Designing Bhubaneswar: The geographical space #Ep-3

Old town satellite map

The Old Town Area: The old town area dates back to the 6^th century when the biggest temple in Bhubaneswar now, i.e. The Lingaraj Temple was getting its initial shapes. During those days people mostly worshiped Lord Shiva. By the time the temple was fully constructed around the late 11^th century, Lord Jagannath Sect had been growing in Kalinga which eventually evidenced the coexistence of Shiva and Vishnu at the temple. Back then it was the reign of Jajati Keshari of Keshari Dynasty who shifted the capital from Jajpur to Ekamra Kshetra (Temple city), the ancient name of Bhubaneswar.

Shiva Temples

 The name Bhubaneswar falls from the fact that, Shiva’s other name was “Tribhubaneswara” or “Bhubaneswara” and since the Ekamra Kshetra was surrounded by the temples of Shiva, it was attracting more people to gather, trade and live surrounding these temples eventually forming a town called Bhubaneswar. After independence, Jawahar Lal Nehru led the foundation and shifted the Capital of Odisha from Cuttack to Bhubaneswar around 1948.

The old town area is a congested area nowadays. The poor architecture and infrastructure literally justify its name. The narrow gullies make it hard for modern transportation to explore the area. Colonies like the Lingaraj colony, the Rajarani colony, Pandav Nagar, Brahmeshwar bagh, Bhimatangi, Gauri Nagar, etc. conglomerate to form a densely populated region enveloped in a small area.

But the historical importance of pure Kalinga architecture attracts many tourists from national and even international lands to visit this place and admire the ancient wonders of the past. Apart from Lingaraj temple, Mukteshwar temple, Rajarani temple, Parsuramesar temple, Astasambhu temple, Nageshwar temple, Megheswar temple, Yameshwar temple, Lakheswar temple and many more are the landmarks of exquisite architecture situated in this tract.

Ekamra Kshetra, the old Bhubaneswar Zone being the central part of BDPA is defined as a Socio-Cultural hub and plans are being made to preserve and restore the culturally impactful heritage of the city. The housing space is pretty congested as it was the first area to get crowded after the foundation of the city. Thus, not much planning or designing is required but the maintenance prospectus will play a vital role in the coming future.

Waterways

As per the Comprehensive Developmental Plan (CDP) 2030 for Bhubaneswar Development Plan area (BDPA), a brief report by architectural division, IIT Kgp, an attempt to revive the historical navigation is going to take place stretching from Sribantapur-Sisupal-Ekamra Kshetra. Previously the Gangua nallah was used as a mode of navigation as well as transportation (Inland Waterways) which with time and urbanization vanished. Efforts are being made under the garland lake system, one of the seven corridors proposed in the report emphasizing building a series of lakes alongside Gangua Nallah which may restore the lost historical essence.

  

The next episode will continue with the planned city (the new town area), a brief description of the geography and related conjuncts. It will be followed with possible developmental areas, some salient features included in the city developmental plan of 2030 report, geographical area at a glance. 

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Designing Bhubaneswar: Introduction #Ep-1

During old times temples were the hub of gathering knowledge and intellect. Scholars and pioneers used to visit temples to enrich their scope and perspective, in return shared their brains to the eager minds of today. Bhubaneswar, the city with the most number of temples aptly named as the temple city is a home to very recognized stalwarts in every field. It is also elected as the top-ranked in the list of smart cities of India. Best for investments and trades, it is luring many multinational giants as well as skilled personnel with expertise in different sectors to settle in its soil.

Since it is one of the first models of planned cities during the independence riots, it holds a huge potential in terms of resources, geographical plots, roadways, centers of excellence, even market distribution, exemplary infrastructures, and outlying industrial areas. Emerging entrepreneurship environment and budding start-ups will change it to a beacon of developed cities within a few years.

Thus, to look out for a brighter vision, we need to plan it more precisely and it can be only done by brainstorming, analyzing, designing and implementing all changing the aspects practically for the use. The enthusiasm of youth circle along with experiences of the older generation can contribute positively to its cause.

But with pure development comes some debris too. We all need to take care of that simultaneously. Efficient urban planning and development, proper distribution of market and vending zones, matching transport facilities with no traffic issues, proper waste management practices, disaster management schemes(pro and post), good health and sanitation, population reduction, individual  identification and information, crime reducing cells, cyber cells, online services, distributed water and electricity services, renewable energy building initiatives, pollution control, afforestation in design etc. , all of these steps need to be taken care of with equal importance to minimize the debris.

In this blog, I will go through all of these points to redesign Bhubaneswar in the best way possible. It will be an elaborate and informative approach based on certain references and assumptions. It can be backed with simulation and survey reports for value-added information. Subsequently, it can be referred by Governing bodies and authorities for practical implications.

This will be a series of blogs with an emphasis on each topic divided into different chapters. I will look over, analyze the problems and will have some solutions regarding the current scenario along with admiration to the existing landmarks.

Continued...

Stay tuned
Jay Jagannath

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