficult for women. Particularly the lack of safe water at home and inadequate cooking provisions put women and children in their care at risk. One of the persistent problems in the community that contributes to both domestic violence and communal conflicts is substance abuse in men and boys. This makes the community environment unsafe for women. Yet alcohol shops continue to function barely 200 meters away from the community and cannabis is openly sold in the streets. As BSUP projects promote integrating aspects of social security with housing, the alcohol and drug use among men needed to be addressed through the project. Children - The redevelopment did not create any new facilities for children or improve existing ones such as the Anganwadi. It however did take away the only open space available to children for playing and the traditional house front open spaces where girls hang out. In fact the girl child is at risk at home due to the burdens of domestic work, at school due to inability to cope with studies which force them to drop out and in the community that offer so safe play space. 9.10.6 Cultural Adequacy The new housing failed to understand the spatial practices of families in relation to their old huts and the larger community. The focus of the project being replacement of kutcha houses with pucca structures resulted in inhabitable homes and inhospitable outdoor spaces. The current house transformations despite poverty testify to the fact that cultural practices related to food preparation and storage were not considered in the new houses. Nayapalli redevelopment was a lost opportunity to showcase culturally appropriate low-cost housing for the urban poor through a national flagship urban renewal program. Today the Sabar community retains their identity as a poor backward scheduled tribe living in an inadequate environment despite redevelopment. 9.11 Perceptions of Nayapalli Redevelopment Children are invisible in the Nayapalli redevelopment process. Even though the DPR had a proposal for a park, the site plan of the project did not incorporate this. Children were not covered in the survey nor involved in community meetings. Children however had strong opinions about the redevelopment process. A 12 year old girl during FGD said, “new houses are not good but I like it only because now my family would not have to spend money on fixing the roof every year�. New houses are mostly seen as a better option to the thatched house. Both girls and boys said they did not like the new house but for different reasons. Girls cited lack of electricity and water connection as primary reasons for dislike. Boys on the other hand said they did not like the new houses because of lack of roof access which denied them a flat even play space. Older boys, who are working, did not seem too happy with the quality of construction. 220


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They felt that the contractor had used inferior materials that compromised the quality of the construction, leading them to believe that the safety of houses has been compromised. Children also said they felt hot in the new concrete houses; older mud and thatched houses were cooler in summers. Children overall did not seem to be impressed with the redevelopment. Youth of the community was indifferent to the redevelopment. Their main concern was employment opportunities. According to them, the community needed employment generation schemes and vocational training urgently. Box 9.2 - A family’s perception of the new development Naik family had six members and three households. The head of the family is an elderly widow who has a married and an unmarried son. The family has a thatched mud house comprising two rooms, verandah and kitchen. They received two BSUP houses in the name of the two sons. Despite this the family continues to stay in the old thatched house which had 280 sq ft floor space. According to the matriarch of the family, the old house is more suited to their needs and is convenient for everyone. They have a separate semi-outdoor kitchen in the corner of the verandah; the new house required carving out a kitchen out of one of the rooms which was unacceptable to them. The lack of water supply and a working toilet in the new house despite being part of the house deal has disappointed them. Moreover the family had sought a design change in the house layout; they wanted the toilet to be accessible from outside the rooms and not inside. The NGO apparently refused to make the change and asked them to accept the en-suite toilet that other families accepted. Naik family added overhead storage to their house at an additional cost of Rs.5000 and an outside staircase for roof access at an additional cost of Rs.12000. The eldest married son believed the pucca house is a good investment for his daughter’s future and a safe place to store some furniture. But he did not think it was a comfortable house for living and would continue to stay in the old house with his extended family. Even after spending over Rs.30,000, the BSUP house of Naik family was not deemed habitable by the family.

Figure 9.6 - Mrs. Naik’s old house where the family prefers to stay instead of the new BSUP house

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Figure 9.7 - Mrs. Naik’s new BSUP house

9.12 Key Findings The key findings of the case study are discussed at three levels: policy, programming and implementation. 9.12.1 Policy Level 9.12.1a Positive Aspects The CDP of Bhubaneswar promotes: 

The idea of a Comprehensive Development Plan for slums to deal with aspects of land tenure, basic services, housing and employment needs that include informal enterprises of the poor, of women and children.

Social inclusion of vulnerable groups particularly women and the elderly in community development initiatives.

An inclusive approach to slum upgrading by promoting women as supervisors of infrastructure provisions.

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An in-situ approach to slum redevelopment with a focus on linking poor people to a range of innovative housing and livelihood options. Only in cases on untenable slums (for which conditions are not defined) relocation is recommended.

A participatory approach to slum redevelopment not only to come up with better housing but better services. It further promotes the involvement of communities in construction and management of services.

The involvement of NGOs/CBOs in slum upgrading and urban poverty alleviation initiatives.

The concept of “Slum networking” to introduce the idea of slum development as an essential city development process and integrate larger infrastructural projects to benefit the slum locations as well.

9.12.1b Limitations 

Children not considered a vulnerable category in slum upgrading - The CDP does not recognize children living in poverty as a vulnerable group. Children had been mentioned in two places under slum upgrading and in both cases as an extension of the most recognized vulnerable category of “women”.

Lack of recent and accurate data before plan making - The vision for Urban Poverty and social development in the CDP is based primarily on a survey done by BMC in 2000. Participation - JnNURM and BSUP demand a participatory planning process including the urban poor. It is not clear what inputs were received from the community for design and planning BSUP projects in Bhubaneswar. Though NGOs involved with the process called community meetings and insisted on having followed a participatory process in Nayapalli, people reported being dissatisfied with both the process and the resultant housing as they felt their demands for design changes were not incorporated.

Selection of Beneficiaries - The policy does not specify anywhere that government employees living in urban slums are to be exempt from BSUP. Yet in Nayapalli government employees were excluded from the beneficiary lists on account of holding government jobs.

Planning for different house typologies missing - The planning does not provide for mixed use housing or different typologies based on family types. Since all units are essentially the same with no house level open space people have started extending platforms and constructing kitchens on them to make their houses more habitable.

Community development through convergence on paper only - The CDP as well as the DPR for BSUP in Nayapalli include a vision for convergence of health, education and social security schemes under State Plan promoting adult education, thrift and credit societies, SHG’s and converging exiting schemes such as DWCUA, Antyoday Anna Yojana, Annapurna, Old Age/Widow Pension and Orissa Disability Pension, and National Family 223


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Benefit Scheme. No convergence has been planned for on the ground while redeveloping Nayapalli slum. The approach to BSUP housing in Nayapalli is that of converting kutcha houses to pucca structures. 9.12.1c Recommendations 

Revised vision for BSUP in CDPs should be prepared in the context of the The Odisha Property Rights to Slum Dwellers and Prevention of New Slums Bill, 2012 and backed by accurate assessments of housing conditions of the poor such as through preparation of slum atlases as in the case of Pune and Nagpur.

The slum redevelopment policy should clearly define “tenable” and “untenable” slums and articulate environmental conditions under which in-situ redevelopment must occur and the conditions that will make relocation of slums mandatory.

BSUP should mandate Environmental Impact Assessments and Community Impact Assessments including considering impact on children of the development in a particular location to decide on the approach to slum development.

9.12.2 Programme level 9.12.2a Positive Aspects 

Participation of NGOs in housing delivery in BSUP resulted in a more accurate bio-metric survey and much improved site survey in Nayapalli prior to construction.

NGO intervention also resulted in staggering payments by beneficiaries in many small installments instead of a onetime lump sum payment of Rs.13000 during initial construction stages.

In case of inability to pay, some families contributed labor to the construction process to offset against beneficiary payments.

9.12.2b Limitations 

Lack of guidance on preparing detailed socio-economic surveys - A complex slum redevelopment project needs inputs from both a detailed survey and a participatory process for programming the project. Currently BSUP guidelines do not include guidelines for a detailed survey and no data is available with the ULB.

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Plans based on incomplete understanding of community life - The Survey and other studies done by the NGO in Nayapalli did not take into account different aspects of the community such as: o o o o o o o o o o o o o

Disaggregated data on children by age and gender Health conditions of children Educational attainment of children Numbers of school drop outs by age and gender Numbers of working children by age and gender and nature of children’s work Health conditions of women and men Educational attainment of women and men Skills available in the community Home based enterprises Assessment of the public realm of the community for women, children and men through preference surveys Environmental impact assessment Social impact assessment Understanding of problems related to water supply, sanitation, garbage disposal, cooking fuel at house and community level.

If these parameters were taken in account and a need based plan developed around these issues, the redevelopment of Nayapalli or for that matter any slum would embrace the vision of inclusive sustainable development and make the change people and child centered. Consultative participation with no community involvement in planning and design - All technical inputs as well as planning and design decisions were taken by NGO. Though the socio- economic survey of the slum directly collected data from the community, the process was managed by Mahila Milan with the support of women members; the DPR did not benefit from this survey. In this process we see the community acting as a consultant to the implementing agency rather than a decision maker.

No Capacity in women’s groups to adequately participate in planning process Though the CDP promotes women’s role in planning and implementation of slum upgrading projects, women’s savings groups are not empowered to discuss local area development issues or trained in construction or its management.

No children’s participation in BSUP, no facilities for children - Children though prominently present in the public life of the community, played no role in participatory local area development. Currently the understanding about children’s needs in the community included in the development program is based on a limited adult view of best interests of the child as in the provision of a park. It is important to note that the site plan as it evolved through the process of development did not include this park.

Incorrect assumptions informed DPRs and cost estimations for tender - The DPR estimated quantities such as road lengths, water and sewerage pipes based on the 225


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preliminary plan drawn up by BMC which as the implementing NGO found out on commencing work was an unfeasible plan as the site survey behind the plan was incurrent. Lump sum funds were allocated for a new community hall and a children’s park without mention of any area even though a detailed item of park boundary wall with a separate fund allocation assumes a certain length the basis of this estimation is unclear. Lack of accurate data in and the DPR and erroneous cost estimates make the project difficult to implement. 

Impossible contracts for implementing agencies - Very few contractor/organizations are willing to bid for BSUP projects. This is primarily due to the lack of an escalation cause in the contract which means in case of delays which is quite common in government contracts, the estimated contract value based on costs at the starting year of work stand frozen even if the market price of all commodities increase due to inflation.

Lack of professional expertise in building and infrastructure design - The inadequate house designs and the bad infrastructure planning suggest that the project did not adequately involve professional architects and service engineers.

9.12.2c Recommendations 

Community driven data gathering should be mandated in BSUP to facilitate detailed socioeconomic surveys and community mapping with a focus on understanding environmental hazards that threaten children and their parents.

Participatory planning processes to build on the data collected by the community and involve women and children in developing their own plans and in mobilizing the entire community to co-create the final plan.

To adequately programme for a participatory process for slum redevelopment, capacities of women’s groups need to be developed through training to take on this new role in addition to functioning as a successful savings and thrift group.

Merely budgeting for transit housing in the DPR is not enough, in case of non-availability of land at site, alternative sites needs to be provided by the government near the slum and transit housing built on the same by the implementing agency.

9.12.3 Project Level 9.12.3a Limitations 

Delay in project implementation - As the NGO had to do fresh biometric and site surveys and convince people about development, the process got delayed at the start of the implementation contract. Further delays were caused by delays in clearing contractor’s bills by the government. As cash flow stopped, SSNS had to stop work at site for 6 months which angered the community. 226


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Inadequate houses - The houses provided have more floor area than the previous slum huts but less habitable spaces such as no kitchen, house level open space or working toilet. No storage space was provided and was made available only on additional payment. Doors and windows were incorrectly located and made of unsuitable materials that hampered natural light and adequate airflow in the houses. Odisha records maximum deaths due to heat waves in India every year. A house that does not provide relief from heat is inhabitable in Odisha especially for children.

Incomplete houses handed over - The few complete houses that were handed over to beneficiaries were in fact incomplete: no internal painting had been done, external plastering largely remained unfinished and doors and windows were not installed in a few houses.

Inadequate and incomplete basic services at house and community level - Piped water supply to houses was not provided. In-house toilets are dysfunctional because of this as well as due to lack of connection to a sewage system. No drainage system has been provided to carry wastewater from houses. Twelve open sanitation pits have been made in different locations but no connection has been provided. Street lighting has not been provided. All these services were part of the construction contract.

Indoor air quality an issue due to wood-fired ovens - As families are still using woodfired ovens inside dwellings due to lack of a kitchen especially during rains (as at other times they prefer to cook outside, even on the street) air quality is compromised threatening children’s health.

Failure in addressing hazards in children’s everyday environment - Environmental hazards related to open defecation, puddles of dirty water outside houses, garbage in public places, and uneven integration of old and new environments threaten children’s use of outdoor spaces.

No new facilities created for play or recreation - The project failed to create any play spaces or landscaped parks within the community despite budgetary allocations for a children’s park in the DPR. This limits options for outdoor activities especially for girls.

9.12.3b Recommendations 

Develop culturally adequate and climatologically comfortable housing by involving people in house type designs as well as site planning.

Existing Anganwadi should be improved or built as a new facility as a demonstration of good child friendly spatial organization and design.

Community development to include need based facilities such as study centers, bridging classes to prevent children from dropping out of school. Non-formal learning centers for 227


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working children should be developed. 

Define open spaces with planted shade, street furniture and adequate space to allow play especially for the girl child.

As part of adequate housing smokeless chullas should be provided to stop indoor air pollution due to wood fired ovens.

To stop garbage burning and further deteriorating public health, a bio-gas plant should be started on a priority basis.

Community including children should be involved in not only planning and designing play and recreation spaces but also in constructing and maintaining them.

References i

Population Census India. (2011). http://www.census2011.co.in/census/state/orissa.html

Orissa.

Retrieved

from

ii

Orissa State Housing Board. (n.d.). Year Wise Information on Completed Schemes under Urban Housing Project. Retrieved from http://www.oshb.org/Yearwise%20information%20on%20completed%20schemes%20of%20OSHB.pdf iii

Department of Housing and Urban Development. (n.d.). The Odisha Property Rights to Slum Dwellers and Prevention of New Slums Bill, 2012. Retrieved from http://urbanorissa.gov.in/(S(jkpey055vewgkf55p2imkyum))/pdf/ODISHA_PROPERTY_RIGHTS_TO_SLU M_DWELLERS_BILL_2012.pdf iv

Bhubaneswar Development Authority. (2007). Bhubaneswar Development Authority - A Snapshot. Retrieved from http://bdabbsr.in/bdasnapshot.pdf v

Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation. (2006). Bhubaneswar City Development Plan. Retrieved from http://JnNURM.nic.in/cdp-of-bhubaneshwar.html vi

Singha, M. (2009, September 13). City corporators to go for slum study. The Times of India. Retrieved from http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2009-09-13/bhubaneswar/28085698_1_slums-citiesbhubaneswar-municipal-corporation vii

Central Bureau of Health Intelligence. (2010). National Health Profile 2010. Retrieved from http://cbhidghs.nic.in/writereaddata/mainlinkFile/File1012.pdf viii

SPARC Samudaya Nirman Sahayak. (2011). SPARC Samudaya Nirman Sahayak Annual Report 2010-2011. [Report] Available through: Shack/Slum Dwellers International http://www.sdinet.org/media/upload/countries/documents/SSNS_AnnualReport_20102011_forEMAIL.pdf

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10. Integrative Analysis of Eight Case Studies The main objective of this research is to understand the potential of the BSUP mission to contribute to children’s well being through delivery of safe and healthy housing. A rights based approach is used to evaluate the performance of BSUP in fulfilling children’s rights as categorized in the 3Ps: protection, provision and participation. In addition a housing rights and sustainable develoment framework have been adopted for evaluating the provisions created under BSUP. 10.1 Protection UNCRC promotes protecting children from all forms of violence, abuse, exploitation, cruelty, neglect, protection from abuse in the criminal justice system as well as from manmade and natural emergencies (articles 4, 11, 19, 20, 21, 22, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40 and 41). Keeping children safe from harm is both a private and public responsibility. Both preventive and responsive child protection measures are the responsibility of various sectors including social welfare, justice, health, security, and education. Increasigly a systems approach is being used to create a framework for child protection requiring both prevention and response involving different sectors such as health, education, social welfare, justice and security as well as civil society (NGOs, private sectors, community)i. Additionally MDGs, which are central to country level national development planning, provide many links between improved child protection and better development outcomes. Preventing and addressing violence, abuse, and exploitation is part of achieving the MDGsii; protecting children from such issues as violence in schools and community, child labour, harmful traditional practices, the absence of parental care or commercial sexual exploitation. Reaching the most vulnerable, isolated and marginalised populations helps ensure the health and well-being of all, which is indispensable to achieving the MDGs. 10.1.1 Child Protection in India The Indian Constitution incorportaes most of the rights enshrined in the UNCRC as either Fundamental Rights or as directive principles of State Policy. Article 39(f) of the Constitution assures protection of childhood and youth against exploitation and against moral and material abandonment. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) was set up in 2007 under the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005. The Commission's Mandate is to ensure that all Laws, Policies, Programmes, and Administrative Mechanisms are in consonance with the Child Rights perspective as enshrined in the Constitution of India and also the UN convention on the Rights of the Childiii. The Child is defined as a person in the 0 to 18 years age group. The government of India intervenes in the following key protection areas:  Protecting children in difficult circumstances including natural disasters:

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o o        

Children in Need of Care and Protection1 Child in Conflict with Law

Elimination of child labour Integrated programme for street children Protecting children and women from being trafficked for commercial and sexual exploitation Protecting children affected by HIV/AIDS Saving newborn lives and facilitating incountry adoption Making daycare available for children of working mothers in 0-6 years age group Special programs for protection of the girl child Empowerment of Adolescent girls

Through the Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) the Ministry of Women and Child Development of Government of India created a broad and comprehensive framework for child protection.Children have a right to be prevented from becoming subjects of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation, and at the same time if they do become victims, the State has a duty to address the impact of violation of their rights through appropriate law, policy and action. The child protection concept incorporates prevention, protection and rehabilitation (see Annexure 7 for details on ICPS). Most of the programs under ICPS fall in the domain of response to violation of protection rights and subsequent rehabilitation rather than prevention. 10.1.2 Children in Slums: Protection issues The concept of protection works around the premise that all children have the right to grow up and develop in an environment, which is protective, in which violence, exploitation and abuse are prevented as well as mitigated and redressediv. Poverty lessens the chances of children enjoying a protective environment as children such as those living in slums easily become marginalised and are frequently denied essential services like shelter, sanitation, water supply, health services, education, play and recreation facilities. BSUP has higher potential to provide a safe environment that can offer appropriate protection and opportunities for healthy growth for children in all life stages since it integrates affordable housing with other poverty alleviation strategies such as social security and welfare, than nonintegrated slum redevelopment programs. The implementation of the seven point charter of BSUP at the ULB level is a key mandatory reform linked with BSUP (see chapter 2 for details of this reform). A key component of this reform is providing social security and support for livelihoods. The CDP of Thiruvananthapuram incorporated several strategies for providing social security to children and youth keeping in mind their protection issues (see Annexure 8 for details on CDP provisions for children). 1

Children in Need of care and protection is identified as: Orphans, abandoned and destitute children; Missing or run-away children; Street and working children; Children of sex workers; Abused, tortured and exploited children; Children indulging in substance abuse; Children affected by HIV/AIDS; Children affected by natural calamities, emergencies and man made disasters; Children with disabilities; Child beggars; Children suffering from terminal/incurable disease. 230


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10.1.2a Emerging protetcion issues in ACE case study slums The key protection issues that emerged across the 8 case studies are as follows: i. Substance abuse: Prevalence of drug and alcohol abuse in the community including in adolescents lead to repeated and sometimes serious violence at home and in the community. ii. Domestic violence. 

Children are exposed to domestic violence at home manily as witnesses to alcohol induced fights between parents.

Women typically did not speak about physical abuse while children especially girls in many of the slum communities were vocal about the problem attributing it to alcoholism and financial troubles.

In some cases women subjected to domestic violence had required medical attention as mentioned by the local doctor in Nagpur. In a severe case in Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar, a woman had to undergo a miscarriage due to physical violence at home.

BSUP did not provide any safety nets for women and children to protect them from violence in any of the projects.

Violence particularly in the domestic space remains invisible as children and women have little awareness of opportunities for reporting or seeking redressal for violence.

Local NGOs also donot adequately probe into violence issues for fear of antagonizing the community.

iii. Inadequate, unhealthy and unsafe public spaces particulalry for girls: 

Poor site planning of BSUP projects failed to provide adequate and safe public/social spaces and common facilites. This directly contributes to conflicts over use of limited public space among groups of children, and between children and adults and compromise social equity in the new BSUP housing across all typologies of projects.

Lack of safe spaces for play force children to play in hazardous environments typically characterized by garbage across all projects studied by ACE. In the flatted redevelopment, the only common space available to children are courtyards and terraces of buildings. Many flatted buildings lacked safety as typically terraces have open access for outsiders at all times through common staircases.

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Inadequate public spaces affects independent mobility of children especially for young adolescent girls thus restricting their right to recreation and leisure activities outdoors. Community halls and open spaces if present are typically unavailable to children as these spaces are dominated by men and boys or used for transit accomodations thus preventing use by children, especially girls for recreational purposes.

Fear of sexual violence and harrasment in the community in addition to no recreational or play opportunities for young girls make them mostly house-bound. Girls have restricted mobility within area for fear of being harassed. Absence of safe spaces for young children and girls is a concern in all case studies. Inadequate street lights make the outdoor spaces unsafe after dusk particularly around environmetally hazardous areas such as sewage ponds, open drains and sanitation pits.

iv. Disability: The new housing made no attempt to make the physical environment universally accessible. Lack of attention to disability renders differently abled children invisible in the public realm, increases such children’s risk of poor functioning as they grow and also increases mortality risk. v. Lack of civic engagement of children and youth: Children and young people are deeply impacted by their physical environments in slums. Despite a mandatory participatory approach, none of the slum redevelopment projects under BSUP involved children and youth. Sustained enagagement of young people in local issues imparts vital life and citizenship skills including creating awareness about preventive strategies for protetion of children. In none of the case studies young people had access to information on reproductive health, life skills education, child welfare services, opportunities for vocational or skills training etc. vi. Child Labor: High costs of loans and additional costs for making houses habitable forced women, and preadolescent boys and girls to engage in often hazardous work in many of the redeveloped slums. Children dropped out of school around 14 years when they could legitimately work without being labelled a “child labour”. However the work of children aged 1418 years, working in hazardous jobs and forgoing their right to education is also against the protection rights of children. In any case, girls work at home helping to run the household as well as help mothers in their paid housemaid work in other households even when they attend school. Lack of education, and opportunities for vocational or skills training ensure that children in the community work at the lowest paid jobs. vii. Malnutrition: Most children suffer from nutritional deficiency in the case study slums as reported by Anganwadi workers and school teachers. Even though nutritional supplements are supposed to be provided by the Anganwadi for children under 5 years and mid-day meals provided to primary school-going children attending government schools, there is no community level data identifying malnourished children or provisions for making special care available to malnourished children. In Nagpur according to the local Anganwadi worker about 35 girls out of 70 between the ages eight to eighteen in Jat Trodi were anaemic.

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Malnutrition is ofcourse in some cases due to insufficient food, but there are also other factors that contribute to it. Provide ref of Bartlett – cities for children     

Insufficient understanding of children’s nutitional needs; young children needs frequent small meals rather than two large meals as the rest of the family dietary patterns that lack proteins and critical micronutrients Inadequate storage of food leading to easy spoiling Unclean utensils due to lack of sufficient and clean water for washing purposes Roadside food from stalls next to heavy traffic roads may have lead contamination from vehicle exhaust fumes.

10.1.2b Recommendations 

Slum surveys must count children across the entire age range of childhood including in the age groups of 0-5 years, 6-14 years, and 15-18 years and identify at-risk children and families.

Identify children suffering from malnutrition, domestic violence; afflicted with any disability; addicted to harmful substances, enagaged as child labor or otherwise out of school; threats to women’s and girls’ safety in the community and make special care and provisions available and provide creative convergence with age specifc child development programs.

Strengthen anaganwadis to serve as child and family development centers offering a range of integrated supportive services including giving children and women easy access to confidential advice and support. Additionally support the creation of good and affordable child care facilities for working mothers. Do background checks and establish codes of conduct for those working with children in all children’s facilities.

Provide income security and income supplements to neediest families through convergence with existing central and state level social security schemes and provide skills training to enable local employment and entrepreneurial activities. Supportive environmental provisions for local enterprises must be created in the design of the redevelopment.

Establish links between all resources for family assistance within the community, both formal and informal. Domestic workload of children should be taken into account while identifying families in need of support and formal assistance. Involve NGOs and voluntary organizations to provide missing services and including individual family support — mediation, assisting with entitlements, service access, respite entitlement, legal aid etc.

Establish services by creating linkages with government schemes on drug and alcohol rehabilitation as well as involving NGOs and the community to educate, and prevent further abuse and engaging youth in constructive activities.

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Work closely with the police to tackle organized crime but also to ensure that youthful offenders are sensitively handled so as not to reinforce negative behavior. If necessary police posts should be created in slums with history of community violence.

Promote youth civic engagement to regularly discuss children’s issues in the community including violation of protection rights and for planning and design of clean and safe spaces for children’s play especially for girls to play outdoors within the neighborhood. Public education and community mobilization for social change must also involve children and youth.

10.2 Provisions These rights pertain to the survival and full development of children. These include the rights to adequate food, shelter, clean water, formal education, primary healthcare, leisure and recreation, cultural activities and information about children’s rights. The Indian Constitution also guarantees children right to equal opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity (Article 39 (f)). 10.2.1 Housing Quality Evaluation from a child rights perspective By adopting a housing rights and sustainable development perspective, provisions pertaining to housing for children are evaluated. 10.2.1a Security of Tenure “Tenure takes a variety of forms, including rental (public and private) accommodation, cooperative housing, lease, owner-occupation, emergency housing and informal settlements, including occupation of land or property. Notwithstanding the type of tenure, all persons should possess a degree of security of tenure which guarantees legal protection against forced eviction, harassment and other threats. States parties should consequently take immediate measures aimed at conferring legal security of tenure upon those persons and households currently lacking such protection, in genuine consultation with affected persons and groups”v A key BSUP goal is provision of security of tenure. Across the 8 case studies barring the two slums—Kongar Nagar 1 and Nayapalli, where communities had land rights, none of the new housing succeeded in providing secure tenure which gave the family unassailable right over the property. The experience of security of tenure across the case studies is tabulated below:

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Table 10.1: Status of Security of Tenure of BSUP Housing Across ACE Case Studies Flatted Karimadom Slum Jat Trodi Slum Madrasi Colony Kalpana Nagar Slum Building Redevelopment Redevelopment, Slum Redevelopment, Typology Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapuram Nagpur Bhopal Bhopal Ownership certificates Residents have Only 30-40% of the No ownership papers are in custody of allotment letter which residents has paid were given as Thiruvananthapuram gives them right to their contribution beneficiary Municipal Corporation stay but not to rent and has received contribution has not for a period of 7 years. out or sell. their ownership been collected. The During this time papers. Others are project was badly families cannot rent occupying their flats constructed being one out or sell their flats. without any proof of of the first in Bhopal, residence. and may be torn down without any compensation to families. Secure NO NO NO NO Tenure In-situ Plotted Housing

Secure Tenure

Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra .

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra

Kongar Nagar I Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani, West Bengal

Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment, Bhubaneswar, Odisha

No ownership papers have been received. Families have receipts which indicate the amount deposited by them under the scheme

No ownership papers, only deposit receipts.

Land belongs to residents. Hence, they have ownership of both land and house.

NO

NO

Houses are allocated only to those families having freehold land tenure or patta. Families thus have undisputed ownership of the property. YES

YES

Emerging Issues 

BSUP by and large failed to provide security of tenure in the new housing. Families do not have the right to rent or sell their properties for a few years in some cases and never in others.

Inter departmental land disputes denied the poor of secure housing and put their future in jeopardy.

Only where people had land rights was secure tenure rights possible in the housing.

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Impact on Children Providing security of tenure ensures a secure base for children to grow up without fear of evictions and with social and emotional stability. Lack of security of tenure affects both immediate welfare and long-term development of children. Across the BSUP projects that promoted a flatted typology, authorities needed to vacate the entire slum or a pocket/cluster to construct the new buildings. Forced evictions inevitably resulted for families that refused to move on their own for various reasons. The experience of witnessing people being forcefully evicted has led to a lack of trust and sense of insecurity in children in these communities. Children’s psychological health is affected when they witness violent evictions. The psychological disorders related to such forced evictions typically include post traumatic stress disorder, recurring nightmares, anxiety, panic, distress and difficulty establishing sense of belonging. Delays in housing delivery had been common across all case studies. This meant families stayed in unhygienic conditions in transit camps longer than anticipated and incurred additional costs in rented accommodations for more than two years in some cases. In the case of Nagpur, of the 279 families who were beneficiaries of BSUP, only 33 have received new houses. The future of the project is uncertain due to a land dispute between the railways and NIT. 30 families with 32 children are staying in the transit camps after demolishing their old houses. Out of these 19 families have refused BSUP houses and thus face an uncertain future with no place to go. Recommendations 

BSUP and future slum redevelopment projects in India must provide legal title to the plots of land occupied by the poor and earmarked for upgradation using government funds and the homes provided under JnNURM such that families obtain the legal recognition to the use of the property as well as have the freedom to trade or use the property as a collateral.

In the process of redevelopment ensure that no evictions take place before families have been provided with alternative house, schooling and other services.

Include costs of transit living for EWS families who had not been accommodated in state provided transit accommodations in the budgeting for redevelopment.

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10.2.1b Affordability “Personal or household financial costs associated with housing should be at such a level that the attainment and satisfaction of other basic needs are not threatened or compromised. Steps should be taken by States parties to ensure that the percentage of housing-related costs is, in general, commensurate with income levels. States parties should establish housing subsidies for those unable to obtain affordable housing, as well as forms and levels of housing finance which adequately reflect housing needs. In accordance with the principle of affordability, tenants should be protected by appropriate means against unreasonable rent levels or rent increases. In societies where natural materials constitute the chief sources of building materials for housing, steps should be taken by States parties to ensure the availability of such materials.”vi Providing a house with secure tenure at an affordable price is a key BSUP goal. The new GOI task force report on promoting affordable housingvii defines an affordable house as “preferably within the price range of 5 times the annual income of the household”. The analysis assumes the average monthly income of a EWS family as Rs.8000 and annual average income as Rs.96000. Based on 2012 rates and assuming an average carpet area of 24 sq mt per family, the cost of an affordable house comes to Rs.5,06,150. The report found an affordability gap of Rs.1,22,150 for this cost model of affordable housing. The task force concedes that at current prices EWS and LIG cannot afford housing without capital and/or interest subsidies. BSUP is an example of capital subsidy by three tiers of government in India in affordable housing for EWS. If future policies on affordable housing is to be guided by this analysis it is worthwhile to share the affordability experience of BSUP housing where the EWS annual income even in the better off communities are far less than what the task force report assumes.

The following table summarizes the affordability of BSUP housing across the 8 case studies: 237


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Table 10.2 - Comparing affordability of housing across case studies Flatted Building Typology

Karimadom Slum Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapuram

Jat Trodi Slum Redevelopment, Nagpur

Madrasi Colony Slum Redevelopment Bhopal

Kalpana Nagar Slum Redevelopment Bhopal

Avg. Annual Income

Rs.72,000

Rs.48,000

Rs.54,000

No information

Cost of DU

Phase 1: about Rs. 3,00,000

Estimated cost /DU in DPR =Rs. 3,25,000 Escalated cost at the time of implementation= Rs 4,25,000

Planned 1,00,000

8.8 times annual income

4.7 times annual income (the actual cost of house)

General= Rs.21,000 SC/ST= Rs. 18,000

Gen = Rs 45,000 SC/ST= Rs.35,000

General= Rs.89,000 SC/ST= Rs. 89,000

Interest on Loans = 12%

Interest Loans= 9%

on

Interest free loans from ULB but high EMI.

In-situ Plotted Housing

Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune

Kongar Nagar I Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani

Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment , Bhubaneswar

Avg. Annual Income

Rs. 60,000

Rs. 60,936

Rs. 57,000

Rs.31,308

Cost of DU

Rs. 3,00,000

Rs. 3,00,000

Planned cost for Phase I: Rs. 1,30,000 Planned cost for Phase II: Rs. 1,60,000 Escalated cost in Phase II:Rs. 3,00, 000

Estimated cost: Rs. 1,00,000

5.3 times annual income (the actual cost of house)

8.6 times annual income (the actual cost of house)

Phase I: Rs.20,000 Phase II: Rs. 25,000 Interest on Loans= 4%

Gen.=Rs.13,000 SC/ST:Rs. 13,000

Phase 2: about Rs. 5,00,000

Affordability 6.9 times of house income Beneficiary Share

times Affordability 5 of house income

Beneficiary Share

annual

annual

General = Rs.36,000 SC/ST = Rs. 30,000 Interest on Loans=2-4%

5 times income

annual

Gen.= Rs.36,000 SC/ST=Rs. 30,000 Interest on Loans =2-4%

cost:

Escalated Rs.2,56,000

Rs.

cost:

Estimated cost: Rs. 1, 00,000 Escalated cost: Rs. 1, 20,000

No Beneficiary Share has been collected as people were antagonized during the housing delivery process.

Escalated cost: Rs. 2,68,000

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Emerging Issues 

BSUP housing irrespective of typology, flatted vs. plotted in-situ housing, was typically unaffordable as housing for the urban poor in the case study projects. The cost of the house varied from 3-10 times the annual income of the household. Lower the initial cost, more hidden expenses for households for getting additional work done for making the house habitable.

Despite capital subsidies or 88-90%, families found it difficult to repay the beneficiary share and in fact took more loans at high interest rates to make houses habitable after completion of construction. In the process children dropped out of school and contributed to family income.

The beneficiary share in RAY is 15% and another 45% of the cost will have to be borne by beneficiaries for which they would be given loans with interest subsidy. From the experience of BSUP, most poor urban families will find this an impossible arrangement and without competent NGOs managing the process and assured income of families, RAY may become more unaffordable than BSUP. Some of the EWS incomes as seen across ACE case studies were much lower than what is assumed for most government schemes.

As per HUDCO directive beneficiary share should not to be more than Rs. 30,000 for SC/ST and Rs. 36,000 for general. However estimates were prepared at 2006 PWD schedule of rates for most BSUP projects and were outdated for construction after 2008 causing much escalation in costs. In cases where NGOs were not present to manage the process, beneficiaries paid much more as cost escalations were passed on to them as in the case of Bhopal and Kalyani. This has a direct impact on women and children as they were forced to engage in additional paid work which was often hazardous in nature.

The central government scheme of Interest Subsidy Scheme for Housing the Urban Poor (ISHUP) to increase borrowing capacity and reduce monthly payments was not availed by beneficiaries in any case study project; banks had little information on the scheme and refused to pass on interest subsidies as BSUP did not integrate it in its housing delivery planning despite the mandate of the 11th Plan. Families ended up paying high interest rates of even 9-12% (Jat Trodi and Karimadom) where NGO or ULB did not mediate to make loans affordable for them.

No convergence of social security measures such as the various pension schemes, health schemes targeting women and children, scheme for prevetion of alcoholism and substance abuse, employment and livelihood schemes, food security schemes, education schemes including adult education and vocational training were attempted through BSUP in any of these projects to protect the urban poor from the heavy costs of procuring a new house under BSUP.

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Impact on Children Even though the beneficiary share for a new house was 10%-12% of the cost of construction, there were additional hidden costs in almost all case studies during transit as well as later to make the houses habitable. Redevelopment increased the expenditure of the family through obligatory payments for services such as water, electricity and maintenance of the house. As average monthly incomes of most families were less than what is considered an average EWS income by GOI children are seen as additional earning sources. This is one of the major reasons for children dropping out of school and seeking work. Since most houses were acquired through loans taken by the women of the house, the extra costs meant extra work for women and children. Working in hazardous conditions has adverse effects on their health. It can cause musculo-skeletal damage, damage to eyesight and adverse effects of exposure to toxins. Excessive fatigue and increased susceptibility to infectious diseases is also a result of this. Recommendations  

Widely publicize existing interest subsidy loans such as ISHUP and incentivize banks to give these loans easily to the urban poor for affordable housing. Integrate existing poverty alleviation programs of the centre (such as SJSRY) and other programs of the state government and urban local body. Interventions in skill development livelihood, health and education in completed projects to ensure the upward mobility of these low income homeowners.

In case of neediest families such as women headed households with young children and disabled heads of households, provide 75-100% subsidy on affordable housing.

Implement the recommendations made by GOI Task Force on Promoting Affordable Housingviii to improve affordability of housing of the urban poor: o ISHUP to take into account the current cost of affordable housing and revise restrictive size of the loan against which the 5% interest subsidy is admissible by increasing it to at least Rs 5 lakhs instead of 1 lakh, and making loans upto Rs 8 lakhs eligible. o A moratorium for 3 years in payment of EMI may be also be considered to relieve the EWS/LIG housing buyers from the burden of paying EMI and house rent simultaneously while the house is under construction. Lending banks may be asked to explore the possibility of deferred payment of EMI and a scheme to this effect either as a component of ISHUP or in any other arrangement should be created. o Each state government and urban local body to initiate programs to create/ support entities that accelerate the home ownership process in low income groups:  Educational programs for financial literacy with respect to home loans.  Active handholding in the process of securing home loans and purchasing houses.  Educating housing finance providers about their new clients.  Develop an instrument to keep the slum/urban poor beneficiary from turning defaulter due to unemployment, death or other genuine distress and thereby risk forfeiture of dwelling unit and foreclosure on loan 240


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10.2.1c Location “Adequate housing must be in a location which allows access to employment options, healthcare services, schools, child-care centers and other social facilities. This is true both in large cities and in rural areas where the temporal and financial costs of getting to and from the place of work can place excessive demands upon the budgets of poor households. Similarly, housing should not be built on polluted sites or in immediate proximity to pollution sources that threaten the right to health of the inhabitantsix� One of the stated objectives of BSUP is to see that the urban poor are provided housing near their place of occupation. All eight ACE case studies fulfilled this criterion. However the environmental and other vulnerability issues make certain locations untenable as was seen in the case of Karimadom in Kerala and Jat Trodi in Nagpur both of which promoted an in-situ redevelopment despite the land and location being untenable for redevelopment. Untenable sites maybe defined as sites that pose undue risk to the safety or health or life of residents or where habitation on such sites are considered contrary to public interestx. Additionally in most of the slums traffic is a hazard making independent mobility of children outside the slum difficult. Location Analysis of Case Study Slums Table 10.3: Tenable vs. Untenable Locations from an environmental perspective Karimadom Slum Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala

Jat Trodi Slum Redevelopment, Nagpur, Maharashtra

Madrasi Colony Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

Kalpana Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

UNTENABLE LOCATION Traffic is a hazard

UNTENABLE LOCATION Traffic is not a hazard

TENABLE LOCATION Traffic is a hazard

UNTENABLE LOCATION Traffic is a hazard

Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra

Kongar Nagar I Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani, West Bengal

Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment, Bhubaneswar, Odisha

TENABLE LOCATION Traffic is a hazard

TENABLE LOCATION Traffic is a hazard

TENABLE LOCATION Traffic is hazard

TENABLE LOCATION Traffic is a hazard not

a

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Emerging Issues 

BSUP had not addressed the issue of untenable locations before adopting an in-situ approach to development as is evident from the hazardous environmental conditions prevalent in most of the case studies such as proneness to flooding; proximity to open sewers, garbage dumps; inadequate drainage and sanitation. All these conditions impact children’s health directly.

Most of the slum locations were surrounded by heavy traffic roads with no pavements or marked crossing zones. Even though integrative planning is a goal of JnNURM including BSUP, slum redevelopment funded by JnNURM did not engage with traffic hazards in the local area as traffic and transportation issues were dealt under UIG and not BSUP.

Impact on Children Children will continue to be marginalized in the redeveloped slums without safe access to the local area and other city level opportunities if such a sectoral approach is adopted which treats slums as discrete pockets divorced from the rest of the city. Heavy vehicular traffic in and around the local area undermines children’s safety. Unsupervised walk on the road can be fatal and lead to accidental injury. Children and young people under 25 account for over 30% of the road accidents.xi Children before the age of 6 and 7 do not have the capacity to localize the sound of an approaching car or the speed at which it is moving and hence, are ill-equipped to deal with traffic.xii BSUP in-situ redevelopments typically neither failed to address environmental hazards present at the site of the slums nor mitigated them before constructing houses thus exposing children to risks of water borne and insect borne diseases in untenable locations and preventable injuries while playing outdoors in unhygienic and unsafe environments. Recommendations Slum redevelopment policy needs to clearly define tenable vs. untenable locations before redevelopment. In this regard the recommendations by NACxiii on RAY guidelines are worth noting that mentions following a clear process to establish the criteria for ‘untenable’ and ‘hazardous’ lands, and urges states to decide on a case to case basis through an open transparent process. It further recommends that the definition of which sites are deemed ‘untenable’ should be clarified in an unambiguous manner. Routes to local schools, parks and playgrounds and other spaces that children from the slums frequent need special design attention. Simple measures such as provisions of signalized pedestrian crossings, well-lit footpaths, signage leading to schools, parks etc, and planting canopy trees along streets with no shade, removing garbage from public sidewalks etc. will make slum redevelopment under JnNURM more inclusive and child friendly.

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10.2.1d Availability of Services, Facilities and Infrastructure “An adequate house must contain certain facilities essential for health, security, comfort and nutrition. All beneficiaries of the right to adequate housing should have sustainable access to natural and common resources, safe drinking water, energy for cooking, heating and lighting, sanitation and washing facilities, means of food storage, refuse disposal, site drainage and emergency services”xiv One of the key BSUP goals and a mandatory reform of BSUP is provision of basic municipal services to slums. Another important BSUP goal is: scaling up delivery of civic amenities and provision of utilities with emphasis on universal access to urban poor

Provisions for Play and Recreation Table 10.4: Play and recreation opportunities for children across case studies Karimadom Slum Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala

Jat Trodi Slum Redevelopment, Nagpur, Maharashtra

Madrasi Colony Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

Kalpana Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

Lack of designated open space for play and loss of street network forces children to use garbage filled open spaces.

There are no organized play and recreational facilities for children in the area despite provision in DPR. Children play around the buildings and the vacated areas of the old slum.

Does not have any dedicated play facilities. Peripheral roads and courtyards are used by children.

Lacks the provision of recreational and play facilities. The central courtyard is the only available play space and the streets outside the development. The park that was provided is controlled by higher income neighbours with no access from Kalpana Nagar.

Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra

Kongar Nagar I Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani, West Bengal

Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment, Bhubaneswar, Odisha

No play facilities have been created through BSUP. Children use the streets or the grounds of the Government School.

No open spaces for children to play. They use the streets for playing.

The residents have access to rolling fields, high school grounds and a designated children’s park. The children prefer to play in the streets or fields as the play equipment in the park is broken.

No provisions for play spaces within the community. Children have access to Kalinga Stadium and playground of nearby government school. Young children play close to their houses.

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Emerging Issues 

Presence of poor and hazardous environments: o The common areas in the community have become a garbage dump due to lack of everyday maintenance. In the absence of other spaces children are forced to play in these unsafe environments. o The presence of open drains, sanitation pits also threaten outdoor play. o Lack of integration of old and new parts of the housing environments make the outdoor spaces uneven and littered with debris.

Lack of awareness of the intrinsic importance of play and recreation: o The traditional play space of slum children, the street in front of the house, is lost in the case of flatted development that got rid of the street. This also erodes the most common hanging out space of adolescent girls.

Barriers to children’s use of public spaces: o Conflict over common space use between groups of children of different ages and children and adults often deprive the younger children from playing outdoors.

Lack of access to nature and natural play environments: o In the absence of these in the local area children actively seek out natural spaces often taking great risks such as crossing heavy trafficked roads. o The deterioration of existing green and natural places due to bad infrastructural planning and design in BSUP further erodes possibilities for natural play.

Pressure for educational achievement: children are discouraged by parents from playing outside as that was seen as a waste of time and instead encouraged to stay indoors and study.

Lack of investment in play, sports and recreational opportunities for children: even when the DPRs had these provisions, they were not implemented.

Impact on Children 

Play and recreation are essential to children’s health and well-being. Children are at a risk of contracting diseases and prone to accidental injuries while playing in garbage strewn, debris-filled open spaces in the community as in most of the BSUP housing sites.

Play promotes the development of creativity, imagination, self-confidence, and physical, social, cognitive and emotional strength and skills and contributes to all aspects of learning.

Lack of safe open spaces and streets in the local area restricts play opportunities for children and especially for adolescent girls. Play and recreation are also a form of

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participation in everyday life, and are of intrinsic value to the child, purely in terms of the enjoyment and pleasure they afford. Recommendations 

Provisions should be made for daily garbage collection and disposal from every street and open space of the community. Play environments should be secure from social harm and violence, and sufficiently free from waste pollution, traffic and other hazards that impede free and safe movement.

Local area planning must place a priority on the creation of inclusive parks, playgrounds and sports and community centers; zones within housing with priority for pedestrians over motorized traffic; access to landscaped and green areas; road safety measures; affordable transport; clubs and facilities for children of all ages; dedicated cultural activities for children of all ages.

Provide opportunities to participate with other children in games, sports and other recreational activities, supported by well-trained facilitators or coaches when necessary.

Early childhood care and development programmes such as AWs often vertically deal with nutrition, immunization and preschool education with little or no emphasis and integration with play, recreation, culture and the arts. Staff running the programmes are not trained to support these aspects of the child’s development needs. Guidance, support and facilitation on the right to play and recreation should be provided for parents and other care givers including AW workers, and primary school teachersxv.

Public awareness needs to be raised through media campaigns and other means by CBOs, NGOs and the ULBs about the significance of play, recreation, rest, leisure and participation in cultural and artistic activities for both boys and girls of all ages in promoting the optimum development of the child and building child friendly communitiesxvi.

NGOs and CBOs active in the community need to work towards changing the pervasive negative attitudes, particularly towards adolescents, which lead to restrictions on the opportunities for the enjoyment of play, recreation, leisure and cultural activities. NGOs/CBOs working in that area should build life skills for children to demand safe and clean spaces as well as participate in the maintenance of their spaces.

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10.2.1e Basic Services Table 10.5 : Provision of basic services-water supply, sanitation, drainage and garbage disposal Flatted Building Typology

Karimadom Slum Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapura m

Jat Trodi Slum Redevelopment, Nagpur

Madrasi Colony Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

Kalpana Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

A. Water Supply and Storage

There is 24X7 water supply from Municipal Corporation. Each house has piped water connection. Families on upper two floors have installed water storage tanks on sloping roofs, due to low water pressure.

People broke their individual piped water connection due to increased expenses and collected drinking water from public standpipes. An overhead water tank stored water from a bore well which supplied water to toilets and kitchens.

Water supply is on alternate days. Timings are not fixed, so water has to be stored. Single water connection to the flat is through the toilet. Residents have made all kinds of arrangements for storing water inside and outside their houses.

Municipal water supply is erratic, supplies once in two or three days in summers. Water is stored in uncovered overhead tanks on inaccessible terraces for supplying to flats.

B. Sanitation

Individual toilets provided in each flat with soil and waste water pipes to dispose toilet waste directly into the city sewerage system.

All flats have been provided with toilets inside the flat with soil and waste water pipes to dispose toilet waste directly into the city sewerage system.

All flats have been provided with a toilet under BSUP. Toilet waste is directly disposed into the city sewerage system.

All flats have been provided with toilets under BSUP. Some residents use toilets for storing water too. Toilet waste is directly disposed into the city sewerage system.

C. Drainage The new housing area has covered drains, which is an improvement from open drains in the old slum and government flats.

The new sewage pipes are already in a dilapidated condition.

Madrasi Colony has uncovered drains.

Kalpana Nagar has a closed drainage system but insufficient drainage provisions in the inner courtyard leads to water logging.

D. Garbage There is no system Disposal of garbage collection and disposal. Garbage is openly thrown all over and the neighborhood acts like a city level garbage disposal area during the city’s garbage crisis.

There is no formal system of garbage disposal. Overflowing trash cans and garbage heaps can be seen littered around the community.

Garbage collection point is right outside the colony but families throw garbage in the open drains. Smaller courts at ground level are filled with garbage.

There is a garbage collection point at the entrance of the colony. BMC collects garbage once every two days but garbage is directly thrown into the courtyards by upper floor residents.

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In-situ Plotted Housing

Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune

Kongar Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani

I

Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment, Bhubaneswar,

A. Water Supply and Storage

Water supply is irregular and inadequate with low water pressure requiring storage and water pumps. Each family was provided with a 500 litre tank under BSUP. Residents use tap water for drinking as Pune has good quality water.

Water supply is regular. Since water pressure is low, families have installed pumps. Each family was provided with a 500 liter tank under BSUP. Tanks are covered and placed on the roof. Residents use tap water for drinking.

There is a single tap water connection, located close to the street with fixed timings of supply. Water is stored in drums, bottles or buckets. Some families have installed PVC external reservoirs on the roof.

Residents do not have piped water connections. They rely on 2 public taps which cater to all families. The tap water is used for drinking and the well water for bathing and washing purposes.

B. Sanitation

All houses have been provided with toilets. Some have opted for separate bath and WC. There are six blocks of public toilets. The toilet waste is directly disposed in the underground sewers.

All houses have been provided with toilets. Some have opted for separate bath and WC. Most families have installed basins themselves. There is one block of public toilets.

All houses under BSUP have been provided with toilets connected to a septic tank. Many houses had built toilets under KUSP program and did not build toilets under BSUP.

BSUP houses have been provided with toilets, but the lack of a sewerage system and water connection to houses makes these toilets redundant. Residents have been using community toilets.

C. Drainage Gandhi Nagar has a closed drainage system and there are no water logging problems. However as people wash their clothes and utensils in the streets there is some standing water around houses.

Mother Teresa Nagar has open drains to dispose of the sewage.

A new open storm water drain was made along the main street discharging directly into the ponds or through a culvert under the streets into the fields leading to environmental degradation of both these environments.

No new drain has yet been provided in BSUP housing. Currently a couple of stretches in the slum have open drains that are clogged with household waste.

D. Garbage Door-to-door Disposal garbage collection. Residents segregate the garbage into wet and dry before the collection.

Open gutters are clogged with garbage. Municipal Corporation sends cleaners to clean these gutters. Residents dump the garbage in the bin on the main road.

Garbage is collected daily from the houses. However, after collection it is dumped in the fields.

There is no system of garbage disposal or collection. Garbage is directly thrown on the streets and in the open drains. The community burns garbage near the community hall.

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Emerging Issues A. Water Supply  Even with regular water supply upper floor flats need to store water due to low water pressure. Flatted redevelopment did not provide for individual water tanks and arrangements made by residents often pose structural threats to buildings. 

In some cases where lack of space and finances do not permit residents to procure proper storage tanks, water is stored in ways which makes it prone to contamination and promoting unhealthy living conditions.

The individual piped water connections have increased household expenses. Families still use public stand posts for drinking water or washing needs to cut down on water bills.

B. Sanitation  Flatted redevelopment projects provided a combined bath and WC which in large households increases the wait time. Children are sent outside for peeing as was seen in the staircase landing in Madrasi Colony, Bhopal. 

In Bhopal, the single water connection was through the bathroom. Residents use a water hose to bring water from the bathroom to the kitchen. This is a culturally unacceptable arrangement in this community, but currently residents have no choice.

The grey water from toilet and kitchen has not been separated from the foul water in most cases. Even when source separation has occurred as in Karimadom, the grey water has not been reused for flushing and gardening.

C. Drainage  Even though most redevelopment projects had budgetary provisions for infrastructure development, open drains are present in most of the case study sites. 

Open storm water drains had been created without proper design and engineering inputs with incorrect slopes leading to water logging and draining into ponds and open fields.

Public spaces had not been adequately drained leading to stagnant pools of water after rains or from washing clothes and utensils outdoors.

D. Garbage Disposal  In flatted redevelopment, the upper floor residents have no sense of ownership over the ground level open spaces and directly throw their garbage in these spaces. 

Even though there is a system for daily garbage collection, there are no provisions for adequately disposing the collected garbage. 248


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Table 10.6: Impact of basic services on children’s wellbeing Impact on children

Water Supply

Sanitation

In the absence of individual piped supply, children especially girls are often responsible for fetching water from public sources where they are subject to long queues and harassment.

Individual toilets in houses are a must especially when young children are involved because young children find it difficult to wait, especially in case of diarrhea.

Insufficient quantity of water could cause diseases, since families compromise on bathing and washing in the absence of individual piped connections.

Children typically are scared of falling in the public toilets and prefer to use the lanes or open drains for defecation. This maximizes possibilities of contact with excreta and hence the many pathogenic microorganisms in the xvii excreta . As these spaces are typically unclean children are also exposed to other disease vectors such as mosquitoes, rats and also are at risk of being attached by stray dogs.

Poor quality of water or unsafe sources causes diseases such as diarrhea, jaundice, typhoid, gastro intestinal ailment. 21% of the communicable diseases in India are related to unsafe water.

Drainage

Garbage Disposal

Open drains are breeding grounds for mosquitoes and vector borne diseases are common in areas with open drains.

Open dumping of garbage reduces the street space available to children for play. It provides a fertile breeding ground for insects, rats, cockroaches and mosquitoes which causes diseases like malaria, chikungunya, etc. Untreated waste material can lead to accidental injury.

Open drains lead to water logging. It reduces the street space available to children for play. Children are at a risk of falling in open drains. Children often defecate into open drains thus contaminating the storm water runoffs.

Untreated sewage can also lead to contamination of the water table.

Diarrhea, typhoid and malaria are a result of lack of proper sanitation. Stunting in children is also related to open defecation.

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Table 10.7: Recommendations for basic services to improve children’s wellbeing Water Supply

Sanitation

Drainage

As part of due diligence of the project, determine the safety of water source and provide for adequate filtration to remove undesirable pollutants if needed.

Provisions for segregated WC and bathrooms, especially in the case of large households.

In water scarce locations, grey water must be separated at source and reused for flushing and gardening purposes.

Provision of affordable individual piped water supply to every household must be ensured. Rain water harvesting must be enforced at the community and building level to supply free water to families for washing needs. DPRs of housing project must include and budget for good quality water storage facilities in the buildings both at the building and apartment level.

Communities’ cultural beliefs should be taken into consideration before designing the toilets. For example, the toilet should not open into the kitchen as most communities think of toilet as an unclean space. Public dissemination campaigns to educate parents about the impact of sanitation on children’s health.

Closed or underground drains should be an integral part of the redevelopment. Adequate drainage slopes should be provided in public places.

Garbage disposal Provisions for household level garbage collection and disposal on a daily basis. Involving locals in collection and sorting of garbage into recyclable and non-recyclable waste and creating employment opportunities around these activities Installing and operating a biogas plant where space is available to adequately recycle waste into usable energy for community facilities such as for lighting purposes.

10.2.1f Community Facilities Table 10.8: Provisions for community facilities across case studies Karimadom Slum Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapuram

Jat Trodi Slum Redevelopment, Nagpur

Madrasi Colony Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

Kalpana Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

Karimadom enjoys access to one community hall (which was used as transit camp) and 3 anganwadis. One new Anganwadi was created using BSUP funds.

No new community facilities were created under BSUP.

One new Anganwadi is run from one of the dwelling units in the BSUP housing.

A community hall was built as part of BSUP which is also used as a madrasa. One new Anganwadi is run from a dwelling unit on the fourth floor of the BSUP housing.

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Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra

Kongar Nagar I Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani, West Bengal

Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment, Bhubaneswar, Odisha

Gandhi Nagar enjoys access to 4 schools. 1 PHC and several government and private hospitals, 2 Anganwadis, 1 community hall, 1 senior citizen centre, 1 library, 1 gym and youth clubs. None of these facilities were created using BSUP funds.

Mother Teresa Nagar has access to a number of schools and colleges within a 5 km radius, a number of government and private hospitals, 1 Anganwadi, 1 community hall and youth clubs. None of these facilities were created using BSUP funds.

One Hospital is located at a distance of 1 km; one SSK located at the entrance of the slum. There are two AWs, one in the interiors of the slum and the other next to the High School. There are two temples on the outskirts of the slum. None of these facilities were created using BSUP funds.

Nayapalli has one community hall which is widely used by men. One Anganwadi runs from a rented premise in a semi-constructed house. None of these facilities were created using BSUP funds.

Impact on Children 

Presence of good functioning integrated child care services in a neighborhood such as an Anganwadi or daycare center greatly improve child health and learning. Lack of such centers also reduces chances of preventive care.

Please see emerging issues and recommendations under Protection. Recommendations

BSUP funds should be used for new social infrastructure and for upgrading the existing community facilities.

Child-care centers should be of high quality and models of safe design and child friendly spaces.

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10.2.2 Habitability “Adequate housing must be habitable, in terms of providing the inhabitants with adequate space and protecting them from cold, damp, heat, rain, wind or other threats to health, structural hazards, and disease vectors. The physical safety of occupants must be guaranteed as well….inadequate and deficient housing and living conditions are invariably associated with higher mortality and morbidity ratesxviii” The National Building Code of India recommends the following as the minimum sizes of affordable housing dwelling units for the urban poor: o o

For Economically Weaker Section (EWS): 21- 27sq.m Carpet Area For Lower Income Group (LIG-A): 28-40 sq.m Carpet Area

As per BSUP Guidelinesxix In all the housing projects the aim should be to provide a decent place of living to the poor. The design and layout of the houses should incorporate following features: i) Carpet area of the house should not be less than 25 square meters under BSUP. ii) House should have two rooms, kitchen, balcony and separate bath and toilet. iii) Design of the houses should ensure proper ventilation and natural lighting. Entrance doors and windows should have a wire mesh. iv) An innovative approach should also be adopted while designing the inner layout of the houses. For example, if a 3ft x 2ft section is extended in the wall in the room and a small section in the kitchen, the poor people would be able to improvise and use them as a shelf for storing things. v) While constructing multi-storey structure efforts should be made to make it disabled-friendly. Construction of ramps instead of conventional staircases is an alternative. vi) There must be sufficient open space and green area within the colony. vii) Layout of the houses should facilitate social interaction among the residents and row-by-row houses are not desirable. The layout design must be socially cohesive.

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Table 10.9: Provisions at house level to make flats/houses habitable Flatted Building Typology

Dwelling Unit

Karimadom Slum Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapuram

Jat Trodi Slum Redevelopment, Nagpur

360 sq. ft. (+ terraces for 50% of the flats)

269 sq. ft. ( 333 sq. including balconies)

Family size = 5

Family size= 5,

Madrasi Colony Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

Kalpana Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

370 sq. ft.

223 sq. ft.

Avg. Family size = 5.8

Avg. Family size = 6.5

per

allotment NOT as per household

allotment NOT as per household

of 1 front room + 1 bedroom + kitchen + bathroom + terrace/veranda

2 rooms + kitchen + bathroom + WC + 2 balconies

1 front room + 1 larger bedroom + kitchen + bathroom + balcony

2 rooms kitchen bathroom balcony

Adequacy Materials are climate of materials sensitive, and fire safe (see table 1.10 for structural and design adequacy)

No water proofing on roof makes houses hot in summer and prone to leaking; materials are fire safe

Poor quality materials and construction jeopardizes family health and wellbeing.

Poor quality materials and construction jeopardizes family health and wellbeing.

Storage

Inadequate storage provided. Due to exposed brick construction, it is difficult to install shelves in the new flats.

There are no in-built cupboards and shelves for storage. Lack of storage leads to items being strewn all over the place.

No provision of shelves and almirahs. Some residents use the floor, others use balcony or mid landings for storage.

No storage facility has been provided. Residents have nailed chairs, bags, baskets, etc. to the wall to act as shelves.

Cooking arrangeme nts

Most households use wood fires for slow cooking of rice in addition to LPG. Wood fired stoves are used in terraces, verandas and in the absence of these spaces in streets and kitchens.

Most households use LPG. Since, it is not easy to get a cylinder; they use wood fires as an alternative and plastic to get the fire going. Cooking is done indoors.

Most households use cooking stoves with LPG as main fuel. Cooking is done indoors.

Most households use cooking stoves with kerosene or cooking gas. Cooking is done indoors.

Home The new flats have not based work adequately provided for home-based work such as scrap sorting or meat cutting or for peeling vegetables and managing garbage associated with chip making businesses.

There is a provision for a separate dwelling unit to carry out home-based work, but no one has been allotted that flat yet.

No provision for home-based work. Very few families do home based work as most residents are engaged in construction work and stone cutting.

No provision made. Space in between housing units used for automobile repair or papad making. A few front rooms serve as small shops.

allotment household No. spaces

per

allotment household

+ + +

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In-situ Plotted Housing

Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune, Maharashtra

Kongar Nagar I Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani, West Bengal

Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment, Bhubaneswar, Odisha

Dwelling Unit

270 sq. ft.

270 sq. ft.

270 sq. ft.

Family size = 5

Family size = 5

272 sq. ft. (Phases I&II); 372 sq. ft. in Phase III Family size = 5 allotment per household

2 rooms + kitchen + bathroom + terrace

2 rooms + bathroom

2 rooms bathroom veranda

allotment household No. spaces

per

of 2 rooms + kitchen + bathroom + balcony + terrace

allotment household

per

Family size = 4.4 allotment household

per + +

Adequacy of materials (see table 1.10 for structural and design adequacy)

Materials are climate appropriate, and fire safe. However cracks have appeared on walls due to bad workmanship.

Materials are climate appropriate, and fire safe. However cracks have appeared on walls due to bad workmanship.

Materials are fire safe but lack of proper ventilation makes the houses climate inappropriate.

External plastering of walls incomplete and internal paintwork incomplete making the homes unhealthy for occupation.

Storage

A 10 feet long loft has been provided in each house for storage but people have built extra shelves and cupboards. The space under the staircase is also being used for storage.

A 10 feet long loft has been provided in each house but people have built extra shelves and cupboards and use the space under the staircase for storage.

Overhead storage slabs have been provided in the houses. But, that is not sufficient.

There are no built-in shelves or cupboards. Residents had to pay extra for this. On payment overhead storage space was provided.

Cooking arrangeme nts

Gas cylinders are used for cooking food indoors and wood fires are used for heating water outside the house on the street during winters. Plastic bags, newspapers are some of the materials used to get the wood fire going.

Gas cylinders are used for cooking food indoors and wood fires are used for heating water outside the house on the street during winters.

Since there is no separate kitchen, cooking is either done on the floor inside a multipurpose room or outside. Most families use firewood, charcoal or kerosene as only few families can afford cooking gas.

Food is cooked in one of the rooms on the floor or outside on the street. Wood is used for cooking. Kerosene is used to light the wood.

Home There are no provisions based work for home-based work.

Under BSUP no commercial use was allowed and hence no provision was made for families to carry on their home based work.

There are no spaces for homebased work. But due to large plots, women and children sit outside houses and roll beedis.

There are provisions home-based work.

no for

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Emerging Trends 

In most redevelopments, the residents have been allotted a larger dwelling unit than their previous house.

In flatted redevelopment, there is little to no scope for incremental expansion.

In some redevelopments, separate households within a single family have not been allotted individual dwelling units and this has led to overcrowding.

Inadequate storage was found across all redevelopment projects.

Effective floor area reduces due to lack of storage as things tend to pile up all over.

Adequate provisions were made for indoor cooking spaces in most redevelopment projects.

Due to rising prices of LPG and difficulties in booking a cylinder, most communities use wood fire for cooking. There are no adequate household level open spaces provided for this except for the terraces in Karimadom and often narrow, unclean streets are used as a default space for cooking on wood-fired stoves.

Due to high costs of housing, women and children are forced to work to contribute to the family income and help in reducing the debt burden of the family. Often such work is homebased but no multipurpose rooms have been provided to accommodate for home-based work.

Impact on Children 

Crowding is directly related to the floor space provided, number of people living in the flat and this is directly related to allotment by household or per structure. Impact on health of children includes respiratory insufficiency and pulmonary problems due to poor ventilation in the overcrowded house. Overcrowding hinders social and emotional development of the child. It is linked with behavioral difficulties at school, heightened vulnerability, poor academic achievement and impaired parent child relationships.xx

Inadequate storage results in people using floor space to store belongings resulting in insufficient space for children.

Cooking indoors on wood fired ovens is hazardous for children’s health. Wood smoke interferes with normal lung development in infants and children. It also increases children’s risks of lower respiratory infections. Also small children are at the risk of being burned due to open fires. Bronchitis, pneumonia, burns and acute respiratory infections are a result of this.

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 

Lack of vocational training and formal education forces children and families to engage in hazardous work. Unsuitable and hazardous work has many direct effects on development like diseases related to exposure to hazardous materials. Stunted development in children is also a result of this.

It also impacts by taking away the positive experiences of childhood.

Recommendations 

Allocation of housing units should be done by household and not per existing structure to reduce crowding in the new houses.

Provision of play spaces, study centers and home-based work areas helps alleviate the effects of overcrowding on children.

Provision of house level open spaces to accommodate activities like washing and drying clothes, slow-cooking rice as well as for play and recreation.

Incremental housing should be promoted wherever possible.

Provision of adequate storage facilities of both open and closed type to enable safe storage of poisonous liquids, medicines, sharp objects and other potentially hazardous items away from children.

Inadequate storage can cause accidents and injuries. Accidental injury is potentially high for infant toddlers.

Culturally adequate cooking spaces should be provided.

Segregation of cooking and sleeping areas.

Affordable, safe and fuel-efficient cooking equipments should be promoted and subsidized through the housing schemes such as smokeless chulhas, biogas and solar ovens.

Surveys should collect data on home-based work and that should be taken into consideration while designing the house layouts.

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10.2.2a Structural and other Hazards due to Design Failures Table 10.10: Structural and other Hazards due to Design Failures Karimadom Slum Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapuram

Sloping roofs above the single flight central staircase affords a long and challenging plane for sliding down and children make use of this from their terraces at great risk.

Jat Trodi Slum Redevelopment, Nagpur

Madrasi Colony Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

The electric meters are uncovered and accessible to children.

The inner courtyards can be accessed through an opening which is less than 5 ft. in height.

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune

Kongar Nagar I Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani

Kalpana Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

Punctures in roof slabs have been done by residents to access the inaccessible roofs where open water tanks have been placed. Rough cement floors of the house are difficult to keep clean and young children are susceptible to injuries on such rough surfaces.

Rough cement floors are difficult to keep clean and young children are susceptible to injuries.

Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune

Open staircase landings are dangerous for children.

Open staircases without railings are dangerous for children and adults.

Inaccessible terraces have led to make-shift arrangements. The houses have inadequately designed openings such as windows and ventilators leading to thermal discomfort.

Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment, Bhubaneswar

Inaccessible terraces have led to residents constructing external staircases without railings. Rough cement floors of the house are difficult to keep clean. Inadequately designed windows cause thermal discomfort.

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Emerging Issues 

Inaccessible terraces have led people to use temporary ladders and staircases without railings, which can cause accidents.

Railings were not provided around the staircase landings.

Mild steel staircases caused accidents and injuries among both adults and children.

The current layouts suggest that children’s safety and security is not a consideration while designing the house layouts.

Impact on Children 

Structural hazards can lead to accidents and injuries. According to WHO Report on Child Injury Prevention, nearly 830,000 children die from unintentional or accidental injuries in low income and middle income countries.xxi

On rough difficult to clean floors young children are susceptible to injuries

Children reported being unable to sleep due to thermal discomfort in the new houses as they are not climatically suitable to the hot humid climate such as in Kalyani and Bhubaneswar.

Recommendations 

Make technical and material assistance available to implementers of affordable housing to ensure child friendly and healthful houses.

Houses should be designed keeping safety in mind especially paying attention to preventing injuries for children inside and outside the house.

The communities’ needs should be incorporated while designing the houses.

Select the most efficient and economical building materials which are suitable for local conditions and use appropriate construction techniques to support children’s health.

10.2.3 Accessibility “Adequate housing must be accessible to those entitled to it. Disadvantaged groups must be accorded full and sustainable access to adequate housing resources. Thus, such disadvantaged groups as the elderly, children, the physically disabled, the terminally ill, HIVpositive individuals, persons with persistent medical problems, the mentally ill, victims of natural

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disasters, people living in disaster-prone areas and other groups should be ensured some degree of priority consideration in the housing sphere. Both housing law and policy should take fully into account the special housing needs of these groups. Within many States parties increasing access to land by landless or impoverished segments of the society should constitute a central policy goal. Discernible governmental obligations need to be developed aiming to substantiate the right of all to a secure place to live in peace and dignity, including access to land as an entitlement.xxii� Table 10.11: Accessibility of housing for different vulnerable groups Flatted Building Typology

Karimadom Slum Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapuram

Jat Trodi Slum Redevelopment, Nagpur

Madrasi Colony Slum Redevelopment Bhopal

Kalpana Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

Elderly

Through the allocation strategies, an effort was made to allocate ground floor flats to elderly residents; there are families with dependent elders in upper floor flats.

No provision for allocation of ground floor flats for elderly, hence they may have to climb four floors.

No provision for allocation of ground floor flats for elderly, hence they may have to climb four floors.

No provision for allocation of ground floor flats for elderly, hence they may have to climb four floors.

Women

There are 157 female headed households. Many of whom are young widows, unmarried mothers and abandoned women with children. Carrying daily needs items and children to the upper floors on a daily basis and in sickness is not an easy task for undernourished women and children.

Women and young girls fill drinking water from the public stand post. More than four trips are required to meet the family’s water requirements. For families residing in the top floor, this entails climbing up three floors with a heavy load of water several times a day.

Women and girls are responsible for storing water in assorted vessels everyday from the bathroom tap and store them in any available space. The quality of construction being poor, it is difficult for women to keep the flats clean.

Women and girls are responsible for storing water in assorted vessels everyday from the bathroom tap. The quality of construction being poor, it is difficult for women to keep the flats clean. Women lost their home based work opportunities.

Children

The children were used to playing in the streets of the slum outside their homes. In their new housing they are disconnected from this habitual play space. The new development failed to create adequate and age and gender specific play and recreational resources for children of Karimadom. Lack of integration of old and new areas make the outdoors unsafe and uneven.

Children have no access to the flat terrace and they only play in the landings and in the stilted portion of the ground floor which is not a safe place due to exposed electricity meters and wiring. The outdoor spaces have stagnant water and uncollected garbage.

The terraces are accessible to outsiders making them unsafe for children’s use. The staircase landings are narrow and the inner courtyards filthy making it difficult for younger children to play near home. Heavy traffic outside the development makes other nearby places inaccessible especially for girls.

The terraces are in accessible and cannot be used by children or families. The staircase landings are narrow and the inner courtyard too open and common making it difficult for younger children to play near home.

Disabled

Through the allocation strategies, an effort was made to allocate ground floor flats to the differently abled.

The buildings and flats are not provided with universal access. No allocation strategy for differently abled.

The buildings and flats are not provided with universal access. No allocation strategy for differently abled.

The buildings and flats are not provided with universal access. No allocation strategy for differently abled. 259


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In-situ Plotted Housing

Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune,

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune

Kongar Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani

I

Nayapalli Slum Redevelopment, Bhubaneswar,

Elderly

The BSUP project was unable to create a barrier free environment for the residents. The houses which have been built on a smaller footprint have narrow, steep, mild steel staircases which are not easy to use for the elderly.

The BSUP project was unable to create a barrier free environment for the residents. The houses which have been built on a smaller footprint have narrow, steep, mild steel staircases which are not easy to use for the elderly.

As the BSUP housing are in addition to existing old houses in large plots, the elderly in most families continued to stay in the older kutcha homes and continued to cook in makeshift kitchens.

Though ground floor units are most common, double and triple storied houses were constructed in case of multiple households in a family. Elderly members then had no choice of units in case their families received a first floor flat.

Women

Women continue to wash clothes and utensils outside in the streets to avoid paying too much for water. The open steep steel staircase in some houses makes child minding difficult for adults. Women are still subjected to wood fire pollution when they heat water outside their homes in winter.

The unprotected cut-outs in the floors for the steel staircases make child minding keeping young children safe from harm difficult for women. Women continue to wash clothes and utensils and heat water in wood fired stoves in winter outside in the streets.

The new houses have not reduced women’s burden of work as they have to move between disconnected rooms and sometimes across open courtyards to different functional spaces. There is no functional kitchen or attached toilets created in new housing.

Women and girls continue to live with indignity and at risk to their health due to continued use of unsafe public toilets in the community; lack of clean water at home; inadequate cooking provisions and substance abuse in men and boys.

Children

There is no space for children to play in Gandhi Nagar. They use the streets for playing. The new development failed to take into account the play and recreational needs of the children.

The mild steel staircases are not easy to use for the children. No parapet has been provided around the floor cut outs for staircases, which increases the chances of accidental injury.

Due to bad planning and engineering inputs, the ponds, rolling fields which are the habitual play spaces of children are degraded due to discharge of untreated waste water and garbage. The flat terraces are also not accessible.

The project did not create any new facilities for children or improve existing ones such as the AW. But it did take away the only open space available for playing and the traditional house front open spaces.

Disabled

The mild steel staircases are not easy to use for the differently abled and mentally challenged.

The mild steel staircases are not easy to use for the differently abled.

The BSUP housing did not promote a barrier free environment.

The project made the public places more uneven due unfinished public works and construction.

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Emerging Issues 

All BSUP projects studied by ACE failed to create a barrier free environment. In the flatted typology of BSUP housing, it is not easy for many groups such as the elderly, pregnant women, disabled, and women with young children to walk-up four floors. Even though in Karimadom the elderly, disabled and mentally ill beneficiaries had preference of ground floor apartments, many such people were not heads of families or direct beneficiaries and had to live in top floor apartments with their families.

For women carrying daily needs items, water filled vessels and children to the upper floors on a daily basis and in sickness is not an easy task.

Lack of access to flat terraces or clean and adequate play spaces near the houses robbed them of the right to play and recreation.

Impact on Children 

In their new flatted housing children are disconnected from the habitual play spaces in the streets and open spaces near home. Terraces and staircase landings to some extent provide near home play spaces but cannot replace the community spaces.

Lack of provisions of parks and playgrounds, and the loss of the streets mean that boys typically play in garbage strewn open spaces and streets. As community spaces are limited, fights are common between different groups of children, young people and adults.

For girls with limited mobility licenses, hanging out with friends immediately outside the house often are the only option. The new developments failed to create adequate and age and gender specific play and recreational resources for children.

Projects failed to take way the drudgery of household chores for young girls due to inadequate basic services and further subjected them to indignity and health risks due to unsanitary and unsafe living conditions.

Recommendations 

BSUP and other future slum redevelopment projects must mandate creation of barrier free environments in all public spaces of the housing.

There should be a clear allocation policy for providing universally accessible dwelling units in the ground floor for differently abled, mentally challenged, the elderly, and for women headed households with young children.

Women and girls need to feel safe while accessing public facilities (refer to recommendations under Protection)

In-house toilets and affordable piped water supply with adequate supply should be ensured. 261


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Provision of play and recreation facilities around home and in the community should be mandated.

10.2.4 Cultural Adequacy “The way housing is constructed, the building materials used and the policies supporting these must appropriately enable the expression of cultural identity and diversity of housing. Activities geared towards development or modernization in the housing sphere should ensure that the cultural dimensions of housing are not sacrificed, and that, inter alia, modern technological facilities, as appropriate are also ensured.xxiii” Table 10.12: Cultural adequacy of redeveloped housing Karimadom Slum Redevelopment, Thiruvananthapuram

Jat Trodi Slum Redevelopment, Nagpur

Madrasi Colony Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

Kalpana Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Bhopal

There are no household level open spaces for washing and cooking. No madrasa has been provided despite a Muslim majority population.

Houses are culturally adequate, but the residents prefer incremental housing.

The toilet opens into the kitchen. The single water connection is in the toilet—a culturally unacceptable arrangement.

The community’s religious practices have not been considered and no space has been provided for goat rearing.

Gandhi Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune

Mother Teresa Nagar Slum Redevelopment, Pune

Kongar Nagar I Slum Redevelopment, Kalyani

Nayapalli Redevelopment, Bhubaneswar

The houses built under BSUP are by and large culturally adequate. The cultural and religious needs of the community have been a factor in designing the layout of the house.

The houses designed at Mother Teresa Nagar evolved through a dynamic process where the personal preferences, which are often culturally mediated, shaped the final designs.

The community had been used to a courtyard type of living on large plots. The new housing typology in creating a linear two-roomed block destroyed the cultural possibility of outdoor living.

The new house design failed to incorporate the deep covered verandah as in older slum houses that protects from climate and enables multiple spatial practices of families while retaining a connection with the larger community.

Slum

Emerging Issues 

Wherever a typical house layout had been used without consulting with the family, culturally inadequate houses were created.

The projects that involved people in a participatory process to design houses, produced layouts and spaces that were more in tune with the community and family preferences.

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Impact on Children 

Culturally inadequate houses make inhabitable homes and inhospitable outdoor spaces.

Cultural practices related to food preparation and storage was not considered while designing the layouts of the BSUP houses.

There is an adverse impact on religious spaces like madrasas, which increases the restrictions in mobility of adolescent girls.

Recommendations 

Initial surveys should incorporate the community’s aspirations and lifestyle according to which the house should be designed. The community should be involved in the survey process and discussing its findings before finalizing the DPR.

Maximize resident’s participation in planning, house design and service provision.

10.3 Sustainability In the context of increasing debates around climate change and commitments by national governments to make sustainable development a mandatory goal of development as enshrined in the National Urban Housing and Habitat Policy (2007) and the new National Mission on Sustainable Habitat (2010), it is important to realize the natural convergence between sustainability principles as outlined in the Brundland Commission (1987) and children’s rights: “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. And this can only be achieved through the simultaneous pursuit of economic, social and environmental/ecological goals within future developments. 10.3.1 Economic Sustainability BSUP funded redevelopment despite its mandate typically failed to provide economic sustainability through creation of opportunities for income at the house or community level and even stopped some forms of existing home based work without providing viable alternatives. Across the BSUP case studies very little attention had been paid to promoting new employment generating activities or preserving home based work. In some DPRs such as in Karimadom community work cluster centers for women and market kiosks for vegetable vendors were proposed. Work centers are not yet built and kiosks are unsuccessful. The Jat Trodi slum redevelopment DPR proposed creating livelihood centers, and providing separate flats for licensed home-based businesses. These had not been provided and people have little information about these. Barring these two cases out of eight projects, no other DPR promoted any facilities for local businesses. In addition in the flatted housing the design of the buildings and flats eroded opportunities for many of the forms of home-based work of the community.

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In the in-situ plotted housing projects no provisions were made in DPR for creating opportunities for employment and income-generating activities in the local area. The focus of redevelopment was simply on converting kutcha houses to pucca houses. No mixed uses were promoted at the settlement level nor were commercial uses allowed out of houses. This limits opportunities for home based work for many families. In the poorer communities of Nayapalli and Kongar Nagar-I, no skills training or vocational training were provided to create new opportunities for a community with little formal education and training. Impact on Children 

Children are forced to work either invisibly at home or in paid work outside. Though it was more common to see children dropping out of school at 14 years to engage in paid work across the case studies, in Nayapalli, the most impoverished community in our research, many children under 14 years work in paid jobs and some of these children have never been to school.

Even though children are allowed to work in non-hazardous jobs after 14, their future and health prospects are severely undermined when they drop out of school and engage in long hours of daily wage work.

The work of girls is more invisible as they take care of home as well as assist their mothers in the housemaid work while still attending school. But chances of finishing school under such circumstances are difficult.

Recommendations 

Community development to include study centers to help children cope better with formal education in school. Bridging classes to prevent children from dropping out of school and non-formal learning centers for working children should be developed.

To stop marginalization of girls promote income generating and skill building programmes for parents to help increase family incomes to keep children longer in school and provide needed educational support.

10.3.2 Social Sustainability BSUP typically failed to promote social equity by providing access to community facilities including those for health, education, child care, play and recreation as well as to protective services for the social problems such as substance abuse, child labor, domestic violence, malnutrition etc. Across the case studies DPRs have promoted social facilities such as study centre, library, PHC, Anganwadi, TV kiosk, market, community hall, park and garden. At the end of seven 264


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years of BSUP, only one new Anganwadi had been built in Karimadom, one flat each in Madrasi Colony and Kalpana Nagar are used as an Anganwadi. One park and a community centre had been built in Kalpana Nagar across the road from the housing of which the park is inaccessible to the residents as the entry to the park is from the side of the neighboring middle income colony and erstwhile slum dwellers are not welcome to use this space. No attention to social problems present in each of these case study communities such as substance abuse, child labor, domestic violence, malnutrition etc. were addressed through protective strategies either through direct intervention such as creating drug and alcohol rehabilitation facilities and services or through preventive strategies such as providing safe places in the community for women and girls where regular counseling and awareness generation can happen. In Karimadom the dwelling units are not socially equitable. Only 50% of the flats have terrace access while the total floor space of the top floor flats with two terraces adds upto 600 sq feet. These flats have been allotted through political connections. If different flat areas are promoted in a building with some flats with more expansion possibilities, these should be priced more and not left to the discretion of local power bases for allocation to ensure a more equitable distribution of housing. Impact on Children The lack of social spaces in poor communities undermines children’s development and well being in significant ways. Community ties grow stronger when adequate common spaces are provided for socializing, celebrating, play and recreational purposes. As pressures of poverty can contribute to abuse in crowded homes, children need common facilities and safe spaces to engage in meaningful activities with peers and be in contact with caring adults who can advise them and assuage their fears. Recommendations 

Promote well designed community facilities such as community halls, study centers, Anganwadis, designed streets and open spaces to support children’s wellbeing, play, recreation, cultural activities and local festivities.

Create multi-purpose safe places in unsafe and violent neighborhoods to provide safe recreational, social and learning opportunities to children and adolescents especially girls.

Provide access to other social services provided by NGOs, CBOs and other groups within the community

Train youth workers to teach young people positive skills for coping and decision making.

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10.3.3 Environmental Sustainability BSUP typically failed to promote green strategies in redevelopment and protect the already degraded environment in the slums. In many projects redevelopment contributed to further deterioration of the environment through incorrect planning and design strategies. Among the case study slums, Karimadom DPR promoted several green strategies such as providing smokeless chulhas to beneficiary families, de-silting the sewage pond, bio-fencing around the pond, a biogas plant, and rainwater harvesting. Unfortunately none of these had been commissioned even at the end of BSUP. The community itself rejected the smokeless chullah thinking that it would cause delay in housing delivery, a decision that it regrets today. In addition, the lack of integration between old and newer parts of the development caused water logging problems for the older areas as the new housing were raised by 4 feet. Mother Teresa Nagar DPR proposes rain water harvesting, and solar powered street lights. Nayapalli DPR proposes a garden and plantation of trees. None of these have yet been commissioned. In some cases such as Kongar Nagar-I and Nayapalli the existing environment degraded further due to bad planning and engineering inputs. None of the case study projects except Karimadom to some extent experimented with alternate design thinking using low cost and environment friendly techniques and materials. Impact on Children “Children are especially vulnerable to many environmental hazards, both in terms of their threshold for damage and the constraints that such hazards place on their freedom within their surroundings. The goals of sustainable development support social equity, and hence the integrity of the social fabric, in ways that affect children more profoundly than anyone else. xxiv” (p. 16-17). Urban children living in poverty are considered to be particilulalry vulnerable to climate change both to exteme events and changing weather patternsxxv Recommendations 

Recognize the deep connection between the principles of sustainable development and child rights and promote both in future slum redevelopment projects to improve children’s lives.

Adopt a non-negotiable commitment to promote greater social and economic equity while limiting social and environmental degradation within slum redevelopment.

Provide opportunities to children and youth to participate in community decision-making with people of all ages and encourage young people to champion environmental causes in their local and city environments. 266


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Promote community sustainability centers within local schools and community centers at the neighborhood level to regularly monitor environmental quality to prevent the local environment from degradation and promote pro-environmental practices such as recycling garbage, rain-water harvesting, recycling and reusing water, harnessing solar energy for street lighting, greening of open spaces, creating innovative play and recreation spaces for outdoor activities. Children and youth could take a leading role in making neighborhood development more sustainable through such initiatives.

Climate adaptation agendas must focus on the realities of slum dwelling children.

10.4 Participation Rights The United Nation Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC, 1989) sets the foundational principles of children’s participation in both theory and practice by acknowledging children’s civil and political rights most notably through Article 12 (the right to express views freely, and the right to be heard in any judicial and administrative proceedings affecting the child) and also through Articles 13, 14, 15 and 16, which provide the child the right to freedom of expression, freedom of thought, conscience and religion, rights to peaceful assembly and rights to privacyxxvi. Addressing concerns of urban children began in earnest after the almost universal ratification of the UNCRC and as a result of global trends in rapid urbanization and increasing populations of children in cities. Local Agenda 21 (1992), Habitat Agenda (1996), and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), together underpin a new vision of the urban child as citizens who have rights and the capacity for improving their own lives and the communities in which they live. Governments of course have the responsibility of promoting traditional concerns of protection of children and provisions of basic needs and services. These new trends now demand creations of new structures for participation of children in decisions that affect their lives. India which ratified the convention in 1992, through its various schemes and provisions has been championing the cause of child rights. National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) affirms that child participation is integral to child rights. Hence, rules of the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005 under Rule 17(e) and (d) mandate that the Commissionxxvii:   

Ensures that the work of the Commission is directly informed by the views of children in order to reflect their priorities and perspectives Promotes, respects and seriously considers the views of children in its work and in that of all government departments and organizations dealing with children Despite being a signatory to all the above international processes and national commitments, India is yet to implement children’s participation in decisions that affect children’s lives in a meaningful way

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10.4.1 BSUP and Children’s Participation According to Census 2001, 41.1 % of India’s population comprise children under 18 years of age and 47.9% of India’s population comprise young people under 21 years of age (corresponding figures from Census 2011 are not yet available). Given this youthful demographic profile, children and youth participation in large scale urban programs is not only necessary but urgent to create a new generation capable of managing and planning better Indian cities. BSUP which seeks to improve, upgrade and redevelop slums, advocates for a participatory process. BSUP policy does not directly mention inclusion of children in the process but places strong emphasis on community centered development which includes children and their issues. Across all eight ACE case studies, the level of community participation varies from project to project. BSUP guidelines do not define the level and extent of people’s participation in any of its guidelines. Children, though identified by NCPCR and other state agencies as individuals with separate needs from that of adults, have not been included in the processes of decision making anywhere. In all the case studies, community participation had been the implementing agency’s prerogative. Participation in the context of BSUP housing took place as per the understanding of the agency and willingness of the political and local authority to engage with communities. 10.4.2 Children’s Participation and CDPs Except the CDP of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, none of the other CDPs from the case study cities have featured children as stakeholders in the city’s development process. The Thiruvananthapuram CDP proposes a structure of children’s participation building on the existing children’s neighborhood networks of Bal Sabhas under Kudumbashree as the bottom of the pyramid to suggesting apex city level participatory structures for children. The CDP proposes a Bal Nagar Sabha or a Children’s Municipal Corporation as the apex body where children’s issues as discussed in neighborhood groups will find representation and space for participation in the city’s development. Among other CDPs that do mention children in the ACE case study cities, Bhubaneswar CDP sees children and women as a “vulnerable group”. The Bhubaneswar CDP talks about convergence of services and programs and about involving women and children from project formulation to implementation to achieve sustainability of projects but offers no further information or explanation. In Nagpur there was tokenistic children’s participation where children were involved in making drawings and writing essays about the future of Nagpur. Even though some of these drawings and writings are part of CDP presentations of Nagpur, it is unclear how or whether any of the children’s recommendations were incorporated in the CDP. CDPs have typically defined provisions for children as parks, study centers, home for destitute children and Anganwadis. This shows a limited understanding of the facilities that children require in a city to attain their full developmental potential and grow up as happy, healthy citizens. India is estimated to become the world’s youngest country by 2020 with 64% of its 268


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population in the working age groupxxviii. Against this backdrop, it becomes increasingly important to include children in decision making processes to enable the creation of a more competent and aware citizenry. 10.4.3 Experiences of Participation in ACE BSUP Case Studies The strong and focused vision for children and their participation in the Thiruvananthapuram CDP failed to secure children’s participation in the most awarded BSUP slum redevelopment project in that city: Karimadom. Mother Teresa Nagar in Pune saw the most intense people’s participation in the planning and design stages of the redevelopment. This was possible due to the relentless support from the implementing agency, local corporators and architects who sat with individual households and made changes in design. Even though Pune had the best example of people’s participation in BSUP it did not include children in the process. Children’s neighborhood networks or Mitra Mandals were present in these communities but were only active during festivals. However, children would usually hang around during the discussion sessions with parents and be peripherally involved. This was evident in focused group discussions that ACE had with children in Pune; children were aware of the phases of development and issues related to each phase of housing delivery. On the other hand, Kalpana Nagar in Bhopal had no people’s participation in the process. As a matter of fact beneficiaries did not even know the purpose of the building which was being built next to their slum till the time they were served with notices to vacate their houses and asked to move into the new apartments immediately or face forceful eviction. For an integrated analysis of participation rights across 8 ACE case studies see Annexure 9. For the purpose of understanding the extent of community participation across the cases, the case studies are categorized according to their typologies: in-situ flatted and in-situ plotted redevelopment. The most important stages in each typology are highlighted for understanding the extent of participation. Annexure 9 summarizes the nature of community participation and highlights the engagement of women and children wherever applicable. Emerging Issues 

Children’s participation in BSUP housing did not automatically take place in the context of existing Bal Sabhas (Thiruvananthapuram) or Mitra Mandals (Pune) or Yuva Sanghas (Kalyani).

Most of these children’s networks were involved with cultural activities around religious and other festivals. Discussing local issues including area level development and being in the forefront of social change were not part of their agenda.

In cases where NGOs and their partners engaged in a participatory process, children and youth were not involved nor was there any demand generation around children’s issues by

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women’s groups except around education through the adult centered participatory processes. 

The focus of community participation in the most prominent cases (Pune) was to further individual household interests and not community interests.

Recommendations 

Develop capacities of the local self-help groups like Kudumbashree, Mahila Milan and other community based organizations involved with community development in slums to recognize the capacities of children and youth and involve them in collective action for improving local areas.

Encourage the formation of children’s clubs and networks to retain their spontaneous activities of play, recreation and cultural activities but also work in close collaboration with other neighborhood networks such as women’s groups on local area planning, design and monitoring projects.

Involve environmental and development NGOs working on children’s rights to conduct demand generation activities in the community with CBOs and the community so that women, families and children understand the rationale for making the redevelopment child and environment friendly and demand changes that will promote safety, good health and holistic development of children through planning and design.

Involve women and children in collecting data for baseline surveys and to identify the local issues pertaining to children and young people prior to finalizing the plans.

Prioritize the activities based on findings of the baseline survey in the community and share the findings through several different consultations with the women, young mothers, boys and girls above 8 years and teenagers to make the design truly child and women friendly and contextually relevant.

Inform the CDP which is supposed to be revised every 5 years and the DPRs for individual slum redevelopment projects for incorporating the ideas generated through the consultative processes.

Create awareness among the urban local body and politicians (MLA) on children’s rights and aspects of making slum redevelopment child friendly, and implications of ignoring children’s interests in local area development.

Through the participatory process promote awareness about long-term sustainability of projects through needs for improving environmental quality in the local area, and promoting new public spaces which may need putting community interests over individual interests in some cases. 270


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References i

UNICEF. (2008). Summary of Highlights from: Global Child Protection Systems Mapping Workshop, Bucharest, Romania. Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/videoaudio/PDFs/global_child_protection_workshop.pdf ii

United Nations. (n.d.). Official list of MDG indicators. http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/Host.aspx?Content=Indicators/OfficialList.htm

Retrieved

from

iii

National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (n.d.).Mandate of the NCPCR. Retrieved from http://www.ncpcr.gov.in/mandate_commission.htm iv

Ministry of Women and Child Development. (n. d). Child Protection in the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-2012): Sub Group Report. Retrieved from http://wcd.nic.in/wgchilprotection.pdf v

UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR). (1991). General Comment No. 4: The Right to Adequate Housing (Art. 11 (1) of the Covenant). Retrieved from http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/469f4d91a9378221c12563ed0053547e vi

Ibid.

vii

Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation. (2012). Task Force on Promoting Affordable Housing. Retrieved from http://www.naredco.in/notification/pdfs/Draft%20Task%20Force%20Report%20on%20Promoting%20Affo rdable%20Housing.pdf viii

Ibid.

ix

UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR). (1991). General Comment No. 4: The Right to Adequate Housing (Art. 11 (1) of the Covenant). Retrieved from http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/469f4d91a9378221c12563ed0053547e x

Goel, S. L. & Dhaliwal, S. S. (2004). Slum improvement through participatory urban based community structures. New Delhi: Deep & Deep Publications Pvt. Ltd. xi

World Health Organization (2012).Road Traffic http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs358/en/index.html xii

Injuries.

Retrieved

from:

Ward, C. (1978). The Child and the City. London; Architectural Press.

xiii

National Advisory Council. (n.d.).Recommendations of the National Advisory Council - Reforms proposed for the Rajiv Awas Yojana. Retrieved from http://www.nac.nic.in/pdf/reforms_ray.pdf xiv

UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR). (1991). General Comment No. 4: The Right to Adequate Housing (Art. 11 (1) of the Covenant). Retrieved from http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/469f4d91a9378221c12563ed0053547e

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xv

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). (2013). General comment No. 17 (2013) on the right of the child to rest, leisure, play, recreational activities, cultural life and the arts (art. 31). Retrieved from http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/crc/comments.htm xvi

Ibid

xvii

Satterthwaite, D. et al. (1996). The Environment for Children: understanding and acting on the environmental hazards that threaten children and their parents. London: Earthscan Publications Limited. xviii

UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR). (1991). General Comment No. 4: The Right to Adequate Housing (Art. 11 (1) of the Covenant). Retrieved from http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/469f4d91a9378221c12563ed0053547e xix

Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee. (2007). Minutes of the 27th meeting of the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee of Sub-Mission on Basic Services to the Urban Poor (BSUP) under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM). Retrieved from https://JnNURMmis.nic.in/JnNURM_hupa/Meeting/BSUP/2007-08/27.pdf xx

Evans, G.W. & Cohen, S. (1987). Environmental Stress in Stokols, D. & Altman, I. (eds). Handbook of Environmental Psychology. New York: John Wiley and Sons. xxi

World Health Organization. (2008). World Report on Child Injury Prevention. Retrieved from: http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2008/9789241563574_eng.pdf xxii

UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR). (1991). General Comment No. 4: The Right to Adequate Housing (Art. 11 (1) of the Covenant). Retrieved from http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/469f4d91a9378221c12563ed0053547e xxiii

Ibid.

xxiv

Bartlett, S. et al. (1999).Cities for Children – Children’s Rights, Poverty and Urban Management. London: Earthscan Publications Limited. xxv

Bartlett, S. (2008). Climate change and urban children: impacts and implications for adaptation in lowand middleincome countries, Environment & Urbanization, Vol 20(2): 501–519 xxvi

Percy-Smith, B. and Thomas, N. (2010).A Handbook of Children and Young People’s Participation Perspectives from theory and practice. Retrieved from http://www.fairplayforchildren.org/pdf/1289572182.pdf xxvii

National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (n.d.).Mandate of the NCPCR. Retrieved from http://www.ncpcr.gov.in/mandate_commission.htm xxviii

Shivakumar, G. (2013, April 17). India is set to become the youngest country by 2020. The Hindu. Retrieved from http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-is-set-to-become-the-youngest-country-by2020/article4624347.ece

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11. Rating Case Studies on Child-Centered and Child Friendly Outcomes ACE rated the selected BSUP housing projects based on the parameters used in the integrative analysis in Chapter 10 to evaluate child related outcomes in each project. As the scope of BSUP is most directly related to provision rights as discussed in the previous chapter, a total of 70 points out of 100 have been allocated to realization of housing rights based provisions (for details see Annexure 10). Both protection and participation rights have been allocated total 10 points each (for details see Annexure 10). As sustainable development is an overarching goal of JnNURM and the NUHHP 2007, a total of 10 points have been allocated to realization of sustainable development goals in projects (for details see Annexure 10). The BSUP housing that scored the most points (62/100) was Gandhi Nagar in Pune (See Figure 11.1) which is an insitu plotted housing based redevelopment. Even though this is a low score, which is not surprising considering that the participatory process followed at Gandhinagar did not inlcude children and nor were children explicitly the focus of development, several positive aspects about the process of redevelopment at Gandhi Nagar are worth discussing as they seemed to have an indirect beneficial effect on children’s health and well-being. It is equally important to discuss how Gandhi Nagar using its processoriented approach to redevelopment could have adopted a child-centered approach to achieve more child friendly environmental outcomes that would have benefitted the entire community as well as children in a more significant manner.

Figure 11.1 - Rating BSUP Housing on Child Related Outcomes

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Postive Learnings from Gandhi Nagar How did Gandhi Nagar achieve better child related outcomes as compared to the other case studies? Today, Gandhi Nagar resembles a low or even a middle income neighborhood more than a slum. The roads are wide and planned and kept clean by the municipal workers every morning. Most of the houses in the community are pucca, either built under VAMBAY or BSUP. There are toilets and kitchens in all new houses, and there are about 6 public toilets which are maintained by a caretaker who lives in a room next to the toilets. The local corporators in Gandhi Nagar, Ranpise and Gangaram were instrumental in transforming the colony from a slum with kutcha houses and no physical infrastructure to one with a closed drainage system, underground electricity network, underground water supply and telephone connection network. The community was mobilized and involved in every aspect of the development over many years. They were convinced to upgrade their kutcha structures according to the layout prescribed by the Corporator, not encroach on the drains, and give up some portion of their lands to maintain wide and organized roads in the community. This community-centered development process preceded both VAMBAY and BSUP but also benefitted from these programs and others as the community had a blueprint for development that was locally developed based on regular assessment and monitoring of issues in the local area. Gandhi Nagar also enjoys access to a number of social facilities like schools, hospitals, Anganwadis, library, gym, community hall, senior citizen center and youth club which came up over time through this same community driven process where goals of politics and development promoted social welfare of the community using available government programs and schemes and other funding sources. Good physical and social infrastructure developed under the leadership of an involved local corporator who lives in the neighbourhood himself and is capable of mobilizing the community around local development issues, a local NGO (MASHAL) with considerable inhouse architectural expertise and a proven track record of delivering high quality, low cost housing to the urban poor, the support of an NGO (CHF International) that enabled engaging with slum issues at the local and city levels (creation of the Pune Slum Atlas) and facilitated with pilot projects (rainwater harvesting in one Gandhi Nagar street) helped in achieving better child related outcomes in Gandhi Nagar. Similar communities and projects but different child related outcomes Some of these qualities were also present in Mother Teresa Nagar in Pune that enjoyed a process driven community-centered approach led by strong local NGOs who engaged competent architects and engineers and CHF International as a process facilitator. But unlike Gandhi Nagar, Mother Teresa Nagar did not have quality local leadership and a commitment to local area development over a sustained period through collective action.

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Dissimilar communities and projects but similar child related outcomes Mother Teresa Nagar and Jat Trodi represent two different approaches to redevelopment: insitu plotted and in-situ flatted typologies. Both had a process oriented approach to redevelopment but the process had been quite different in the two projects. In Mother Teresa Nagar in Pune, the process involved expert architects and community mobilizers Mahila Milan and SPARC engaging with each and every family to ensure every house is customized as per the family’s needs. On the other hand in Jat Trodi, the NGO consortium worked to build capacity of the municipal corporation in delivering better housing by producing a well worked out DPR, and engaging architects to produce alternative house designs. However people had no say in the process of planning and designing and local NGO ESAF worked towards community mobilizing after the plans had been approved by the municipal corporation. Overall development of the slum through better provisions of basic services and community facilities got left out in both projects. Both these projects have secured very similar low points on child related outcomes suggesting that two communities and development processes that are quite different may produce similar child related outcomes. The fact that both cases have produced poor child related outcomes show that without a child-centered approach to redevelopment with sustained community action, children will continue to be marginalized despite community driven processes in slum redevelopment. Among the low scoring projects, Karimadom in being a flatted redevelopment may be compared with Jat Trodi which had the same typology. Both projects in failing to secure community participation in planning, designing, and house allocations and in failing to mitigate environmental hazards in the local area achieved similar poor child related outcomes. Two other dissimilar in-situ plotted housing projects, Nayapalli in Bhubaneswar and Kongar Nagar-I in Kalyani, used different approaches but achieved poor child related outcomes as well. Nayapalli had a process oriented, NGO-led approach which mobilized the community but did not involve them in design and planning. This project suffered from lack of technical expertise as did Kongar Nagar-I which had no NGO involvement in process management or implementation but a direct relationship between the municipality and the beneficiary leading to self managed construction with no safety nets for poor families. The failures of similar and dissimilar projects in securing good child related outcomes suggest the importance of the following for better outcomes: 

Local leadership capable of mobilizing the community including shaping consensus around community interests over individual interests and capable of working with the existing political system to mobilize legitimate funding for local area development

Sustained community engagement with the problems of local physical environments for developing long-term plans for improvement which is to be realized incrementally and in convergence with government programs and schemes.

Involvement of committed and competent NGOs in community mobilization and advocacy for community-centered development with a child-centered programming approach

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

Involvement of technical experts who understand housing and infrastructure problems in slums and are capable of producing contextually relevant, cost effective, and healthful solutions

How Gandhi Nagar could have made the process child-centered and the neighborhood child friendly? Gandhi Nagar in spite of being an excellent example of a community-driven processoriented in-situ slum redevelopment, when reviewed from the perspective of child rights fails children in several ways. This is a direct consequence of not engaging with children and their issues at the local level. If the NGOs and local corporators could have been sensitized to the needs of a child-centered approach to community development by Figure 11.2: BSUP Redevelopment at Gandhi Nagar including children in participatory processes, the many violations of protection, provision and overall participation rights of children could have been avoided and instead child friendly solutions generated. Some of the examples of these violations of child rights and possible corrective measures through future slum redevelopment efforts such as RAY in Gandhi Nagar and similar places are discussed below: 1. Failure to check school dropouts: If the survey that preceded the BSUP funded redevelopment collected data on children’s well-being, it would have noted that children, particularly boys drop out of school after 14 to work at daily wage jobs to augment family incomes. Girls even though at school, are burdened with domestic work and sibling care while parents worked long hours outside. Recommendations: Since BSUP is an integrated program with poverty alleviation at its core, convergence of social security schemes as well as local income-generating activities should have been part of the development thinking. Moreover proper daycare facilities should have been promoted in Gandhi Nagar to ensure that girls do not get burdened with invisible domestic responsibilities including looking after younger siblings for long periods of the day. Promotion of non-hazardous small-scale local businesses which is currently not allowed in BSUP housing could provide incomes to many families and also benefit children by having parents work in the local area. Bridging classes and tuition support would check school dropouts by helping children cope better at school. 2. Unsafe social environment: Adolescent girls repeatedly complained about lack of mobility and safety in the neighborhood outdoor spaces on account of rampant alcoholism

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within the community which leads to violence in public spaces and sexual harassment of women and girls. Recommendations: There is a need to integrate drug and alcohol rehabilitation and counseling services through the local community center and NGO outreach work. Moreover development of safe well-lit, places within the community particularly around community facilities such as library, gym etc. is needed for girls to hangout safely beyond the confines of the home. 3. Lack of focus on social infrastructure for children: Even though Gandhi Nagar has two existing AWs, one is a bare hall for multipurpose use, and the other a badly maintained rented space with many environmental hazards for young children. A gym has been provided in Gandhi Nagar but no equipment to go with the space. Recommendations: Conduct an audit of existing social infrastructure to understand the status and potential of existing infrastructure. Include improvement plans of existing social infrastructure in the DPR for future redevelopment projects to enable proper functioning of these facilities. This will greatly benefit both young children and adolescents in the community. 4. Lack of play spaces for children and threats to playing on streets: No play spaces or innovative new play facilities have been created at Gandhi Nagar using BSUP. The paved streets in front of the homes are the only spaces available to children. Even though these streets are better off than most others in slums across Pune, there are several issues which make the streets hazardous for children’s play: 

Slippery roads: People tend to wash clothes and utensils outside their houses in the streets using the water from the public standpipes as this is a free water source and the water in the indoor toilets at home is metered. This results in standing water and slippery outdoor spaces hazardous for children’s play.

Recommendations: Stop washing clothes and utensils on the streets. If the community is unwilling or unable to pay for water for washing, neighborhood wide rainwater harvesting needs to be initiated and extra water stored in large tanks and regularly supplied to homes free of cost at a given time everyday for washing purposes. 

Smoke-filled streets: Families use gas for cooking. In winter, families need to heat water for bathing. This is done outside the houses using firewood stoves to save on expensive cooking gas. As a result the air quality suffers as streets get filled with smoke making outdoor play of children extremely unsafe.

Recommendations: Provide smokeless chulhas to families availing new houses through government schemes. Alternatively and maybe in addition provide solarpowered water-heaters to families that can easily be kept on the top terraces of houses at highly subsidized rates to keep streets clean.

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

Garbage threatening children’s activities in streets: Even though every morning the municipal corporation gets the garbage picked up from the streets, throughout the day garbage tends to accumulate again.

Recommendations: Work with the local corporator and the municipal corporation to make garbage collection a community activity by providing incentives to groups to collect garbage and clean the streets before evening when the community hangs out in the streets. Awareness campaigns also needs to be undertaken for throwing garbage only in designated places just before a pre-assigned collection time and not in streets at any time. That way the streets will remain clean and healthy for everyone. Also see recommendations under Provisions for Play and Recreation in Chapter 11. 5. Water storage risks for young children: Gandhi Nagar receives insufficient water supply which forces people to store water in large drums outside their homes near the threshold and in different containers inside the homes. This poses a hazard to young children who are at risk of falling in these large vessels of water as well as contaminating the water while trying to play or drink from the smaller containers. Recommendations: Adequate piped water supply to homes is a must and the community needs to put pressure on the municipal corporation through local corporators and NGOs to improve the quality of water supply to Gandhi Nagar. 6. Lack of structures for children’s participation for local area development: Despite an active and committed corporator, an Urban Community Development (UCD) cell within the ULB, several highly engaged RCVs and NGOs involved with community development and community mobilization, children and youth in Gandhi Nagar have no formal networks for engaging in activities for social and environmental change. Recommendations: For starters, mobilize the existing youth clubs or Mitra Milans through surveys, identification of social and environmental problems that put children and youth at risk. Introduce Bal Sabhas to include children above 8 years and upto 14 years to be involved in local area monitoring, maintenance and planning and design. 7. Lack of integrative planning makes city access risky for slum children: children from Gandhi Nagar seek out play and recreation opportunities in parks and playgrounds and vacant land outside the slum at times travelling 2 km away from their homes on foot crossing heavy traffic streets taking unnecessary risks. (See figure 11.3) Recommendations: An integrated planning approach could have provided safer access to the places which commonly attract children from resource deprived slums such as parks, playgrounds and markets in the local areas. See recommendations under Provisions for Play and Recreation in Chapter 11.

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Figure 11.3 - Places outside the slum that children of Gandhi Nagar commonly seek out for play and recreation activities (Source: ACE 2013)

The analysis of Gandhi Nagar slum redevelopment through BSUP exemplifies why it is important to have a child-centered approach to redevelopment by involving children directly in participatory processes. Only by understanding how current practices impact children can contextually relevant child friendly solutions to environmental problems be created in slums. A strong community centered participatory approach to slum redevelopment no doubt delivers better outcomes than a non-participatory approach. But such processes do not necessarily improve children’s lives and promote their rights as was seen in the discussion of Gandhi Nagar redevelopment above.

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12. Recommendations for Promoting Community and Children’s Wellbeing in Slum Redevelopment The BSUP experience showed that most projects had difficulty achieving the good objectives and goals of the program. Additionally if future slum redevelopment programs building on the BSUP experience such as RAY has to be accountable for children’s improved health and wellbeing in the new housing, the practice of slum redevelopment has to be improved through better guidance, capacity building and through creation of new local level structures for participation of children and youth. The detailed recommendations in Chapter 10 and 11 are focused on improving the practice of slum redevelopment to achieve better child related outcomes. The recommendations presented below are focused on guiding policy makers on inclusive, integrated planning for improving children’s lives in cities and participatory processes including children and youth in slum development: 1. Count and account for children: Affordable housing for the urban poor needs to focus on the quality of immediate environments and their long term impact on young children, boys and girls and adolescents. For this, the first step is to collect adequate and accurate data at the survey stage of a project on each and every individual in a beneficiary household including children between 0-18 years with details about children’s health, education and protection issues. The monitoring systems such as the proposed MIS for BSUP and RAY should includes monitoring indicators for all stages of development and develop appropriate MIS integtrating social indicators reflecting children’s protection, wellbeing and development rights at the community/slum and family level. 2. Understand children’s spatial needs: A child's world-space gradually evolves from the home to the neighborhood and gender affects this evolution from childhood. A child friendly slum redevelopment should benefit from understanding the spatiality of childhood in urban slums to adequately provide for the spaces children require at different stages of their development and not only focus on converting kutcha houses to pucca ones. Develop IEC materials on this issue and customize them for policy makers, planners and architects, and community based organizations to deliver child friendly spatial plans and designs. 3. Build capacity and train for child-centered development: Develop capacities of the local self-help groups and other community based organizations, local councillors, ULBs and all other stakeholders involved with community development in slums to recognize children and youth as an integral part of the community with rights and generate demand and community support for child-centered slum redevelopment. Provide guidelines for preparing child centred DPRs for slum redevelopment and affordable housing projects. Additionally ensure that the redevelopment plans and DPRS prepared by implementing agencies are reviewed by an external agency as part of due diligence to guarantee inclusion of environemntal and social concerns and convergence of social welfare schemes for children and families. 4. Develop structures for children’s participation to enable child-led local initiatives: Encourage formation of children’s neighborhood networks and strengthen existing ones 280


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such as Bal Sabhas and youth neighborhood networks such as Yuva Sanghas and Mitra Mandals. These networks should work closely with other networks such as the women’s self-help groups in developing their own improvement and maintenance plans and in mobilizing the entire community including the formal and customary local leadership to co-create a long-term vision of change. Children and youth should be trained and made an integral part of local area development decision-making through these networks and encouraged to initiate projects around issues that interest them for bringing positive change in the community. 5. Develop guidelines for a participatory process within CDPs: The understanding of participation across all stakeholders is very limited. In order to develop a truly meaningful process, policy documents such as CDPs and other additional guidance documents should include a comprehensive overview of the participatory process with clear guidance for facilitators (both at the community and ULB levels) to engage men, women, children and youth to engage with each other around individual and collective issues in the local area in a respectful manner with the aim of creating a shared vision. The community including children should participate in all stages of slum redevelopment including in surveys and beneficiary selection; planning and design; community mobilization leading to and during construction; and management, maintenance and ongoing monitoring of new environments. 6. Engage women and children in environmental management: Monitoring measures should be built in within the policy framework of slum redevelopment to ensure quality of housing and other infrastructure delivery. Women, youth and children should be integral part of the monitoring of projects through their neighborhood networks to ensure safe and healthful local environments. The release of funds from the centre should be linked to not only the progress of the projects but also to the quality of housing delivered based on a mandatory user satisfaction audit spearheaded by local women, men, children and youth. 7. Ensure convergence of policies, programs and schemes: An integrated, inclusive planning process as mandated under JnNURM requires convergence of all policies, programs and projects at the three levels of government to better protect and provide for children and achieve sustainable development. There are several reasons for failure of convergence in BSUP which could instruct improvement strategies in the future: 

Making all schemes, programs and policies on health, education, social security and other welfare issues across all ministries available in one place including in the JnNURM website to inform State governments, ULBs, NGOs and other stakeholders responsible for implementing slum redevelopment under JnNURM.

New CDPs and revisions of existing ones need to specify new priority areas for development at the national, state, and city level as well as articulate which previous policies and programs are to be taken forward within the mission period of JnNURM and indicate budgets for the same.

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Vision for slums in CDPs should be prepared in the context of state housing policy and DPRs should be backed by accurate assessments of housing conditions of the poor including social issues faced by different types of families, men, women and children to strategize relevant convergence across all programs including existing ones offered by NGOs and others.

Existing institutions under urban poverty alleviation comprising CDS, NHG, NHC and RCVs should be responsible for identification of beneficiaries, demanding convergence of other social sector programs and schemes, and better services and facilities including from child development schemes such as Anganwadis. Administrative and political will is a pre-requisite to strengthen the institutional structure and ensure their functional autonomy and efficiency.

Project components of social infrastructure, which are to be developed in convergence with other existing schemes, need to be monitored for implementation. Nodal agencies need to ensure the actual provision of proposed social facilities by creating a funding pool where funds from other sectors converge to provide for different items included in the DPR outside the BSUP budget.

8. Ensure affordability of affordable housing: Housing for the urban poor has to be made more affordable for the poorest families by linking them to all available schemes and interest subsidy programs as well as integrating employment generation and skills training programs within BSUP. Awareness about paying capacities of slum dwellers seeking affordable housing loans needs to be created in banks and other lending organizations to customize EMIs and help with insurance covers in case of illness or job loss. In case of the poorest and neediest families as in women headed households with young children, and in cases of disability of the head of family, 100% housing subsidy should be provided. 9. Promote safe, healthful, innovative design and construction: Affordable housing for the urban poor should include alternate design thinking using low cost techniques and different materials instead of the current rigid vocabulary of materials and technologies. The goal of new houses should be to promote health and safety of the family and particularly young children. Budgeting for some basic health promoting and safety features such as mosquito nets for doors and windows, security grilles for windows, adequate storage, protected staircases to roof and environmental improvement costs to remove or mitigate environmental hazards at the site level will provide better housing quality. Additionally construction contracts must include escalation costs to ensure quality of delivery. Since good housing is more than a just a house, provision of community spaces particularly the design of streets need special attention as they are the everyday play and recreation space of the community. Additionally concerns for play and recreation needs of the entire community should be embedded in local area planning and creative solutions for usable public places such as in leftover spaces, terraces and around public buildings encouraged. 10. Promote sustainable development as an overarching strategy: It is imperative to understand the density of the slum and the carrying capacity of its environment before

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Chapter 12 - Recommendations for Promoting Community and Children’s Wellbeing in Slum Redevelopment

deciding on the approach to redevelopment. EIAs must be mandated prior to planning a redevelopment. Future slum redevelopment processes must follow the guidelines proposed by the National Mission on Sustainable Habitat (NMSH) for urban planning and development. Similarly there is need for integration of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) to promote solar powered lighting at least for community facilities and street lighting in slum redevelopment projects. Other renewable energy sources such as biogas should also be explored. Rainwater harvesting at a community level should promote water positive neighborhoods. Future slum redevelopment policies also need to promote mixed use neighbourhoods with mixed use housing at least in part instead of only promoting residential development to enable local enterprises to flourish locally. Beneficiary share for the mixed use houses could be priced differently.

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Annexures

Annexure 1: FGDs and Interviews conducted in Karimadom, Thiruvananthapuram Phase 1: Date of Visit – 3rd June 2012 to 11th June 2012 Phase 2: Date of Visit – 11th November to 18th November 2012 A. Primary Source of Data Collection Target Population Women Men Girls (8-12 years) Boys(8-12) Adolescent boys (13-18years) Adolescent girls (13-18years) Youth (18-20 years) Anganwadi PHC Total

No. of participants 8 6 4 15 18 6/3 6/3 1 Girl 2 Anganwadi -2 Anganwadi workers 1 nurse 73

Session: Interview/ FGD/ Transect Walk FGD Interview Interview FGD/ Semi structured interview FGD/ Interview/Transect Walk FGD/interviews FGD / Interviews Interview Interview Interview

B. Secondary Source of Data Collection Sl no. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.

Government official / NGO/ Researchers/ Academicians / Architects Mr Sajan Kumar, Joint Director, COSTFORD Mrs T N Sudha, Senior Town Planner Mr Sajith Kumar, Consultant for COSTFORD Baseline Survey at Karimadom Mr Prasanth, HR, Project Implementation Unit, Kudumbashree Mr A K Sherry. Sub Inspector, Karimadom Police Station Mr Kartikeyan, HUDCO, on deputation to Kudumbashree as Program Director of Urban Poverty Alleviation Programme Ms Usha, on site engineer, Karimadom COSTFORD Ms Mini, Engineer, Project Implementation Unit Father P. D. Thomas, Director, Don Bosco Veedu Society Prof. Uday Mishra, Public Health Specialist and Professor, Center for Developing Studies (CDS), Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala Dr. T. Peethambaram, District Medical Officer Ms. Subhadra, NRHM Coordinator Mr. Gopalakrishnan, Senior journalist and historian Mr. Tilak Baker, Publication Officer, CDS and architect Laurie Baker’s son Mr. V. Shriram, Chief Librarian, CDS

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Annexure 2: FGDs and Interviews conducted in Jat Trodi, Nagpur Phase 1: Date of Visit – 6th September 2012 to 9th September 2012 A. Primary Source of Data Collection Target population Women Men Girls (8-12 years) Boys(8-12) Adolescent boys (13-18years) Adolescent girls (13-18years) Youth (18-20 years) Anganwadi PHC/ Local doctor Total

No. of participants 17 3 12 5 3 6 1 1 48

Sessions- FGD/ Interviews/ Transect Walk FGD, Interview Interview FGD, Interview FGD, Interview FGD, Interview FGD, Interview Interview Interview

B. Secondary Source of Data Collection Sl no 1 2 3 4

Government official / NGO/ Researchers/ Academicians / Architectures Mr Ajay Ranteke, SRA officer Ms Leena Buddhe, CSD Ms Vandana, CSD Mr Harsh Sahasrabudhe, ex-Executive Engineer Slum Department, Nagpur Municipal Corporation, helped frame SRA guidelines

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Annexure 3: FGDs and Interviews conducted in Kalpana Nagar and Madrasi Colony, Bhopal Phase 1 (a): Date of Visit – 5th June 2012 to 8th June 2012 Phase 1 (b): Date of Visit – 11th June to 30th June 2012 Phase 2: Date of Visit – 27th December 2012 – 10th January 2013 A: Primary Source of Data Collection – Phase 1 Target Population

Number of Participants Madrasi Kalpana Nagar Colony 17 8 5 6 3 8 5 8 (including 8-18 years of age) 13 6 1 1 44 37

Women Men Girls (8-12 years) Boys(8-12) Adolescent boys (13-18years) Adolescent girls (13-18years) Youth (18-20 years) Anganwadi PHC Total

Sessions- FGD/ Interviews/ Transect Walk Interview/FGD Interview FGD FGD/ Transect Walk FGD FGD Interview Interview Interview

B: Primary Source of Data Collection – Phase 2 Target Population

Number of Participants Madrasi Colony Kalpana Nagar

Household

30

22

Girls(8-12 years) Girls (Adolescent) Boys(8-12) Boys (Adolescent)

1 1 1 1

1 1 1 -

Sessions- FGD/ Interviews/ Transect Walk Sample Survey of Households Interview for Case Interview for Case Interview for Case Interview for Case

C. Secondary Source of Data Collection Sl no 1 2

Government official / NGO/ Researchers/ Academicians / Architects Mr. Izaruddin Qureshi, SAMARTHAN (NGO) –Information regarding BSUP projects under JNNURM Mr. Anup Kumar Sahay, AARAMBH (Advocacy for Alternate Resource Action Mobilization and Brotherhood) (NGO)- Information regarding consideration of children in BSUP projects under JNNURM 286


Annexures

3 4 5 6 7 8

Mrs. Shakeela Khan, Madrasa Instructor, Kalpana Nagar Mr. Javed Anis & Ms. Upasana, Nagarik Adhikar Manch (Activist Group)- Information regarding conditions of children in slums (existing, relocated and rehabilitated) Mr. Sunil Srivastava, Chief Engineer, Bhopal Municipal Corporation. Mr. Jolly Jain, Bhopal Municipal Corporation- Procurement of City Development Plan (2006), Detailed Project Report of Kalpana Nagar and Madrasi Colony Mr. Praveen Bhagwat, Urban Administration And Development Department, Govt. of M.P.Information regarding the Central and State projects of slums in Madhya Pradesh Mr. Anubhav Srivastav, former in-charge, JNNURM Cell, BMC, presently in Urban Administration And Development Department, Govt. of M.P.- Information regarding cost of project, execution time and beneficiary components.

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Annexure 4: FGDs and Interviews conducted in Gandhi Nagar and Mother Teresa Nagar, Pune Phase 1: Date of Visit – 20th June to 27th June, 2012 Phase 2: Date of Visit – 19th December to 22nd December, 2012 A. Primary Source of Data Collection Target Population

No. of Participants Gandhi Nagar

Sessions – FGD/Interview/ Transect Walk

Mother Teresa

Women

10

10

FGD and Interview

Men

7

5

FGD and Interview

Girls (8-12) years

6

1

Interview

6

5

FGD and Interview

9

6

FGD, Interview and Transect Walk

8

5

FGD

Youth (18-20) years

-

1

Interview

Anganwadi

2

2

Interview

PHC

1

-

Interview

Total

49

35

Adolescent years

Girls

(13-18)

Boys (8-12) years Adolescent years

Boys

(13-18)

B. Secondary Source of Data Collection S. No.

Government official / NGO/ Researchers/ Academicians / Architects

1.

Dyananeshwar Moolak, UCD, Pune Municipal Corporation

2.

Mr. Karne Bapurao Gangaram, Local Corporator

3.

Dr. R.T. Jadhav, runs a clinic in Gandhi Nagar

4.

Sharad Mahajan, MASHAL

5.

Principal, Marathi Medium School, Gandhi Nagar

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6.

Mr. Prasanna Desai, Architect, SPARC

7.

Maria and Shobha, SPARC

8.

Ms. Jigisha Mhaskar, CHF

9.

Dr. Qureshi, runs a clinic near Mother Teresa Nagar

10.

Constable, Nearest Police Beat, Mother Teresa

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Annexure 5: FGDs and Interviews conducted in Kongar Nagar – I, Kalyani Phase 1: Date of Visit - 4th July 2012 to 8th July 2012 Phase 1 (b): Date of Visit – 26th July to 30th July 2012 Phase 2: Date of Visit – 28th December 2012 to 3rd January 2013 A. Primary Source of Data Collection Target population Women Men Girls (8-12 years) Boys(8-12) Adolescent boys (13-18years) Adolescent girls (13-18years) Youth (18-20 years) Aaganwadi PHC Total

No. of participants 16 6 10 13 15 8 5 73

Sessions- FGD/ Interviews/ Interview, FGD Interview, FGD FGD, Transect walks FGD, Transect walks Interview, FGD Interview, FGD Interview, FGD -

B. Secondary Source of Data Collection S. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Government official / NGO/ Researchers/ Academicians / Architectures Mr Babu Lal, councilor, Kalyani Mr Shantanu Jha, ex-Chairman of Municipality, Kalyani who implemented BSUP housing in our case study site Inspector In-charge Kalyani Police Station Head Master, Satyapriya High School Mr Bappa, Ward Boy , Kalyani Town Planner, Kalyani Municipality Savitri Das, teacher, SSK

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Annexure 6: FGDs and Interviews conducted in Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar Phase 1: Date of Visit – 8th July 2012 to 14th July 2012 A. Primary Source of Data Collection Target population Women Men Girls (8-12 years) Boys(8-12) Adolescent boys (1318years) Adolescent girls (1318years) Youth (18-20 years) Anganwadi PHC Total

No. of participants

Sessions- FGD/ Interviews/ Transect Walk

12 2 10 16 10

FGD Interview FGD FGD/ Transect Walk FGD

5

FGD

1 Girl 1 57

Interview Interview -

B. Secondary Source of Data Collection S. No. 1 2 3 4 5

Government official / NGO/ Researchers/ Academicians / Architectures Mr Srimanth Mishra, OAS-1, SIO-cum- Nodal officer RAY Sangam Mahapotra Sujata Samal, UDRC, SPARC Shanti, Mahila Milan Manjari- UDRC

Phase 2: Date of Visit – 1st to 4th November 2012 C. Primary Source of Data Collection Target population

Girls ( 8-12) School going Girl (8-12) Drop out Boy 8-12 ( School going) Girls 12 and above school going Girl 12 and above drop out Boy 12 and above School Going Boy 12 and above drop out Women Family

No. of participants

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 4

Sessions- FGD/ Interviews/ Transect Walk Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview Interview 291


Annexures

Man Youth – Boy Elderly Woman Community Head Total

1 1 1 1 17

Interview Interview Interview

D. Secondary Source of Data Collection Sl no 1 2 3 4 5

Government official / NGO/ Researchers/ Academicians / Architectures Mr Sanjib Kumar Mishra, Commissioner BMC Dr Deepak Kumar Prusty, DHO Dr Dinabandhu Sahu, CMMO Dr P K Patnaik, Pedriatic Shishu Bhavan Vishal Kumar Debb, BDA Chairman

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Annexure 7: The Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) The Integrated Child Protection Scheme focuses on mapping of needs and services for children and families at risk and preparation of child protection plans at district and state levels, strengthening the service delivery mechanisms and programmes including capacity development of service providers, counseling and family support, strengthening knowledge base, awareness and advocacy. ICPS aims at greater outreach by bringing the existing programmes under one umbrella and initiating new interventions. Key Components of Integrated Child Protection Scheme: 

Improved Reporting and Redressal Mechanism o CHILDLINE Service: 24 hour phone outreach service for children o Special Juvenile Police Units (SJPU): to coordinate and upgrade the police interface with children o Child Welfare Committees (CWCs): the final authority to dispose of cases for the care, protection, treatment, development and rehabilitation of children in need of care & protection and to provide for their basic needs and protection of human rights o Juvenile Justice Boards (JJBs): to deal with matters relating to juveniles in conflict with law in every district

Improved Institutional Care o Shelter Homes are drop-in-centres cum night shelter for children in need of urgent support brought to such homes o Children’s Homes in every district or group of districts for the reception of the child in need of care and protection during the pendency of any inquiry and subsequently for their care, treatment, education, training, development and rehabilitation o Observation homes in every district or group of districts for the temporary reception of juveniles in conflict with law during the pendency of any inquiry regarding them o Special homes in every district or group of districts for the reception and rehabilitation of juveniles in conflict with law o Special Shelter and Care measure for Children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS

Quality Non-institutional and Alternative Care o Shishu Grehas cum Cradle Baby Reception Centres: for children in the age group of 0-6 in all the districts/cities of the country; also function as Cradle Baby Reception Centres to receive abandoned babies for attempting to reduce and check female feticide/infanticide. o Adoption Coordinating Agency o Sponsorship and Foster Placement Agencies (SFPA) o Drop-in Shelters for all Children in Need o After Care Organisation: transitional homes to take care of juveniles or children after they leave special homes and children’s homes and to prepare these children/youths

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o o



to assume self-reliance for integration in the community through the acquisition of social and life skills. Counselling and Family Support Training and capacity building of all personnel involved in the child protection sector throughout the country including those working under the ICPS

Strengthening the Knowledge-base o Child Tracking System including web-enabled child protection data management software and website for missing children o Research and Documentation o Advocacy and Communication o General Grant-in-aid for Need based/Innovative Interventions o Monitoring and Supervision

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Annexure 8: Thiruvananthapuram CDP’s Vision for Children 

Bal Nagar Sabha (Children’s Corporation): To enable poor children to participate in the development agenda of the city and to hear about issues faced by children to formulate better plans at the corporation level. Even though this proposal is yet to be implemented, the Bal Panchayats are active at the Panchayat level and successfully conduct meetings sensitizing children to their rights. The Bal Nagar Sabha could similarly provide a platform for urban children to develop need-based area specific projects in the spirit of Local Agenda 21 (1992), Habitat Agenda (1996), and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), which together underpin a new vision of the urban child as citizens who have rights and the capacity for improving their own lives and the communities in which they live.

Remedial Education Centers (RECs): To improve the standard of education of students from BPL families and particularly to help school dropouts and for school going students who need teaching assistance. These centers could also be used as vocational training centers.  o o o o o o o o

Street Children: Developing a data base of street children and a planned attempt for rehabilitation and bringing them to the main stream of the community. Identify the children at risk in streets Set up rehabilitation centers Set up bridge schools to enable the working children for schooling Organizing the children in small groups for empowerment – the ‘Bal Sabha’ model can be adapted Trace out the family and enable the child to live with parents Improve the quality of life of the parents to protect the basic rights of the child Provide counseling support to the child and parents as well Ensure participation of Community /Civil Society Organizations in the Rehabilitation process

Special self employment programme for youth: To bring the poor youth to the main stream of development, a special package of self employment would be formulated based on detailed surveys.

Social security measures for youth: To address the issues of youth living in poverty, in overcrowded homes with little motivation to study and easy amenability to unsocial activities in the neighborhood, social security measures need to be designed to bring poor youth to the mainstream by providing opportunities for a better life.

Setting up more anganwadis, primary health centers, and maternity and child welfare centers in the TMC area to help the urban poor.

Setting up more Day Care Centers for young children of preschool age

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Setting up more Centers for counseling/Preventive Health Clinics for people of all age groups.

Livelihood Oriented Business Schools (LOBS) - Developing innovative and sustainable micro enterprises that can provide gainful employment within the State and also to equip skilled youth with more employable skills and hands on training. Special training centers namely Livelihood Oriented Business Schools are proposed to impart relevant skills training to youth.

Provision of play fields and organized open spaces for outdoor activities: only 52 hectares for 9.07 lakhs population or .06 hectares/1000 population against a recommended standard of about 1.50 hectare per 1000 population (i.e. 10 percent of the city area) is under organized parks and play areas in the city. There has to be proper provisioning to increase open space resources for everyone.

Provision of sports and outdoor recreation for youth to motivate youth to play sports and games during their free hours, rather than indulging in passive activities which misguide them and to give a boost to the sports sector in Thiruvananthapuram, through provision of general playfields, volley ball, basket ball and Kabbadi courts. These should also be considered in housing colonies.

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Annexure 9: Community participation including children’s participation in different phases of redevelopment across BSUP case studies Case Study

Survey

Karimad om, Thiruvan anthapur am, Kerala

Prior to preparation of DPR a primary survey was done by COSTFOR D with the help of community women. While Phase 1 of BSUP housing was under constructio n, Kudumbas hree commission ed COSTFOR D to conduct a baseline survey which was outsourced to a private consultant who involved young collegegoing girls from Karimadom to collect data from the community. YES

PARTICI PATION

Table 13.1 – Participation in Flatted Development Planning and Allocation and Management and House design Community Maintenance Mobilization

Individuals had no say in site planning or building/apartment design. COSTFORD already had the design and vision in mind prior to commissioning of the project and this was revised and presented to the community for sanctioning of the project. Provision for social facilities like study centre, Anganwadis, TV kiosk and market. Out of this, one Anganwadi has been created using BSUP funds.

Allocation Allocation of houses was supposed to be done on lottery basis but happened through political clout of the residents.

NO

A-NO CM-YES

Community Mobilization – Kudumbashree and NHG’s mobilized the community and used COSTFORD’s building models and visuals to convince the community about the benefits of the project.

There is no system for building maintenance and management. Absence of management also leads to squabble among residents as people from upper floors throw garbage directly onto the streets.

NO

Structures for Participatio n by Women and Children Women participated in the process of redevelopme nt under the aegis of Kudumbashr ee NHG’s. Though there are 13 active Bal Sabhas for children in the neighborhoo d, children were not part of any decision making process in the Katramados slum redevelopme nt.

YES

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Annexures

Jat Trodi, Nagpur, Maharas htra

Prior to preparation of DPR, NGO ESAF conducted primary demographi c survey in absence of guidelines from SRA.

Planning - No physical infrastructure was created. There were provisions for a children’s park, Anganwadi, health clinic and a separate dwelling unit for home-based work. None of these have been carried out. House Design Beneficiaries were shown three different kinds of G+3 and G+2 design options prepared by architects and they chose G+2. There was no provision for making changes at individual dwelling unit level.

PARTICI PATION Kaplan Nagar Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

NO

NO

A slum survey was done for the verification of the number of households during which the community was informed about the redevelopm ent proposal for the area. The resident’s reaction was violent and BMC was not permitted to complete the survey.

Residents had no involvement at any stage of development. The residents thought that the building was to be a school or college.

Allocation - A fair and transparent lottery method was used for house allocation. In case beneficiaries wanted to exchange flats, an application for mutual exchange of houses was submitted to the SRA which approved the applications with the consent of the NMC Commissioner. Community Mobilization – ESAF involved the community in a dialogue to explain the benefits of the redevelopment. In case of hold outs the local MLA and Corporator tried to convince the residents. A-YES CM-NO Allocation - There was no formal system of house allocation adopted in the area. BMC pasted names of beneficiaries and house numbers allotted to each beneficiary family on building.

There are no formal systems in place for building maintenance. Residents take turns to clean stairs and common areas and as a result there are frequent arguments among residents.

No formal structures for participation by women and children at the community level.

NO

NO

There is no maintenance of building and BMC officials don’t visit the area due to fear of backlash from residents.

There was no people’s participation in the process. There are no structures for participation of women and children.

Community Mobilization – No community mobilization was done here. The residents were unaware of redevelopment until they were asked to shift into the new DU’s by BMC officials.

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PARTICI PATION Madras Colony Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

PARTICI PATION

NO

NO

A-NO CM-NO

NO

NO

Community profiling was carried out by the BMC prior to redevelopm ent.

The proposed layout was shown to the residents and their suggestions were incorporated in the final designs.

Allocation Community based parameters such as caste and ethnic background were used to allocate blocks in accordance with the resident’s demands.

There are no provisions for the management and maintenance of the buildings. After only a few years of completion of work, the buildings look dilapidated.

There was very limited people’s participation in the whole process.

Community Mobilization - Maya Vishwakarma, a resident and social worker, acted as a liaison between the BMC and the residents. A-YES CM-YES

NO

NO

NO

YES

Table 13.2 - Participation in In-situ Plotted Redevelopment Case Study

Survey

Gandhi Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra

No survey was done as most of the plots were infill. Majority of the houses in the area were already pucca houses.

Beneficiary Selection The beneficiaries could avail of BSUP: • If they had not availed of VAMBAY • If they could pay the beneficiary contribution. • If they lived in kutcha houses, as defined by the implementing agency.

PARTICIPA TION Mother Teresa, Pune, Maharashtr

Beneficiary Selection and Community Mobilization

Planning

House Design

No creation or up-gradation of physical and social infrastructure under BSUP as these already existed due to the efforts of local corporator over the years.

Beneficiaries gave design inputs on the blueprints and model homes shown to them by MASHAL.

N/A

Community Mobilization – MASHAL (implementing agency) along with the local corporator were responsible for mobilizing the community. BS-NO CM-YES

Structures for Participati on by Women and Children Women’s’ self help groups present, otherwise there are no separate provisions for women’s and children’s participatio n.

NO

YES

YES

The initial survey was done by Mahila Milan,

Beneficiary Selection The beneficiaries could avail of BSUP: • If they had not availed of

Provisions for drainage system, collection

Mother Teresa saw the most intensive and exhaustive

As the process was community 299


Annexures

a

PARTICIPA TION Kongar Nagar 1, Kalyani, Kolkata

wherein they collected plot size and demographic details. However architects had to redo the survey as plot size mentioned on paper and plot size after breaking the houses did not match. YES

VAMBAY • If they could pay the beneficiary contribution. • If they lived in kutcha houses, as defined by the implementing agency.

No survey was done in the area.

Beneficiary Selection The beneficiaries could avail of BSUP: • If they had ownership of patta and at least 1 katah of land per household. • If they could pay the beneficiary amount and make arrangements for construction (Phase III).

people’s participation, wherein people were involved at every level of house designing. On an average architects made four to five drawing revisions per house.

NO

YES

Open drains were created under BSUP. Paving of roads and streetlighting was also carried out. There are provisions for a PHC, community centre and a primary education centre, none of which have been provided as yet. There has been no upgradation of existing community facilities. NO

BSUP intervention was not a redevelopment, but an addition to the existing structure. Thus, house design was done by beneficiaries themselves. Municipality modified rules, to accommodate people’s demand for larger rooms without kitchens.

No provisions for participatio n by women and children.

YES

NO

There has been no creation or up-gradation of social infrastructure. There are provisions for community centre, garden and a children’s park. None of these have been provided at the

Beneficiaries could choose from different house designs.

Mahila Milan and its active women’s network were present. There are no separate provisions for inclusion of women and

Community Mobilization – Mahila Milan, SPARC and Architect Prasanna Desai and his team held frequent public meetings to explain the BSUP project to the residents.

BS-NO

CM-YES

Community Mobilization – The local councilor and Kalyani Municipality officials along with the SHG’s were responsible for getting the community on board.

PARTICIPA TION Nayapalli, Bhubanesw ar, Orissa

chambers for storm water and rain water harvesting in DPR. Nothing has been done on the ground.

N/A

BS-NO

CM-NO

A survey was carried out by Bhubaneswa r Municipal Corporation before the preparation of the DPR but as this was incomplete and

Beneficiary Selection The beneficiaries could avail of BSUP: • If they lived in kutcha houses Community Mobilization – A couple of meetings were conducted by UDRC to discuss house design and layout with the residents.

centric involving members of Mahila Milan, women and children were part of the process by default. There were no separate provisions for their participatio n. YES

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PARTICIPA TION

erroneous, UDRC and Mahila Milan’s had to redo the survey. N/A

BS-NO

CM-YES

ground level. Infrastructural works related to basic services were also incomplete. NO

children in the process.

YES

YES

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Annexure 10: Rating BSUP Housing on Child Related Outcomes Table 13.3 - Rating BSUP Housing on Child Related Outcomes PUNE BHUBANESHW KALYANI TRIVANDRU NAGPUR AR M Gandhi Mothe Nayapalli Kongar Karimadom Jat Trodi Nagar r Nagar I Teres a

PARAMETERS

BHOPAL Kalpana Nagar

Madrasi Colony

A. PROVISIONS 1. SECURITY TENURE

Maximum Points

70 OF 7.5

5

10

10

7.5

5

0

2

2. AVAILABILITY OF SERVICES, MATERIALS, INFRASTRUCTURE

10

10

i. Access to Natural 0 Resources ii. Water Supply 1

0

0.25

0.25

0.25

0

0.5

0.5

1

1

0.25

1

1

1

0.75

0.75

1

iii. Power Supply iv. Cooking Fuel v. Sanitation vi. Garbage Disposal vii. Drainage viii. Emergency Services ix. Access to Local Transport x. Access and Availability to Open Spaces 3. AFFORDABILITY

1 0 1 1 1 1

1 0 0.5 1 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0.5

1 0 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5

1 1 0.5 0 1 1

1 0 0.5 0.5 1 1

1 0 0.5 0.5 1 1

1 0 0.5 0 0.5 0.5

1 1 1 1 1 1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

0

0

0.25

0.25

0.25

0.5

0.5

0.5

1

i. Cost of House

2

10 2

0

2

0

0

2

2

2 302


Annexures

PARAMETERS

ii. Loans iii. Escalation Costs iv. Hidden Costs during Construction v. Additional Costs vi. Incremental due to Rent/Alternative Arrangement 4. HABITABILITY

Gandhi Nagar

Mothe r Teres a

Nayapalli

Kongar Nagar I

2 1 1

2 1 0

2 1 1

1 0 1

0 0

0 1

0 0

0 N.A.

Karimadom

Jat Trodi

Kalpana Nagar

Madrasi Colony

Maximum Points

0 1 0

0 1 1

N.A. 0 0

1 0 0

2 1 1

0 1

0 2

0 N.A.

0 2

2 2

10

i. Adequate Space 2 (Floor Area) ii. Healthful Spaces 2

2

1.5

0.5

2

1.5

1

2

2

1

0.5

2

2

2

1

1

2

iii. Climate and Context 2 Sensitive iv. Structural Hazards 1.5 and Design Defects v. Adequacy of 1.6 Building Materials 5. ACCESSIBILITY

2

1

1

2

2

0

0

2

1.5

0.5

1

1.5

1

0.5

0.5

2

1.6

0.8

1.2

1.2

1.6

0.8

1.2

2

i. Age

2 2 2

2 2 2

2 2 2

2 2 2

1 0 0

0 1 0

0 0 0

0 0 0

0

0

0

0

0

1

0

0

ii. Gender iii. Children iv. Disability

10 2.5 2.5 2.5

2.5

303


Annexures

PARAMETERS

Gandhi Nagar

Mothe r Teres a

Nayapalli

Kongar Nagar I

Karimadom

Jat Trodi

Kalpana Nagar

Madrasi Colony

6. LOCATION

Maximum Points

10

i. Traffic

0

0

0

2

0

2

0

0

2

ii. Environmental Hazards iii. Access to Employment iv. Access to Healthcare v. Access to Child Specific Facilities

2

0

0

0

0

2

2

0

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

0

0

0

2

0

0

0

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

7.CULTURAL ADEQUACY i. Any facilities to promote socio-cultural activities ii. Cooking Practices iii. Facilities for washing clothes and utensils iv. Arrangement of toilet keeping in mind the community practices

10 2

2

2

0

2

0

2

0

2

2 2

2 2

0 0

0 0

0 0

2 2

0 0

0 0

2 2

2

2

0

2

2

2

0

0

2

304


Annexures

PARAMETERS

Gandhi Nagar

Mothe r Teres a

Nayapalli

Kongar Nagar I

Karimadom

Jat Trodi

Kalpana Nagar

0

2

Madrasi Colony

Maximum Points

v. Culture specific and 0 sensitive facilities B. PROTECTION

0

i. Income Security of Families (particularly the neediest) ii. Provision and Creation of Safe Havens for Women and Children iii. Special Care of Children iv. Malnutrition v. Disability vi. Creation and Preservation of Safe and Healthful Public Spaces C. PARTICIPATION

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

2

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

2

1

0

0

0

0

1

0

0

2

1 0 0

1 0 0

1 0 0.5

1 0 0.5

1 0 0.5

1 0 1

1 0 1.5

1 0 0

1 1 2

6

8

5

4

4

4.5

0

6

0

0

0

0

2 10

10

D. SUSTAINABILITY i. Economic ii. Social iii. Environmental iv. Green Strategies

0 0 2.5 0

0 0 1.5 1.5

0 0 1.5 0

0 0 0 0

2.5 2.5 1.5 1.5

2.5 0 1.5 1.5

0 0 1.5 0

0 0 0 0

10 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.5

TOTAL

62.1

53.6

40.55

44.7

49.7

52.6

26.05

27.95

100

305


Annexures

Parameters for Awarding Points A. PROVISIONS 1. SECURITY OF TENURE Flat: Any paper work – 2.5, Lease vs. Right – 1.5/2.5, Shelter vs. Housing – 1.5/2.5, Land in name of Cooperative – 2.5 House – Any paper work – 2, Land Ownership – 4, House Ownership - 4 2. AVAILABILITY OF SERVICES, MATERIALS, INFRASTRUCTURE i. Access to Natural Resources – Trees and Green Spaces: Existing – 0.25, Proposed – 0.25 and Created 0.5 ii. Water Supply – Individual water connections – 0.25, Storage – 0.25, Hours of water supply – 0.25, Accessibility to PSP’s- 0.25 iii. Power Supply – Wiring – 0.5, Connection – 0.5 iv. Cooking Fuel – Provision for smokeless chullahs - 1 v. Sanitation – Functional HH toilets – 0.5, Immediate cleanliness of streets and common spaces – 0.5 vi. Garbage Disposal – Collected from home – 0.5, Collected from communal bin – 0.5 vii. Drainage – Created under BSUP – 0.5, Covered – 0.5 viii. Emergency Services – Accessibility of street network - 1 ix. Access to Local Transport – Yes/No – 1/0 x. Access and Availability to Open Spaces – Parks and Playgrounds: Existing – 0.25, Proposed – 0.25 and Created 0.5 3. AFFORDABILITY i. Cost of House – Cost of House compared with the annual income of beneficiaries. According to the MoHUPA’s Task Force Report the house cost should not exceed 5 times the annual income of the household. The ones closest to 5 were awarded 2 points. ii. Loans –Low Interest Rate – 1, Low EMI’s - 1 iii. Escalation Costs – If passed on to beneficiary – 0, Otherwise - 1 iv. Hidden Costs during Construction – Any payments for basic services like water and electricity connection, internal wiring – 0, If not 1 v. Additional Cost – Any building component related to making the building habitable like shelves, grills – 0, If not - 2 vi. Incremental due to Rent/Alternative Arrangement – Transit accommodation provided – 2, Otherwise - 0

306


Annexures

4. HABITABILITY i. Adequate Space (Floor Area)– Segregation of space – 1, Provision for a separate dwelling unit for extended families - 1 ii. Healthful Spaces: Ventilation – 1, Light - 1 iii. Climate and Context Sensitive – If yes – 2, if not - 0 iv. Structural Hazards and Design Defects – Unprotected Staircases – 0, If not – 0.5; Inaccessible Terraces – 0, If not – 0.5; Unprotected Windows – 0, If not – 0.5; Unprotected balconies – 0, If not – 0.5. v. Adequacy of Building Materials – floor, roof, wall, staircase and storage – 0.4 for each component. 5. ACCESSIBILITY i. Age – If elderly residents were assigned DU’s on accessible floors – 2.5, Otherwise - 0 ii. Gender – If single women were assigned DU’s on accessible floors – 2.5, Otherwise - 0 iii. Children – If families with small children were assigned DU’s on accessible floors – 2.5, Otherwise - 0 iv. Disability – If residents disability was considered while designing and allotting dwelling units – 2.5, Otherwise - 0 6. LOCATION i. Traffic: If heavy traffic – 0, Otherwise – 2 ii. Environmental Hazards – If present – 0, Otherwise – 2 iii. Access to Employment Opportunities: If present – 2, Otherwise -0 iv. Access to Healthcare Services – If PHC – 2, No PHC - 0 v. Access to child specific facilities: Schools, Anganwadis, Balwadis. If present – 2, Otherwise - 0 7. CULTURAL ADEQUACY i. Any facilities to promote socio-cultural activities: Community Halls, Communal Spaces - Existing – 0.5, Proposed – 0.5 and Created -1 ii. Cooking Practices: If culturally adequate – 2, Otherwise – 0 iii. Facilities for washing clothes and utensils: If provided – 2, Otherwise – 0 iv. Arrangement of toilet keeping in mind the community practices – 2, Otherwise – 0 v. Culture specific and sensitive facilities: Provision of Madrasa’s etc – 2, Otherwise - 0 B. PROTECTION i. Income Security of Families (particularly the neediest): If any linkages provided to govt. programs and subsidies – 2, Otherwise – 0 307


Annexures

ii. iii. iv. v. vi.

Provision and Creation of Safe Havens for Women and Children – 2, Otherwise – 0 Special Care of Children: Exploitation (economic/sexual) – 0, Otherwise – 1; Specific focus on welfare of Girls: Any schemes or initiatives – 1, Otherwise - 0 Malnutrition: If schemes or initiatives are present to combat it – 1, Otherwise - 0 Disability: If initiatives are present to facilitate children with disability – 1, Otherwise - 0 Creation and Preservation of Safe and Healthful Public Spaces - Existing – 0.5, Proposed – 0.5 and Created - 1

C. PARTICIPATION Flatted Redevelopment: Survey -2, Planning and house design – 2, Allocation – 1, Community Mobilization -1, Management and Maintenance – 2, Structures for Participation by women and children – 2 In-situ Plotted Redevelopment - Survey -2, Beneficiary Selection – 1, Community Mobilization – 1, Planning -2, House Design – 2 and Structures for Participation by women and children – 2 D. SUSTAINABILITY i. Economic: Preservation of Home Based and Local Business – 2.5, Otherwise - 0 ii. Social: Civic Engagement is promoted – 2.5, Otherwise – 0 iii. Environmental: If EIA has been done, provisions of adequate mitigation mechanisms – 1/1.5, Otherwise – 0 iv. Green Strategies: Provisions for Rainwater Harvesting, Recycling of grey water, Solar powered streetlights, Biogas plant – 2.5, Otherwise - 0

308


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