137
structures, mixed urban morphology, modern visual appearance and young urban
demography (Karforma 2010).
The dominance of old dilapidated buildings in North and Central Kolkata display
a clear image of the ongoing process of urban decay and are incompatible with the
extant superficial urban renewal strategies taken by the government. Although this
non-contributive, degenerative building stock is ageing rapidly with frequent occurrence of sudden collapse and poses high degree of threats to public safety, Kolkata
Municipal Corporation (KMC) authorities have made least efforts to address this
problem and ignored the need for inclusivity in the process of social development
with ongoing urban renewal programmes. A clear discrepancy can be observed in
the amount of investment between residential and commercial properties in the
‘old’ city core and the ‘new’ peripheral areas (Thompson 2017). Gradual shifting of
major urban administrative and commercial activities from the ‘old’ to the ‘new’
space poses another threat in relation to the urge of the authorities to take initiatives
for both material and social development of the ‘old’ core city of Kolkata. In
2017–2018, the newspaper reports say, more than 20 people died due to sudden collapse of old dilapidated buildings. But surprisingly, the residents still prefer to stay
in those houses despite being aware of their potential life risks due to the existence
of some strong reasons. In addition, financial crunch and low economic standard has
led to the aggravation of the condition of these buildings. The authorities need to
deal with the dilemma of the right of the residents and their safety issues in association with modernising core urban space by generating well-structured residential
and commercial buildings to reduce housing problems while improving urban economic space.
7.3 Dilapidated Dwellings: A Spatial Analysis
Kolkata has high concentration of old heritage buildings, but only few of them are
identified and maintained by the government based on their architectural values.
The Heritage Conservation Committee of Kolkata has identified four Grades of
Heritage buildings where least importance has been given to Grade III Heritage
buildings containing least architectural but high historical importance (Mejia and
Nguyen 2008). These buildings are ignored by the government and due to lack of
maintenance they all are now in deplorable conditions (Central Public Works
Department of India 2013). These buildings and other old dilapidated buildings
without the tag of heritage identity are together enlisted as the dangerous buildings
by the KMC.
Dilapidation of old buildings has been a well-known crisis in Kolkata. From
2011 to 2016, KMC identified 721 buildings which are now in deplorable and dangerous conditions for habitation. Every year deaths of residents of dilapidated buildings due to sudden collapse have become common phenomena in this city. However,
in 2017, KMC identified additional 359 buildings which are in dangerous conditions (Fig. 7.1).
7 Dwelling in Decay: Analysing the Spatio-Psychological Paradigm of Dilapidated…
structures, mixed urban morphology, modern visual appearance and young urban
demography (Karforma 2010).
The dominance of old dilapidated buildings in North and Central Kolkata display
a clear image of the ongoing process of urban decay and are incompatible with the
extant superficial urban renewal strategies taken by the government. Although this
non-contributive, degenerative building stock is ageing rapidly with frequent occurrence of sudden collapse and poses high degree of threats to public safety, Kolkata
Municipal Corporation (KMC) authorities have made least efforts to address this
problem and ignored the need for inclusivity in the process of social development
with ongoing urban renewal programmes. A clear discrepancy can be observed in
the amount of investment between residential and commercial properties in the
‘old’ city core and the ‘new’ peripheral areas (Thompson 2017). Gradual shifting of
major urban administrative and commercial activities from the ‘old’ to the ‘new’
space poses another threat in relation to the urge of the authorities to take initiatives
for both material and social development of the ‘old’ core city of Kolkata. In
2017–2018, the newspaper reports say, more than 20 people died due to sudden collapse of old dilapidated buildings. But surprisingly, the residents still prefer to stay
in those houses despite being aware of their potential life risks due to the existence
of some strong reasons. In addition, financial crunch and low economic standard has
led to the aggravation of the condition of these buildings. The authorities need to
deal with the dilemma of the right of the residents and their safety issues in association with modernising core urban space by generating well-structured residential
and commercial buildings to reduce housing problems while improving urban economic space.
7.3 Dilapidated Dwellings: A Spatial Analysis
Kolkata has high concentration of old heritage buildings, but only few of them are
identified and maintained by the government based on their architectural values.
The Heritage Conservation Committee of Kolkata has identified four Grades of
Heritage buildings where least importance has been given to Grade III Heritage
buildings containing least architectural but high historical importance (Mejia and
Nguyen 2008). These buildings are ignored by the government and due to lack of
maintenance they all are now in deplorable conditions (Central Public Works
Department of India 2013). These buildings and other old dilapidated buildings
without the tag of heritage identity are together enlisted as the dangerous buildings
by the KMC.
Dilapidation of old buildings has been a well-known crisis in Kolkata. From
2011 to 2016, KMC identified 721 buildings which are now in deplorable and dangerous conditions for habitation. Every year deaths of residents of dilapidated buildings due to sudden collapse have become common phenomena in this city. However,
in 2017, KMC identified additional 359 buildings which are in dangerous conditions (Fig. 7.1).
7 Dwelling in Decay: Analysing the Spatio-Psychological Paradigm of Dilapidated…