Urban planning in Jammu and Kashmir is at a very critical juncture. The Institution of Engineers, in collaboration with civil society groups, organized a thorough workshop in which bylaws were deliberated upon.
Kashmir Observer interviewed Professor Jan Haenraets, Professor of Practice in the Preservation and Studies Program at Boston University. He has done extensive work in Kashmir. Following are the excerpts from the interview.
Kashmir Observer: Tell us about the kind of technicalities that were discussed in the workshop regarding land pooling and land bylaws. Please talk us through it.
The panel brought together a number of speakers and a wider public audience for consultation and inputs. The speakers focused on proposals for changes to the bylaws. My perspective, as a conservation architect who focuses on the historic landscape, was that Srinagar is a very historic urban landscape, different from other cities in the subcontinent. You need a particular set of guidelines and regulations to ensure that the sustainable livability of the city is retained. What the speakers mentioned were the implications of some of the suggestions, such as the removal of certain elements of the bylaws, and how that could open the door to very free development. While I think everybody agreed that regulations should evolve, it is crucial that they are adapted carefully, especially for a particular place like Srinagar in Kashmir, not just Kashmir but the entire Kashmir valley.
Kashmir Observer: Have you visited the downtown part of Srinagar, and did you experience the current Smart City? How would you draw the difference between the two parts of the city?
I have been involved in Kashmir for about 15 years, and I have visited historic places. The downtown, the old city, is remarkable, and I have seen huge changes taking place, such as the widening of roads and other changes we do need in a historic city. Srinagar doesn’t have many multi-story buildings; it retains a kind of medieval atmosphere, which is excellent and beautiful at the same time.
Progress is something that every citizen should receive. You should have a level of progress in your urban environment. But what happens at the same time, while we have these historic areas, is an explosion of automobile traffic, which has had a major impact, especially over the last 15 years, on the historic city. At the same time, we’ve seen stabilization in the valley, and the 2019 bill shifted the government more centrally to Delhi. In that whole context, we’ve seen an influx of tourism and visitation from national visitors to the valley. With the centralized government behind that, they’ve created ideas such as Smart City projects, which are implemented throughout the nation. Now, in the case of Srinagar, it is a good thing that there is significant investment in the public realm, including infrastructural elements like bus systems. But the problem is that those proposals are not Kashmir-specific. We see developments with materials, designs, and systems like bicycle paths and electric bicycles, even though bicycling was not something common in Kashmir. So investments are happening here, but the execution is very poor. We see a contrast between the old city, where infrastructural improvement is necessary, and the new tourist hotspots, which feel somewhat alien to Kashmir.
Kashmir Observer: According to the Building Bylaws 2021, a lot of changes have been suggested by experts sitting in Delhi, which have likely been contested by stakeholders and experts here in Jammu and Kashmir, not just in Kashmir but also in Jammu. How do you view these bylaws and their context?
There was a lot of discussion about that, and we need to recognize that bylaws are highly subjective. Some people will support certain proposals, while others may not. I have a particular view, as I come from a historic landscape background, focusing on environmental quality, livable cities, and the historic significance of places. However, others may come from economic or tourism backgrounds. I must say, some people mentioned that some of these shifts in the bylaws could benefit them, especially in terms of economic development, such as hotels or new town areas where complete new developments may occur. Deregulation might benefit such projects. But again, in the historic city, this becomes problematic. So, there were different views.
Kashmir Observer: As an expert, are you satisfied with the way the Smart City is coming up? Given the different landscaping elements and other features in the city, do you think it is satisfactory, or do you have your own opinion?
I will give my personal opinion: I think it is a complete failure in Kashmir. The Smart City infrastructure, to me, is a complete failure. I believe everyone in Kashmir welcomes the financial investment in the region, but the proposals are being designed outside Kashmir by consultants who don’t really understand the valley. They use design approaches that may be suitable for other cities in India, but they are not place-specific. For landscape infrastructure, urban realms, and public spaces, you need to understand the place. It’s not enough to design in a drawing room and expect it to work. For landscape and public realm projects, you must understand the historic layers, climate, environment — all aspects of the place. One area where the Smart City project stands out as a failure is in horticulture and vegetation. They create paved surfaces with little to no horticulture. For any outdoor public space, you need to consider maintenance alongside the infrastructure. But what’s happening here is more like interior decoration done outdoors — benches and flowers that could be found anywhere, which aren’t place-specific, and there’s no consideration for horticulture. Srinagar, Kashmir, is known for its green environment, but many trees are being cut down or damaged during this process, and green spaces are being replaced with concrete and stone pavements. To me, it’s a pity. With the budget for that project, we could have completely landscaped the urban public realm of the old city.
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