The Architects of Sikkim – Gangtok 2001

Gangtok 2001: Exhibition/ Workshop on Architecture & Urbanism

- Prashant Pradhan  /  design@prashantpradhan.com

Beneath the peaceful calm that echoes through the hills of Sikkim, there is a turbulence that grows. Subject to continuous and consistent growth catalyzed by Central Government Funds caused Gangtok, the once provincial capital to undergo a rapid transformation into a schizophrenic condition of being metropolitan in its ambition while lacking basic infrastructure and planning – resulting in haphazard growth. The growing city is ailing with a number of problems and they seem to be further magnified under challenging topographical, environmental and climatic and political conditions presented by the fragile Himalayan region.

“The need for a ‘Architects of Sikkim’ emerged with the collective feeling that as citizens and planning professionals, we share a responsibility with society. This translates for us, into working towards the betterment of our built environment and nurturing the health of our profession, still in its infancy in Sikkim. As a first step to our commitment to our future, we are organising an Exhibition focussing on the issues thrown up by the growing urbanisation of Gangtok in the first two weeks of Dec 2001.

The exhibition ‘Gangtok 2001’ aims to be a ‘mirror’ that reflects the political, social, cultural, environmental and economic forces that shape our built environment and our society. It is also an oppurtunity for us to undertake design exercises informed by the analysis of the issues we will be researching. These projects will form an integral part of the exhibition and will highlight aspects of Growth, Urban Infrastructure, Culture, Environment and Building Technology.

In order to tackle contentious issues such as ‘Identity’, ‘Governance’, ‘Empowerment’, and ‘Environmental Hazards’, we will organize a series of workshops within the duration of the exhibition with the help of ‘experts’ in the relevant fields. We will also involve a sample of a people from a ‘cross section of society’. This would be an experiment in addressing the problems of the lack of peoples participation in decision making by articulating needs, concerns, aspirations and suggestions that might help decision makers make well informed choices..”
(Extract from AS brochure)

The Exhibition

The event was inaugurated on the 3rd of December by the Chief Minister and closed 2 weeks later by the Governor of Sikkim amidst tremendous support and participation of the citizens. The Government Departments were exceptionally helpful with data and financial resources.

The Exhibition was organized to address specific issues - thematically categorized dealing with the Urban Environment. The themes were decided on the basis of current ongoing projects by the government.

Growth Patterns -- We were concerned with the future of the city and as architects and urban designers, we tried to suggest ways in which some sort of direction could be given to the growth. Before projecting towards the future, it was necessary to understand the nature of the transformations that led to Gangtok being in the state that it was. An extensive study was made into the history of the city that was interconnected with the entire province. Using photographs from different sources dating from the beginning of the last century to the present, we described the changes that had occurred. We also mapped the major events that had the most impact in shaping the reality that people saw around them. Finally, there were 2 smaller urban projects designed with the specific purpose of directing urban growth by harnessing the tourism potential ubiquitous in all planning policies.

** Click here for images from the Exhibition

Public Space -- Almost every city in India has an important road named after the ‘father of the nation’. Gangtok is no exception. MG Marg is the commercial spine of the city populated mainly by the business community. The morphology is defined by tall concrete structures on either side of the road and sidewalk. The present condition could be described as being ‘invaded by the automobile’ leaving very little space for the pedestrian. One of the major problems ailing the quality of urban life in Gangtok is the absence of public space. The project at MG Marg began with an urban study made to determine the relative area and usage. The proposal for the location was divided in 3 phases that would lead to the complete pedestrianization of the street enabling activity that would enhance the ‘quality of life’ and answer the need for public space.

** Click here for images from the Exhibition

Environment -- Gangtok is built on fragile terrain but some areas generally located in and around the natural watersheds are more prone to landslides than others. The Urban Development Department had been considering a consolidation of these areas and ‘Hans Dhara’, a environmentally sensitive neighborhood is one such typical location. A design solution was presented in the exhibition that tackled the issues of light construction in these areas.

Cable Car Network Gangtok -- A narrow road infrastructure combined with an ever rising automobile population has led to the creation of bottlenecks at almost every bend. The absence of alternative routes further magnifies the problem. The need for mass transport was imminent and, this was to manifest in the form of a cable car network that would free the traffic on the road and solve problems of commuting. An elaborate network was outlined that connected the residential areas with the commercial and offices.

** Click here for images from the Exhibition

Marketplace -- ‘Lall Bazar’ was an open farmer’s market where the majority of Grocery shopping in the city that included perishables and produce. The Government had proposed a permanent structure several stories high that would transform the ‘open’ marketplace into a supermarket. The proposal from the Architects of Sikkim was an alternative to the mega structure - a smaller, more effective solution that would have less impact on the physical environment.

Building Materials
A study was made into alternative materials to be used for construction namely – bamboo. Strong emphasis was laid on energy efficient and sustainable building technology highlighting the use of locally available raw material and semi skilled labor.


Talking Heads

This was a mini project that attempted to solicit public opinion based on random video interviews from a predetermined questionnaire. These interviews were conducted among a cross section of society in order to gather a diverse audience. The questions focused on social issues and relevance of community engagement in the decision making process. The interviews were presented in a video format continuously and randomly looped - played throughout the exhibition.

The Workshops

The workshops were organized in order to address the more complex issues. Current practices in the framing of policies were concerns that needed the participation and representation of a cross section of society. The participants for the workshops were selected representatives of politicians, bureaucrats, NGOs, the business community, women’s organizations, chamber of commerce, journalists, senior citizens, teachers and academicians, students and other stakeholders from institutions such as the ‘Taxi Driver’s Association’, the ‘Hotel Association’ and the like. The 5 workshops were venued in different hotels and coordinated by an ’expert’ who would conduct the workshop. He or she would be the resource person, responsible for the topic in discussion, and would be the main convener and anchor person for all issues regarding the topic. The ‘expert’ would also introduce the topic and frame the guidelines under which the workshop would be conducted.

** Click here for images from the Workshop

Environment
Venue - Hotel Rendezvous’
Expert - Prof. Akhourie Pramod Krishna (Scientist In Charge – G.B. Pant Institute for Sustainable Development in the Himalayan Region)

The workshop on Environment focussed on Gangtok and the hazards of the built environment. Sikkim lying on a seismic zone was threatened with earthquakes and, in the wake of the destruction caused recently in Gujarat, how was the construction practice in the state to address the concern? Other issues of the workshop dealt with landslides, soil erosion, pollution and the threat to the biodiversity.

Policy decision and Implementation
Venue – Hotel Mt. Jopuno
Expert - Dr. Jeta Sanskritayan (Prof. Of Economics at the North Bengal University and member of the West Bengal Planning Board)

Policy Decisions in Sikkim have been subject to a lot of criticism informally and formally. The public has called the accountability and credibility of the decision makers to question. Observations of several concerned citizens has led to the general consensus that the situation is quite hopeless and unless there is a concerted effort in the questioning, criticizing and offering of opinions and ideas, the complacency that is getting the better of the general public will prove to be an impossible task. The workshop was aimed at understanding the opacity of the political - bureaucratic structure:
It is impossible to gain access to several layers in the information layer – that are crucial to the interest of the Public.
New projects are planned without any negligible information to the public.
These projects seem to be serving the interests of a selected group of individuals and not geared at the larger interest of the public
There seems to be a lack of prioritizing the policies, such as executing a Stadium project while there is much demand for more basic amenities for the city.
Lack of proper means to arrive at a policy that is based on the interests of the public. This was followed up by the workshop on

Empowerment. Empowerment and Self Governance
It has been stated in the 73rd amendment that every city / town shall be governed by its own elected body of representatives that will bear direct responsibility for the city. However, the urban policies in Gangtok are dictated by the Urban Development Department which is responsible for the entire state of Sikkim. This workshop aimed at addressing the long standing void in the governance of the Gangtok Urban Region. The need for a self–governing body (e.g. a municipality) could not be more visible in the haphazard growth of the city.
The workshop addressed the issues pertinent to the policymaking and identifying methods in which this can be achieved. This would lead to recognizing the potential and need for a self-governing body for Gangtok.

Identity
Venue Hotel Tashi Delek
Expert Kailash Pradhan and Prashant Pradhan from the Architects of Sikkim

The main focus in the workshop on Identity was in raising questions about the sentiment of a ‘unified’ and ‘integrated’ state of Sikkim. There were discussions about religious and cultural identity and its implications on the current lifestyle of citizens. An attempt was made to discuss the authenticity and relevance of the ‘Sikkimese Style’ architecture – one that required the imposition of a universal grammar on State Architecture.

Quality of Life
Venue- Hotel Chumbi Residency
Expert Ms. N. Dunne (Professor at St. Joseph’s College, Darjeeling)

The workshop was targeted at the children of Sikkim, the future generation of the state, who made an inquiry into the issues, ingredients and themes that constitute the enhancement of the ‘quality of life’. It was important to direct this topic at the children in order to ensure a sound future for the state. “The extent of a person’s ‘Quality of Life’ in the areas of ‘Being’, ‘Belonging’ and ‘Becoming’ and their subdomains is determined by two factors: importance and enjoyment. Thus, Quality of Life consists of the relative importance or meaning attached to each particular dimension. In this way quality of life is adapted to the life of all humans, at any time, and from their individual perspectives.”

The members of the Architect of Sikkim who participated in the event were:
Sonia Bajoria, Kailash Pradhan, Naveen Pradhan, Prashant Pradhan, Chattar Singh, Siddharth Rasaily, Sanjog Raya