Housing Problems & Objectives

Problems:

Frequent Need for Expansion: The Harijan people live in extended families. Sometimes

there are three generations living in a small room using partitions. Scenarios like this, which

create inconvenience and lack of privacy, make social structure crumble. But most of the

time another family lives next to them, using a shared wall, and so there's no space to make

room for another living unit even though it's a much-needed necessity.

Limited Access to Amenities: Unlike normal people, the Harijans face stigma due to

their profession as well as the fact that their mere existence in society is stigmatized. They

don't have any land rights or access to amenities. They can't buy necessities from the local

stores due to social exclusion. So, the land government is providing to them in this thesis

is crucial to them.

Lack of Breathing Space: Most of the clusters lack breathing spaces at the household

and neighborhood scale. There is little to no green space for vegetation.

Linear Connections: The clusters are mostly connected in a linear connection by a

veranda. This leaves no space to support day-to-day activities.

Residential Segregation: Residents of the surrounding community do not interact with

the Harijan people. The Harijans are not allowed in their community. They are excluded

from every social or cultural event. The narrow alleys and dense clusters make the outlook

of the community more stagnant.

Lack of Ventilation: There's no scope for ventilation as clusters are developed in an

unplanned manner, one behind another, sharing walls and leaving no scope for ventilation.

The rooms often have no access to sunlight and are stagnant and narrow.

Objectives:

Community Sensitive Planning: The community lacks planned infrastructure

development according to the people's needs and requirements. The design approach has

to respect their settlement pattern and come up with a community-sensitive design

approach.

Participatory Design: The community should be able to adapt and personalize the design

solution as their own. It has to be a cost-effective solution.

Communal integration: The community planning should promote communal

integration and social cohesion to reduce social exclusion of the Harijans.

Adaptability: The design has to have a flexible solution to their frequent need for

expansion. The approach should be sustainable and adapt with time and must ensure cross

ventilation for built forms.