Findings, Identifying Issues and Problem Statement

FISHERMAN‘S WHARF

The Fisherman’s Wharf is a popular restaurant located directly at the creek opposite the Taj Vivanta. It has an outside terrace which is currently facing away from the Creek due to the smell and unpleasant conditions of the creek. We assume that they have a high interest in regenerating and beautifying the Creek to increase the value of their property and the ability to ofer “riverside” seating for their guests. A few years ago a pilot project that installed an aerator in the Creek near the restaurant increased the water quality to such a level that the Fisherman’s Wharf was able to ofer outdoor seating facing the Creek. Since the restaurant is a dining and meeting point for tourists and business people it can be assumed that the level of power is less than the Taj Vivanta but at par with that of the businesses along the St. Inez Road.

NON-GOVERNMENT ORGANISATIONS AND ACTIVISTS

GOA FORGIVING

Goa ForGiving is an NGO that is highly interested in protecting and preserving natural habitats to create a better Goa for future generations through community run initiatives. The organisation has run several art workshops with children of the St. Inez Bandh and other communities located along the Creek. Over the last few years it also initiated some clean-up projects where volunteers collected the solid waste from the Creek. These projects were aimed at drawing awareness to the Creek’s condition in order to spur long-term change and interest. The organisations level of power is rather high due to its recognition in society, media, and politics.

TALLULAH D‘SILVA

Tallulah is a local architect who works with urban designers on community initiatives and promotes traditional building systems and natural building materials. Her EcoLoo, bioremediation systems and the Traveling Dome (outdoor learning experience) are just a few projects that inspire a more sustainable lifestyle. Her overall interest in the environment includes the St. Inez Creek. Her large network of activists and collaborators can be very benefcial to the cause of the Creek.

VISHAL RAWLLEY

Vishal is an architect and moved to Panaji three years ago and is very involved with the Camrabhat community. He is very interested in running community workshops and installing simple natural solutions to improve the value of the Creek. He constructed a vegetable garden and two foating island gardens for the St.Inez Creek. His level of infuence is somewhat higher than the resident‘s as he holds a lot of knowledge and connections.

GOVERNMENT ORGANISATION

CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF PANAJI (CCP)

The Corporation of the City of Panaji is an institution that caters the city’s civic needs. The CCP has a general interest in developing and upgrading the city‘s infrastructure which afects the St. Inez Creek. The Final City Sanitation Plan from 2015 outlines proposals for a city-wide sanitation network and stormwater management to prevent fooding.

IMAGINE PANAJI

Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Ltd is a government owned company and Special Purpose Vehicle to develop smart urban infrastructure for Panaji.

Imagine Panaji has a high interest in rejuvenating the Creek as this is one of their prioritised projects. Their power is presumably quite high due to their role under the government. They also have the ability to implement projects outside of the overall structure of the departments in Panaji.

PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT (PWD)

The PWD is entrusted with all the developmental activities like planning, designing, constructing, operating and maintaining all types of construction works in this State of Goa. Part of this responsibility is water supply and sanitation. Therefore they are in a position of high power to make interventions towards the regeneration of the Creek. There are numerous projects that have been proposed but have not been implemented. This could be attributed to projects getting tangled up in bureaucratic processes.

MEMBER OF LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY (MLA)

Atanasio Monserrate is the local Member of the Legislative Assembly responsible for Panaji. As his ofce confrmed he is the driving force behind the public toilets that have been installed in the Bandh Community and he also sponsored the Temple in that neighbourhood. As a politician he has the power to authorise and implement projects. His interest in the Creek seems to focus on developing the surrounding area which includes the St. Inez Bandh. His ofce confrmed that this area will be due for redevelopment and residents are supposed to be relocated.

FINDINGS

LACK OF COMMUNAL SPACES

When conducting our community mapping exercise, one of the spaces that received the most positive marks were communal green spaces like the Art Park and the Campal Gardens at the northern end of our zone. Participants mentioned that they would come out of their way to utilise these spaces even if they didn’t live in the immediate area. To us, this demonstrated a high priority for accessible communal spaces in the community.

While speaking to residents of the St. Inez Bandh, we were informed that there were no dedicated play area for the children. Children play in a parking lot at the north end of the Bandh. However, this is a tension point for the residents of the St. Inez Bandh and the residents of the apartment complexes that use this space to park their vehicles. Residents of the apartment complexes have expressed complaints that the children playing in this space will sometimes get in the way of trafc and they are worried about damage being caused to their vehicles.

One resident, who grew up in the Bandh community, expressed very fond memories of how she used to play on the nearby parking lot 15-20 years ago when it was a dedicated play space. To her, it is upsetting that her children don’t have the beneft of having a play space. This, coupled with responses that we received from our Priority Voting, Emoji Game and Photo Morphing exercises demonstrated the desire for a communal space in this area.

Communal spaces play important roles in communities. They serve as a space for people to use for leisure purposes and most importantly, they create moments for citizens to connect and strengthen their relationships with each other. Communal spaces like parks and community gardens have proven to be important facilitators in bridging gaps diverse groups of citizens. This has been demonstrated by case studies in Denmark where community gardens were introduced to distressed communities and showed success in strengthening social capital by “orchestrating positive meetings between groups of citizens with diferent cultural and ethnic backgrounds and diferent abilities (Agger et al., 2016).” In the case of the St. Inez Bandh, we assumed from observations that the lack of communal spaces plays a role in the isolation of the community within the greater community and city. The addition of communal space has the ability to grant this community the opportunity to have a dedicated play space for children and it can also serve as a space to interact with neighbours from the surrounding community.

Figure 10.01 - Existing communal spaces.

DEGRADED COMMUNAL RELATIONSHIPS

It was easy to speak to the residents of the St. Inez Bandh since most of them could be found just outside of their homes working, relaxing, or chatting with their immediate neighbours. Social capital within the immediate area appeared to be strong but outside of that immediate area, there appeared to be little to no connection with the greater community.

The lack of relationship between the Bandh and the city government was also concerning. Residents shared that the only time they heard from elected ofcials was around election season where prospective candidates would visit the area to make promises in return for the community’s support. In the most recent election, the locally elected MLA promised to install toilets in the community and he delivered on his promise when construction of the toilets commenced shortly after his election to ofce. Outside of this, residents shared comments and expressions that suggested an adverse relationship towards government stakeholders. During our last site visit, a home was demolished to make way for public toilets and residents shared concerns that further development would bring the same fate to more homes in the area.

These passive relationships with the greater community and government stakeholders make it easy for the diferent groups to stigmatise each other and it can also lead to communities, like that of the St. Inez Bandh, to not be formally recognised which can jeopardise any sense of belonging and tenure security. During our Photo Morphing exercise, older residents were hesitant to draw changes for their community as they didn’t believe they had any power and hence didn’t see a point in sharing their visions for the neighbourhood. The questionable and insecure tenureship contributes to a degraded sense of belonging and ownership for one’s community.

Figure 10.02 - Diagram depicting identifed issues. Empowering citizens to be recognised and actively involved with their neighbours and within governmental processes can help to ensure that their voice is heard and that they are included in decisions that afect their lives. In the case of the St. Inez Bandh, it could also increase tenure security in the area.

These aforementioned issues are in no way independent of each other. They all interact and infuence each other to a certain extent. While there are other underlying issues and factors that have not been mentioned that also play a role in infuencing the quality of life for residents of the St. Inez Bandh, we believe that addressing the aforementioned issues can empower various stakeholders to push for change within their community.

Figure 10.03 - Entry to parking lot.

ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION

Environmental degradation of the creek is an issue that afects the entire city of Panaji, but those that reside closest to the Creek, like the residents of the St. Inez Bandh, are more afected by issues that stem from the poor condition of the Creek. Environmental issues and degradation are more likely to afect marginalised communities. This is a common theme not only in India, but globally as well.

As global climate change persists and worsens, there is a heightened need to address various environmental issues; especially since those

Figure 10.04 - Solid waste in the St. Inez Creek.

GOVERNANCE OF ST INEZ CREEK

Governance is defned by the United Nations Development Programme as “the system of values, policies and institutions by which a society manages its economic, political and social afairs through interactions within and among the state, civil society and private sector” (Brown, Alison, 2015). In the case of St Inez Creek, governance is highly diverse, complex, and often conficted with public, private and non-governance actors playing their part. Interactions with internal and external stakeholders as part of the feldwork have made it clear that groups often are competing due to difering interests in the Creek, and this is a signifcant driver behind its degradation. The Panaji 24/7 Report recognises that multiple agencies are responsible for the Creek, and that “One organisation should accept overall ownership and responsibility” (Royal Haskoning DHV, 2019). A lack of information, distrust and split or unclear responsibilities are emergent features of the system of governance on the Creek.

Figure 11.01 - Seminar on the rejuvenation of the St Inez Creek organised by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

OWNERSHIP

The ownership of the entire length Creek itself traditionally falls under the jurisdiction of the Communidade, a historic organisation of collective ownership that derives from the precolonial period. However, there is legal debate as to whether the national Indian governance system nullifes this, and some members of government consider the State of Goa to be the ‘ultimate’ owner of the Creek. The organisation is therefore in frequent confict with developers who encroach on the Creek, and are currently taking legal action against the government for land development designations they deem inappropriate. The Communidade has to take the role of ‘activist and scrutinist’ with regards to development.

Figure 11.02 - Governance around the St. Inez Creek.

State Government State Pollution Control Board

North Goa Planning Water Authority Resources CCP & Taleigao DepartmentPanchayat Public Works Department Coastal Zone

Authority Pressure to avoid Coastal Regulation Zone designation

Politicians Sets monitoring priorities away from Creek

Policy of concretisation of

Creek banks

Defines development buffer areas Creates Creek Regeneration Report

Pressure to reduce barriers to development

T GOVERNMENTAL

SES DEPARTM E NTAL PRIORITIES RESPOND T O VESTED INTERESTS TH D E YNAMICS OF CREEK DEGRADAT I O N...

GOVERNANCE ST INEZ CREEK

Failure to monitor pollution

Private Developers PRIVATE +

Colonies

Informally monitors and reports pollution

Initiates legal challenges for failing to prevent development on Creek

Pass blame

Communidade

Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Communities

Holds politicians to account

Goa for Giving Activists+ NON-GOVERNMENTAL

PREVENTING POLLUTION

Many of our stakeholders - both residents and activists - claim that colonies (housing developments) discharge sewage directly into the Creek. The State Pollution Control Board has theoretical responsibility for monitoring and preventing such direct sewage discharges, although the latest water quality samples for the Creek appear to have been taken in 2014 (E R Vikarma S Sawant, 2019). This indicates that their eforts in monitoring are directed elsewhere (most likely under the direction of the State Government) which limits their ability to prevent pollution in the Creek. Activists that we’ve worked closely with have also been in frequent confict with political entities, such as the local Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and Taleigao Panchayat over proposals to concretise the Creek. The Sarpanch (Village Head) of Taleigao has told us that the entire Creek is to be concretised by the Water Resources Department, even though this conficts directly with the aspirations of the Panaji 24/7 (Royal Haskoning DHV, 2019) which emphasise nature-based solutions.

A simplifed diagram of how stakeholder dynamics can lead to the degradation of the St Inez Creek is given in Figure 11.02.

PRESSURE OF DEVELOPMENT

Panaji is a fast growing city, with a thriving tertiary sector and booming population. The Outline Development Plans for Panaji and Taleigao, produced by the North Goa Planning Department, recognise this, with increased allocations for residential and commercial development (Greater Panaji Planning and Development Authority, 2019). This puts land under pressure for development, as evidenced by the colonies that have expanded around Camrabhat in the last fve years. The latest ODP for Panaji includes a fve-metre bufer zone around the Creek which theoretically should limit development and prevent concretisation, if enforced. Some Civil Society activists and national bodies have argued that the Creek should be designated under the Coastal Regulations Zones of the Coastal Zone Authority (Times of India, 2019), which would signifcantly restrict development in a wide bufer zone around the Creek and permit soft edging. However, activists have told us it is ultimately political pressure and the indirect pressure of development which prevents this happening.

Figure 11.03 - A home got removed to make place for public bathrooms, initiated by the MLA

RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION

ESTABLISHING A WELFARE ASSOCIATION, OR SIMILAR, TO OPERATE WITH A MANDATE FROM GOVERNMENT TO REHABILITATE AND PRESERVE THE ST. INEZ CREEK WITH A FOCUS ON THE NEEDS OF ADJACENT COMMUNITIES.

WHAT?

A Residents’ Welfare Association (RWA) is a non-governmental, non-proft organisation that is entirely self-fnanced and self-managed. RWAs can be registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (KSR Murthy, 2019) . The Association would aim to regenerate the Creek as a natural habitat, preserve it, celebrate it through community engagement and focus on meeting the needs of adjacent communities. The Association would be run by its members who elect a board and have voting rights on all decisions made by the RWA concerning the Creek. The Association would have the power to raise funds, directly and through corporate partners, to fund restoration projects and engagement activities. In the long term it can be established as the care-taker of the Creek, with responsibility for decision making delegated to it.

CASE STUDY: RESTORATION OF LAKES IN BANGALORE

In recent years, many of Bangalore’s lakes, such as Kaikondrahalli, were “polluted, afected by solid waste dumping, and nearly dry” (Nagendra, 2016) but have since been transformed by local residents. Firstly, they formed ‘lake trusts’, which worked with government and academia to understand the root causes of the degradation of 33 lakes in the city, and “partnered with public authorities to improve the restoration and upkeep of the city’s disappearing and increasingly polluted lakes” (Murphy, 2019). They formed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government and were delegated certain decision making powers over the lakes. Through strong and coordinated advocacy with 17 government departments, they have led the social and ecological restoration of the lakes, which have transformed into a “locus of social activity for local residents, and a local biodiversity hotspot”.

WHY?

One of the biggest issues in regenerating the Creek is the mismanagement between all the authorities and Government Departments involved in actions around the St. Inez Creek. With each of these authorities being responsible for only one small subject concerning the Creek, it is extremely difcult to address issues, draw solutions and make interventions.

A Resident Welfare Association, or similar ‘trust’, can be the solution to this systemic issue. If the RWA takes on the responsibility of the Creek and it‘s mission becomes the regeneration of the Creek, it can have an immense communitydriven impact. An RWA gives the opportunity to integrate all the stakeholders. Anybody who has an interest in changing and upgrading the creek area is able to join, gain voting rights and take action. The majority of members of the Association will be residents who are negatively afected by the Creek and have a high interest to regenerate the Creek for the sake of their families’ well being. It is important that these residents be supported by stakeholders who hold certain power and are recognised by the wider system of governance, including government departments. Marginalised communities can particularly beneft from being part of a bigger Association which can support their needs.

Figure 11.04 - Bangalore Lake.

St Inez Creek Welfare Association

Communities + Internal Stakeholders + External Stakeholders

Public Works Department

Water Resources Department Campal

Goa Chamber of Commerce & Industry INOX

Goa for Giving

Taj Vivanta

Kala Academy

St Inez Baand

Tonca STP St Inez Fisherman’s Wharf

Corporation of the City of Panaji Calculo Mall

Camrabhat

Imagine Panaji Smart City Development Ltd Don Bosco College St Inez Church

Local Architects and Activists Goa College of Home Science Tonca YMCA Local Engineers and Entrapreneaurs

Connected to external stak eh ol d ers wi t h M e m o r a n dums o f Un derstanding (MoUs)

Taleigao Panchayat

from corporate CSR fnancing schemes (which are signifcant in India), subscriptions, direct fundraising from the community or payments for ecosystems services. The latter is a relatively novel concept, where direct cash transfers are made to avoid pollution and/or mitigate damage. Our stakeholders have recognised all these fundraising methods as holding potential. Projects should be driven by and refect the needs of communities around the Creek to help build trust and commitment to the Association, using participatory techniques. In the medium to long term, the group should seek to formalise their responsibility for the Creek through MoUs where necessary. In Delhi, the ‘Bhagidari’ scheme ensured that political members of the municipality had weekly meetings with Association representatives, which greatly increased the responsivity of the municipality to community issues. By harnessing the social capital of its members and political connections (especially through Goa ForGiving), the Association should seek to build a similar close relationship with the municipality. In addition to environmental improvements, the Association should seek to generate positive societal outcomes and economic benefts for communities through long-term employment and educational initiatives.

Figure 11.07 - Potential stakeholders and key partners for the RWA.

RISKS

Discussions with stakeholders have highlighted the risk that powerful individuals can dominate the agendas of such associations. Moreover, sponsorship from large companies can provide an opportunity to upscale projects but raise the risk of ‘corporate capture’. From an early stage, ensuring equal voting rights and defning a strong mission statement can help to ensure power is fairly distributed, especially to community members.

Figure 11.08 - Stakeholder meeting about the proposed RWA.