Rittiwut 1 Pornnapas Rittiwut (Pim) James Lane Risedorph English for Critical Writing 5 February 2019
Urban Planning Principles Based on Chandigarh’s Master Plan Ancient shelters were created to protect humans from natural disasters and dangers, but as technological advancements evolve and develop by people’s curiosity, art started to emerge into the work of building, creating a field of knowledge called architecture. The appreciation of art in buildings began from humans’ concept of an ideal living city revolving around religions and individual imagination such as the Garden of Eden and the Paradise from Christian beliefs. With the endorsements needed from the royal families and the nobility who value these creations, this branch flourished, especially in the past hundred years, creating another gateway to the utopian concept which is urban planning. Urban architects started to contemplate an approach to a virtual city in the 20th century by pushing the border of creativity and increasing the capability of physical construction which generated the ideology of modernism. People broke the traditional renaissance art movement and entered a modern era as a result of the tremendous development in technology and urbanism. Started by Bauhaus’ architects in the 1920s, simplicity, functionality, and rationality were introduced into the trend of construction design by denying ornamentations and historical art. Other works such as Ludwig’s Crown Hall, Walter Gropius’ buildings, and most importantly, Le Corbusier’s works helped strengthen the foundation of this futuristic and minimalist principle to
Rittiwut 2 the public which eradicated most of the norms surrounding historic art styles. (https://www.architecture.com/explore-architecture/modernism) Le Corbusier, a French modernist architecture, had left a significant mark in the ideology of modern urban planning through his works and principles in his lifetime. The institution of a futuristic architecture responding to an emerging society has been inspired by Corbusier’s principles of simplicity. Despite his political background and biased criticism surrounding his fascist view, he is regarded as one of the greatest 20th-century architects by the following generations. His works in this period varied from a single piece of painting to a full-size city project which projected his imagination. In order to understand modernism and its application in the real world fully, Le Corbusier’s work should be examined closely for its structures and components. The most suitable testimony should be one of his most studied works, Chandigarh, the epitome of Corbusier’s architectural knowledge, concepts, and planning for India’s sub-continental geography.
1. Le Corbusier’s Brief History 1.1 Background Born in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, Le Corbusier or Charles-Edouard Jeanneret was raised in a watch-making family and was encouraged to pursue his dream by his father. He started his study when he was 13 years old by dropping out of school and traveled the world to find inspirations. This experimentation phase lasted from 1907 to 1922, helping the establishment of his identity beginning from an artist to an architect and an urban planner. The artworks under the influences of Prehistoric, Middle Ages, and Europe were studied intensively
Rittiwut 3 by Le Corbusier. It was the period between World War I when he began his independent projects mainly on the illustrations and other artworks. These works later influenced his architectural views by setting a purist movement with his friends Amédée Ozenfant and ended up in Paris and became a trainee and a student under many institutes, for instance, Saint Exupery, and Charles L’Éplattenier. (Brooks, H.Allen. 2002)
Fig. 1. Le Corbusier, https://sitelecorbusier.com/en/le-corbusier/
The period of discovery led him to the fascist ideology during the gap between World War I and World War II. Jean Louis Cohen, New York University’s architectural historian described Le Corbusier as “He is someone who thought that reform, social change, could only be made by an authority.” (Donadio, Rachel. 2017) which widened the limitation of the construction and possibility around his ideas. Some of his works cannot be distinguished without the right-wing movement in some experimental works such as failed projects in the Soviet Union and Vichy of Italy in which the fascist group found to be too avant-garde for that era. Le Corbusier had projected his depicted imagination into his creations which helped pass the idea of modernism and simplicity toward the 21th-century architectural industry. Pierre
Rittiwut 4 Jeanneret, Le Corbusier’s cousin, helped him gain his fame through the international style of architecture along with his friend, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. (https://www.moma.org/momaorg/shared/pdfs/moma_learning/docs/CL_3.pdf) His first establishment in this area was in the publication of L’Esprit Nouveau with Ozenfant and Paul Dermée along and late published essays surrounding Vers une architecture or Toward an Architecture (1923) which explores a modernism architecture concept. With this book, he became more recognized by the art community and was recommended to create other projects around Europe. (Brinson, Valorie Michelle. 2007)
Fig.2. Inside of Villa La Roche, Oliver Martin-Gambier
He started making a real residential architecture from his view in architecture and by his customers’ demands. The most recognizable pieces include Villa La Roche and Jeanneret, a private house in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, is Le Corbusier’s first building to exhibit his Five Points of Architecture principles fully and is regarded as the first modern house created in
Rittiwut 5 the 20th century. The house includes elevated pilotis, a roof garden, ribbon windows, an open interior, and a free facade which complement with his ideology nicely. (Gibson, 2016) Followed this was another landmark, Villa Savoye, a modern house on an empty field in Paris which was built based on the same ideology and became one of his most appreciable works in his collection. This mansion fits his Five Points of Architecture principles into the interpretation of Vitruvius man’s anatomy from Leonardo da Vinci to create the desired measurement of the house. The house features the bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom, and living room on the first floor arranged around the terrace. Charlotte Perriand who decorated the house put some unique pieces of furniture such as a bathtub for the owner, Ms. Savoye, and a lounge chair made of tiles. After World War II, the house was heavily destroyed but luckily, the government provided funds to carry the renovation with Le Corbusier’s own instructions before he passed away in 1965. (https://www.moma.org/momaorg/shared/pdfs/moma_learning/docs/CL_3.pdf) It is later recognized as a UNESCO heritage site in France for its remarkable sight and impact in the architectural world. (Kroll, 2010) Urban architecture became his interest later in his life slightly after World War II when the renovation of empty lands was the main focus in Europe and urbanization started to prosper with the gradual improvement of the economy. His first revelation of his urban planning called Plan Voisin was rejected from French government as he demanded eradication of Paris’s central arrondissement and historical sites around the city replaced with skyscrapers. Similar authority-centered projects by Le Corbusier were dismissed from many other cities which helped publicize the productions to the government departments interested in his futuristic models of work. (Lubin, 2013)
Rittiwut 6 2. Ideology and Principles 2.1 The Concept of Self The Concept of Self is an idea evolving one’s consciousness and integration of isolation and psychology. Psychology wise, the Concept of Self is necessary for questioning the philosophical aspect of human nature about decision-making processes and reasoning. (Kirshner) Le Corbusier explained this concept connecting the intimate connection between the concept and his architecture. The constructions can be affected by both external and internal environment structures along with their consequences and climate conditions they may encounter. Consequently, the exterior and interior composition should be designed and organized thoroughly in order to maintain the aesthetic and physical elements. (Healey, 2014)
2.2 The Machine Le Corbusier perceived a building through his mechanical analogy as he stated that “House is a machine for living.”. (Healey, 2014) By utilizing natural elements in the environment such as stone, wood, and concrete into his artwork, he created a balance of aesthetic, cleanness and strength in the building which gives more availability for unique stylization and imagination’s boundary. He also illustrated this ideology using engineering techniques which helped establish the standards of modernist architecture. This conglomeration of artistic and physical components will enable the mechanism inside the house to operate according to the human command input more effectively. (Atmodiwirjo)
Rittiwut 7 2.3 Five Points of Architecture A modern architecture should follow a simple and minimal plan to create an impression toward the watchers. From Le Corbusier’s point of view, the house can be broken down into elements to slowly built its way toward the ideal concept of modernism. To this extent, he published his work which established a certain approach to the modern architectural style including the pilotis, the ground plan, the facade, the horizontal window, and the roof garden to illustrate the ideal house’s factors in his book.
Fig. 3. Five Points of Architecture Displayed in Villa Savoye, ​William Feuerman
The invention of pilotis presented a new approach to architectural house plan. Instead of the traditional supporting walls around the operation area, grids were replaced to increase some free space for other elements under the house. More space can be utilized by the concrete readaptation and flows of natural elements are being added to the architecture. (Feuerman, 2019) The foundation that is arranged in balanced intervals can elevate the building from the ground and other floors within the house, preventing possible humidity, damages, and the ground. Thus,
Rittiwut 8 the pilotis is the base of Le Corbusier’s Five Points of Architecture as it provides the main ingredient, space, for other components to use artistically. (Gibson, 2017) The ground plan is established from the removal of internal walls due to pilotis replacement. Without supporting walls between each floor, the utilization of the free space increases benefiting the design of the interior plan fully. The flows created by the emptiness of the space are essential to the modernism objective as simplicity is the part of this new aesthetic which the ground plan helps provide. The construction means and costs become less mandatory considering this architectural point as it minimizes the reinforced concrete foundation. The facade’s capability is enhanced in the new style of architecture. The extension of the free space from the use of pilotis facilitates the more independent design of this fundamental outlook of the building. Thus, architects can employ more artistic elements such as interior decorations and openings on the facade. The horizontal window is the entrance which provides the cooperation of natural elements into the architecture. The frequent openings along the facade walls ensure a plenty amount of light and airflow entering and exiting the building which prevent temperature rise and humidity. The maximum illumination inside the house is also achieved through the use of ribbon windows as they add more surface areas, thus, increasing brightness eight times more compared to vertical apertures. (http://anibal.gyte.edu.tr/hebe/AblDrive/73746022/w/Storage /987_2011_1_310_73746022/Downloads/5-points-of-arch.pdf) Additionally, the strips give the structure’s illusion like the pilotis and shadow some parts that should maintain a cool temperature relative to the house such as the bedrooms. (https://voices.uchicago.edu/201504arth15709-01a2/2015/11/16/le-corbusier/)
Rittiwut 9 The roof garden is the last contributor of these domestic principles within the modernist style. It lessens the temperature rise created by the reinforced concrete of the building using the vegetation system. The garden also maintains the internal humidity concentration during rainfalls by using soils to allocate the water equally around the roof and slowly releasing it into the pipeline system underground. (​http://anibal.gyte.edu.tr/hebe/AblDrive/73746022/w/Storage/ 987_2011_1_310_73746022/Downloads/5-points-of-arch.pdf​) Not only can the physical characteristics be enhanced through the roof garden, but the extravagance and natural artistry are also increased using the combination of vegetation. These elements help construct a house plan which involves fewer artistry ingredients in the style and a faster rate for building architecture. This eliminates an excessive need for skilled labor and expensive methods which allow the mass production to be carried. This movement of creating a low budget plan is called Dom-Ino as the houses feature similar structure and pilotis style. This innovation works in the modern world in which the residents need more habitats and want to utilize their wants into them in the empty space pilotis. (Reynolds, 2015)
Rittiwut 10 2.4 Modulor
Fig. 4. Le Modulor’s Human Analogy, Le Corbusier
Le Corbusier introduced a new universal measurement for architecture in the term of Modulor. Modulor is a further derivation of the word module, an independent unit for construction which can be replaced by a different unit, along with combining the golden ratio in the arrangement of the units. According to his book sequence, Le Modulor, he described the piece as “Harmonious Measure on the Human Scale Universally Applicable to Architecture and Mechanics” (Le Corbusier, 1942) referring to his incorporation of two Fibonacci series, divine proportions created by Euclid’s Pythagorean Theorem, on a 1.83-meter body compared to the universal scale of a human. Le Modulor c reated the standardization for the basic perception and proportion in the architectural planning. Most of his late works including Chandigarh urban planning involve Modulor principle as it provides the construction-to-person relativity realistically. (Mameli, 2015)
Rittiwut 11 2.5 A Contemporary City The authority-centered perception of Jeanneret once fabricated his ideal city planning onto his book The City of Tomorrow and Its Planning (1929) , which is criticized for its impossible proposal but is admired by 21st-century professors as innovative and revolutionary. Le Corbusier laid the fundamental principles for modern planning which led to the consummate foundation of Chandigarh, one of the most prosperous cities located in India. (https://www.northeastern.edu/rise/presentations/the-influence-and-functionality-of-le-corbusiers -contemporary-city-on-the-plans-of-chandigarh-brasilia-and-epcot/) In order to create the ideal city, the planning should be well thought out and connect all elements together to supplement each other. A city needs levelings to empty traffic congestion where car accumulation can become intensified. Each street is elevated purposely to ease the gathering in a small valley. The water flow routes are also considered as they serve as water railways, landings, and means of transportation. The streets which build up these problems should follow the preparations of construction essentials such as maintaining the structures determining economy and regulations, being more accessible for the various uses, and avoiding controversial stories around others’ sources. (Le Corbusier, 1929)
Rittiwut 12
Fig. 5. The Contemporary City Ideal Plan, ​Le Corbusier
The population can be categorized into three divisions based on movements occurred among the particular area. There are the citizens who originated and worked in the land, the suburban dwellers traveling outside of the area frequently, and the mixed sorted people who live in the garden cities but base their works in the cities. The population density is determined by these people and they affect the structures surrounding their habitats. Buildings have to exist in the area in order to serve human interactions and activities, thus, this feature lays the foundation of the city and its components. An area containing a high density of population will likely be the center of the ideal city of Le Corbusier. (Le Corbusier, 1929) The master plan is built with systematical and geometrical aspects respecting the city essences such as population, geography, and activity. Equal sectioning of open spaces is crucial to develop organized and efficient components which leads to improved population life quality. Le Corbusier designed the exemplary model of his contemporary city with the centralized planning and vital elements of an industrial city. (Horsley, 1973)
Rittiwut 13 Working classes and higher classes need centralized planning to coexist without causing traffic congestions and residential issues. The land should be divided into three rings; the inner ring, the middle ring, and the outer ring. The inner ring, which is supposed to carry the most amount of population, is composed of business centers and main stations connecting the city’s major streets. The middle ring should contain residential areas allowing cities to receive more lights. Other components, for instance, the industrial zone, garden cities, and agriculture crops are located in the outer ring to enable waste and polluted air to leave the city through a sewage system. (Jones) A city project cannot be completed without vital elements assembling into it. Most of the essentials are what make this contemporary city functional. Starting from the inner ring, a business district placed in the center of the city should be equally arranged in rows and columns as airflow needs both an entrance and an exit. The streets originated in the center are sectioned into three types to distinguish pedestrian streets from highways including heavy traffic which is located below ground level, lighter traffic which is located on a ground level, and fast traffic being the main means of transportation to the center. The population residential areas vary based on three groups of people. This deviation creates another section called the garden cities where unemployed citizens and farmers live. Lastly, the green areas are placed along the border of the town to empty air pollution and allow inhabitants to function normally. (Le Corbusier, 1929)
3. Overall Planning for Chandigarh Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru projected his vision for the capital of Punjab in India to create “a symbol of the nation's faith in the future� after the partition for a renovation was
Rittiwut 14 proposed to the public. (Quinn, 2017) Chandigarh is located in Shivaliks’ foothills and recognized as one of the best modern urban designs in the twentieth century. The word Chandigarh originated from Chandi Mandir, a temple in the skirt of the town that creates the derivation of the city of beauty which its urban scenery lives up toward. (http://chandigarh.gov.in/stat12/Abstract2012/AB08_bg_history.pdf) In 1950, Le Corbusier was contacted by the Indian government to recreate the plan for the capital of Punjab after a massive refugee settlement. During the span of seven months in the research, he redrew Adelaide plan from Colonel William Light with his style into the work and established the city project with the help from Maxwell Fry and other University of Adelaide’s Professors. It is composed of Le Corbusier’s artistic contributions to most of the aspects in the city creating admirations from architects along with criticisms from the community. (Moulis, 2007)
3.1 Physical Geography One of the greatest challenges in the creation of Chandigarh is to adapt the modernism principles into South Asian environmental difference. Lying between degree 49’ N latitude and 75 degrees 41’ E and 76 degrees 51’ E longitude, the area has a dry climate along with seasonal temperature changes and tropical monsoons every year. (Ministry of Water Resources, 2013) The land provides natural drainage from the northeast to northwest slope running from two rivulets. Chandigarh situated in Zone-IV of Seismic map as the Himalayan Frontal lies across the northern boundary. According to Seismic Microzonation of Chandigarh Urban Complex, Chandigarh has faced numerous major and minor seismic activities which categorize the city in a high hazard zone prone to earthquakes and landslides. The buildings in Chandigarh are
Rittiwut 15 recommended to be less than 10 stories as short buildings are more likely to survive the damages as they can resonate to body and surface waves. (http://chandigarh.gov.in/cmp2031/physical-setting.pdf)
3.2 The Edict of Chandigarh The master plan was prepared by Albert Mayer and Mathew Novicki with Le Corbusier’s late involvement to several major components and the overall shape of the city. Most planned constructions are lowered down to allow air movement and visible scenery by applying the Contemporary City’s outer ring design as being the main location for the garden city where farmers live. The center was replaced with government offices and commercial centers which causes reorganizations of roads and block sections to resemble a geometric shape rather than random placements based on different elevations and humans’ purposes. (http://architectuul.com/architecture/city-of-chandigarh) This encouraged Le Corbusier ‘s inventions of the 7V for road separation and the Sector for blocking structure to serve his objective for Chandigarh’s draft along with maintaining other principles in the plan. Thus, the edict was written to lay out the fundamental elements of Chandigarh’s urban planning. (http://chandigarhtourism.gov.in/Chandigarh%20Tourism%20-%20architecture.htm)
3.3 Human Scale To create a harmonious lifestyle for the citizens inside the city, the plan should create some associations between the users and the place itself. Le Corbusier applied Modulor, the universal human scale for architecture design, to Chandigarh’s planning in order to achieve
Rittiwut 16 infinite cosmos and nature relationship. Additionally, functional buildings and playgrounds should correlate with their purposes and environmental goals, thus, Modulor i s used in Chandigarh’s master plan to compare the sizes of buildings with humans. (http://chandigarhtourism.gov.in/Chandigarh%20Tourism%20-%20architecture.htm)
3.4 Sectors
Fig. 6. Sector Division of Chandigarh, http://chandigarh.gov.in/knowchd_map.htm
Chandigarh is divided into sectors each with a width of 800 meters and a length of 1,200 meters covering 25 acres of Punjab. (http://architectuul.com/architecture/city-of-chandigarh) The roads act as sector separations to allow convenient transportation and direct area access. One block is designed to hold 5,000 to 25,000 people with a public green area designated in the center facing the direction of the mountains and essential facilities such as education centers, sports fields and recreational playgrounds around the area. Vehicle annoyance and noise
Rittiwut 17 disturbance are prohibited from the green zones to remain a natural balance in the district. (http://chandigarhtourism.gov.in/Chandigarh%20Tourism%20-%20architecture.htm) The sector organization is based on a grid structure Le Corbusier used which take the golden ratio and the Vitruvian Man by Leonardo Da Vinci into the structure of the work. It provides a proper proportioning system which gives a brief facile framework on his papers for architectural locations and establishes a relationship between designing and aesthetic. The golden section, which is made from using a square’s side as a radius of the next consecutive circle, is a mathematical alternative of the human shape. The studies of the anatomy by Da Vinci gives a series of square frames which acts as an organizational tool to provide criteria for design development. (Brinson, 2007) Although the grid structure offers less variation from an aerial view, there are a lot of possible designs that can be laid out in a small area. The sectors are in an inherent order giving a good precondition for Chandigarh. (https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/handle/10919/31598) The economical costs such as time and construction assets also lessen with repetitive patterns and more comprehensible design for engineers. Additionally, the pedestrians can easily navigate based on a simple city map gaining more sidewalk network continuing throughout the city. (https://www.smartcitiesdive.com/ex/sustainablecitiescollective/fallacies-against-grid/34437/)
3.5 Roads After the sectioning is finished, Le Corbusier separated the leftover space between blocks into 7 categories based on the 7V’s system as following; V-1as fast roads connecting Chandigarh to other towns, V-2 as arterial roads; V-3 as fast vehicular roads; V-4 as shopping
Rittiwut 18 streets on the southern side; V-5 as sector circulation roads; V-6 as access roads to residential areas; V-7 as pedestrian walkways and cycle tracks. (http://chandigarhtourism.gov.in/Chandigarh%20Tourism%20-%20architecture.htm)
Fig. 7. Chandigarh’s 7 Vs’ Road System, http://www.chenvis.nic.in/index2.aspx?slid=2327&sublinkid=938&langid=1&mid=1
V-1 roads connect Chandigarh to other nearby cities such as Ambala, Kharar and Shimla with intertwining roads leading to other main highways. V-2 roads, also known as Margs, contain important avenues with commercial and government institutes alongside, making them the center streets. V-4 roads are responsible for dividing sectors from east to west as V-5 roads are from north to south which can be identified by A, B, C, D corresponding to the north, east, south, and west respectively.
Rittiwut 19 (http://chandigarh.gov.in/stat12/Abstract2012/AB08_bg_history.pdf) Bicycle paths or V-8 roads are under construction paralleling to V-7 roads for the middle to low-income citizen’s major means of transportation. Le Corbusier also arranged additional accommodations to ease overall human movement in Chandigarh complementing with the 7V’s system. There are high causeways between railway stations and industrial zones on the city’s outer area relieving V-1 roads’ traffic jams, and culverts and bridges under the causeways for occasional water discharge from tropical monsoons. (Fiederer, 2018) Some particular regulations are being reinforced for each type of roads to ensure the speed of transportation. For instance, public vehicles are allowed only on V-1, V-2, V-3, and V-4 roads as the size of them will become a blockage for traffic circulation. V-3 roads should be sealed off from other roads by walls to prevent possible speed accidents. (http://chandigarhtourism.gov.in/Chandigarh%20Tourism%20-%20architecture.htm) The road construction is under the Municipal Corporation for approximately 1,400 kilometers long network of streets. Damaged tracks due to heavy usage of Chandigarh’s rapidly increasing population led to re-carpeting of the roads which was handed to the Municipal Corporation again. V-4, V-5, and V-6 networks are the main foci of the renovation for handling an excessive amount of traffic congestion. 360.26 kilometers of V-4 and V-5 streets have been fixed along with V-3 roads’ reconstruction such as V3 roads between sector 10 and 11, sector 11 and 12, sector 21 and 22, sector 36 and 37, sector 40 and 41, sector 41 and 42, sector 45 and 46, and sector 49 and 50. (http://mcchandigarh.gov.in/?q=roads-bridges)
Rittiwut 20 3.6 Capital complex The capital complex, a government based office area, is located in sector 1 with three iconic architectures: the Secretariat, the High Court, and the Legislative Assembly. (http://architectuul.com/architecture/city-of-chandigarh) This sector is meant to be the head of the city as Le Corbusier planned the Secretariat as a skyscraper in his previous master plan. Unfortunately, the design was turned down by government restrictions due to sight blockage such as a tower in the center of the city. Rejected by his team and goals, he built artificial hills between the complex and the rest of Chandigarh to segregate it completely and stated that “the city must never be seen” (Prakash, p 68-69) as the beauty of the city is not allowed to the citizens.
Fig. 8. A Bird’s Eye View Of Capitol Complex in Sector 1 of Chandigarh, Sanjeev Sharma
Le Corbusier took on various forms creating a harmonious series of buildings. The Palace of Assembly or the Legislative Assembly is a rectangular box with additional pieces of concrete on the side Its main facade has upturned porticos facing the plaza which creates shadows on the
Rittiwut 21 interior with the help from a grid of column. (Duggal, 2018) The inside of the palace store,s an assembly chamber which is a free-standing rectangular box surrounded with rectilinear shells. (http://chandigarh.gov.in/knowchd_gen_working.htm) On the opposite of the Legislative Assembly, the visitors can see the High Court and its umbrella-like structure. This area has a distinctive aesthetic and unique take on architecture compared to the rest of the city as Le Corbusier applied a combination of classical figures and Indian design to design the series of buildings for the government. With this certain approach, he placed the Governor’s Palace along with the High Court, and the Legislative Assembly on the opposite of the Secretariat to complete centralized control over the city in its head. He also installed an open hand monument at the center of the district to symbolize Chandigarh’s motto “open to given, open to receive ”. This stone sculpture has become the main attraction for tourists to visit for Le Corbusier’s vision as the city contains his thinking in most of its aspects. (Fiederer, 2018)
3.7 City Center The city center in sector 17 is designed to become pedestrians’ paradise without any vehicular traffic allowed. (http://chandigarhtourism.gov.in/Chandigarh%20Tourism%20-%20architecture.htm) This central business block located in the heart of the city is comprised of facilities such as Inter-State Bus Terminus, Parade Ground, District Courts, Police Village etc. while the shopping complex and business centers are placed on the other side of the bank to balance population size. It is the center of human movement in Chandigarh. (http://chandigarh.gov.in/stat12/Abstract2012/AB08_bg_history.pdf) The roads were designed to
Rittiwut 22 lead into the complex so that they stay under the shadow most of the day and parking spaces are also available to lessen possible traffic jams around the area. (http://architectuul.com/architecture/city-of-chandigarh)
Fig. 9. The Inter-State Bus Terminus of Chandigarh, ​Pardeep Tewari
The Inter-State Bus Terminus of Chandigarh or ISBT contains several routes decreasing traffic jams and vehicular devices on the roads. There are two main categories of destination involving local and interstate stations. The local route possesses three terminals varying from different levels of service for intercity and suburban while other two interstate terminus target other cities such as Punjab, Delhi, and Haryana. These stations are usually placed in the local bus stands and assembling points which are the District Courts and the judicial academy to reduce an unnecessary movement for buses. (http://chdctu.gov.in/busstands) This sector contains Le Corbusier Center which was the workplace of his team and significant resources of modern architectural works before it was turned into a museum. It was designed by Pierre Jeanneret with the consideration of Chandigarh’s climate and cost-effective feature. It is a testimony for several experimental works such as exposed porch concrete, sloping
Rittiwut 23 roofs, brick tiles, and jute-lac panels for housing components. The center incorporates shadow and illumination planning in the works to minimize the mechanical works for temperature change and create a suitable workplace. Thus, the building attempts the ideology in it with the concept of sustainability and green architecture. (https://worldarchitecture.org/architecture-news/cmzhc/le_corbusier_centre_sector_19__chandig arh.html) Other contributions used to sustain the equilibrium of Chandigarh’s development are Parade Ground, District Courts, and Police Village. The Parade Ground is a hosting site for exhibitions and Chandigarh’s important ceremonies. The venues can vary their functions from reception private parties to full-sized concerts as they provide most necessities for event organization. People are able to use the area effectively with this multipurpose and reachable management of the Parade Ground. The Police Village which acts as the central police station of Chandigarh is also placed in this area to organize and serve the citizens in sector 16, 17, 22 and 23. Other stations in an industrial area and other sub-districts obtain their employees from the Police Village along with the other two stations and circulate them throughout the whole system based on government rankings and missions. (http://chdsdmcentral.gov.in/Webpages/Aboutus.aspx) This overall organization which centralizes human movement helps maintain the stability of Chandigarh by weighing the heavy usage to this designated area and shifting the low movement activities to others such as the residential area and industrial area.
Rittiwut 24 3.8 Industrial Area The industrial area is located on the southeastern side of Chandigarh. It stands in the leeward wind direction which helps decrease air pollution and chemical accumulation. Only electricity-driven or non-polluting industries are allowed to settle in the area with segregation from the rest of the city for the same purpose. (​http://chandigarhtourism.gov.in/Chandigarh%20Tourism%20-%20architecture.htm​) Mango tree lines are planted to minimize factory carbon dioxide outputs and prevent polluted airflow into the city. The area adds up to 1,200 acres in total and is slowly developed by the government by dividing the work into three phases with the third phase being underdeveloped. The land is separated for eight different purposes based on government qualified industries in Chandigarh and necessity needs. The transportation system covers 26.09 acres connecting the roads to Punjab and Haryana. Animal-related industries and services including slaughterhouses, dairy farms, and poultry farms occupy 24.63 acres with the need for animal habitats. Public health office and pavement plants cover 28.34 acres. Other small categories involve stationary factories and community services for 6.50 acres and 6.34 acres accordingly. The area also contains six parking lots covering 9.71 acres, railways and warehousing covering 14.73 acres, and grid substations for 22.20 acres for benefits of the transportation system. The following industry units are based on natural manufacturing processes such as paper, steel, wood, and electrical appliances. The industrial area provides facilities for small entrepreneurs such as precision tool room facility and heat treatment facility to aid the economy system development with the help from SSI Units and development cooperation. The workers are given sector 29 and 30 as residential centers for the industrial area as no accommodation is allowed in the zone.
Rittiwut 25 However, 25.5 acres of unauthorized living space are built to maintain labor capacitance in Chandigarh with no further notice to remove this foundation. (​http://chandigarh.gov.in/cmp2031/industrial-area.pdf​)
3.9 The Lake Chandigarh has an artificial body of water named Sukhna Lake. It has emotional impacts on both the locals and Le Corbusier himself. His last wish was to submerge his ashes under the lake which was carried in 1967. (Duggal, 2018) The citizens also value this project as they ban noise problems from the lake to remain its tranquility. (http://chandigarhtourism.gov.in/Chandigarh%20Tourism%20-%20architecture.htm)
3.10 Residential Area The residences are classified into thirteen categories based on the rank and government income. This scheme arranged every category with numbers and letters indicating their designers and thus, their houses were created with similar modern concept and geometric simplicity. The outlook of overall strips of buildings becomes a rectangular tower facing the sun casting shadows upon their pedestrian walkways and designated recess playgrounds among the area. (Fiederer, 2018)
Rittiwut 26 Conclusion Le Corbusier has left a significant mark on modern architecture and established a future path for the next generation. With his distinctive style implanted into the base of the building design, a certain approach called Five Points of Architecture was created and applied on most of his world heritage sites such as Villa La Roche and Villa Savoye. He later improved the urban planning branch from his want to construct a suitable environment for the ideal concept of modernism. Chandigarh is one of the most admirable urban architectural works in the 20th century and its aspects are being studied to strengthen the connection between natural and artificial landscapes. Le Corbusier and his team deeply ingrained human movement and activities into the city itself and created emotional relationships along with the appreciation. They also display how the locations and their functions should be correlated in a small area and how the population can use them effectively. Without his development on the master plan, Chandigarh might not prosper as it does in the 21st-century. Although Chandigarh had been designed thoroughly, unexpected problems still occur in the city. The government sets a policy which allows mixed land use on the border of the town to store an excess amount of population. This decision ruins the city’s harmony by establishing skyscrapers along the city entry, preventing the use of vacant plots, and letting labor settle in the industrial area. These processes also cause further issues such as the absence of infrastructure and restaurants, traffic jams, and overpopulation. (http://chandigarh.gov.in/cmp2031/industrial-area.pdf) They show how a city is largely depended on its citizen as Chandigarh cannot retain its balance from excessive interference and
Rittiwut 27 human activities. Thus, the population should adapt to the environment and stop at the right time when it is necessary.
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