1.4 Vision Statement

SPONGE COLLABORATIVE + WEAVING WITH WATER Team

MULLASSERY CANAL FRAMEWORK AND CANAL EDGE MASTERPLAN

9) Delivering high-quality public amenities & Services: Considering a precinct-level framework also allows for the provision of basic public conveniences within 10-minute walking distance. These amenities are an important link in the chain of enhancing public health and social well-being. Potential locations for clustering public convenience such as - Bio-toilets, drinking water kiosks, inclusive seating, vendor zone, trash bin, shaded shelter - are marked out with relative walkshed as part of the framework. The present state of the Mullassery canal is a clear evidence of the failure of existing unregulated solid waste management practices. The framework also proposes a decentralised solid waste management mechanism by giving spatial definition and involving the community as a key actor.

This report consists of two major components, which are linked by a common vision: The Framework for Mullassery Canal Precinct in Chapter 2, which considers the entire neighbourhood within which Mullassery Canal is situated, and the Comprehensive Canal Edge Master Plan in Chapter 3, which considers the canal and the immediate bounds of the canal with a buffer of approximately 3 meters on either side. This vision for the Mullassery Canal precinct in downtown Ernakulam leverages Kochi’s natural assets, monsoon culture, and social capital to make the city more resilient, vibrant, and inclusive by means of a set of comprehensive principles and strategies: ADAPT, CONNECT, EMPOWER.

Figure 9: Toolkits of ADAPT+CONNECT+EMPOWER and their respective stakeholders (Image Credit: Sponge Collaborative)

SPONGE COLLABORATIVE + WEAVING WITH WATER Team

MULLASSERY CANAL FRAMEWORK AND CANAL EDGE MASTERPLAN

Figure 10: Map showing the Mullassery Canal Area as the extents of the Precint level Framework plan (Image Credit: Sponge Collaborative)

The ADAPT strategy is presented by means of the Sponge Framework in Section 2.1 , which highlights the potential of nature-based solutions and blue-green infrastructure (NBS: refer glossary in Annexure) as tools for catalysing open spaces, streets and waterbodies in the canal precinct to act as flood mitigation assets in the event of an exceedance rainfall event, while also acting as community assets at other times. The CONNECT framework is presented by means of an Integrated Mobility Framework in Section 2.2 , which seeks to put pedestrians first by prioritising last-mile connectivity and non-motorised transport infrastructure in the Mullassery Canal Precinct and along the canal bed. By integrating the canal into the city ’s existing mobility infrastructure, it can be transformed into a connecting spine that focuses on pedestrians along with safety for women and children. The EMPOWER framework is presented by means of a Community Framework in Section 2.3 which prioritises community participation and community governance in implementation. This framework also views civic issues such as women’s safety, solid waste management and a lack of public amenities as opportunities for communities to participate in local governance, and seeks to create a spatial structure for greater social cohesion and collaboration between civil society and local government.

The Comprehensive Canal Edge Masterplan which is presented in Chapter 3 presents a vision for an integrated water-driven framework, Weaving with Water, that acknowledges the critical intersectionality of the ecological/adaptive, infrastructural/mobility, social and governance dimensions of integration of the Mullassery Canal into the urban framework alongside the pressures of rapid urbanisation. The resulting stress on the ecological networks of which the Mullassery Canal is a part, too, is considered. e

A comprehensive framework for implementation of the Adapt, Connect, and Empower and Weaving with Water is presented in Chapter 4, which considers a set of toolkits that incorporates key stakeholders, governance structures and capacities, funding mechanisms, phasing of pilot projects, and data required for implementation.