Archives - Question of Cities

How Bhubaneswar’s master plan was overtaken by unsustainable development

German-Jewish architect Otto Koenigsberger adopted a linear approach in building Odisha’s capital Bhubaneswar in which the neighbourhood unit would be “an attempt to transplant into the city one of the healthiest features of country and small-town life.” This, he argued,…

Vending zones add to Bhubaneswar’s beauty, but many wait for kiosks

Odisha’s capital Bhubaneswar went on an overdrive to look spic and span for the ongoing International World Cup hockey tournament. As part of this, hawkers were removed from their traditional vending spaces and shifted to dedicated zones. Organising hawkers in…

Bhubaneswar’s urbanisation caught between old temple town and new city

The new city of Bhubaneswar was built from scratch but in the frenzy of building Odisha’s capital, the existing Old Town was pushed into the background. Inclusion and integration were crucial while the new city was being built but there…

Transformation of the planned city: Some hits, some misses

The temple town of Bhubaneswar is no longer a town of people employed in the government, building a life with their families in bungalows built on allotted plots in the planned units. The city has grown multi-fold beyond its master…

A compendium on Odisha’s planned city and its transformation

The interesting story on how Odisha’s capital, Bhubaneswar, was planned and built has found its way into many research papers and reports. German architect Otto Koenigsberger’s master plan emphasised on organising the town “in such a manner that it forms…

Chandigarh: Seductive and orderly icon yet prophetic for democracy

In the newly-independent and modernising India, planning and building capital cities was the symbol of the nation. Chandigarh, planned by Le Corbusier, was seen as the archetype of the modern Indian city. A well-integrated functional city with wide open land,…

The city and its discontents: Chandigarh’s alternative story

Despite its proclaimed democratic and egalitarian foundation, Chandigarh has emerged as a city designed for neo-liberal India with its grid hierarchy, segregation of functions, and wide tree-lined avenues attracting capital and property-owning class – but excluding labour. The city’s sector-based…

Chalo Chalein: Learning from the urban ecology of Chandigarh

The planned and designed city is known for its abundant green spaces including parks spread across its many sectors, the greenbelt surrounding the city, the valley that runs through it, and lakes. However, Chandigarh is more than the sum of…

A compendium on Chandigarh and Le Corbusier

How Chandigarh came to be built is a well-known story, one that scholars and urban planners revisit every now and then. What Chandigarh’s masterplan stands for, how much of it was realised, why its planner Le Corbusier imagined the Capitol…

Placemaking can reimagine public places, connect people with nature, and strengthen people’s movements

In cities, under-utilised or undesirable places are neglected or captured by private interests but placemaking can convert them into vibrant, accessible, and inclusive public places. From governments to citizens’ groups, placemaking is on everyone’s agenda as they attempt to transform…