Settlement Studies
Study of Mumbai's Eastern Waterfront
Project by Shreya Mittal, Khushi Bagrecha, Janhavi Naik, Jainam Mehta and Prajwal Deshmukh
The environment is made of transitions and not boundaries. There are constant flows within nature which are not defined by any lines. However, human intervention and understanding has reduced it to lines and that is how we read the maps. CRZ (Coastal Regulation Zone) are defined administrative “lines”.
The objective is to study one such transitional, ecologically sensitive, dynamic, coastal edge along the eastern side of Mumbai, near Sewri. To map the transitions from land to mudflats, to mangroves to sea. To study the changes that took place over the years, with respect to its housing conditions, flora and fauna, transport etc. To understand how to gently intervene in these areas with minimum damage to the biodiversity of these areas.
This study is to be carried out by adopting research based study, and by sourcing various existing studies in the given field of study.
Through the lens of Housing and Settlement Edges, we were trying to understand the following questions:
What is the existing typology?
Upcoming residential projects
Low cost and affordable housing schemes
How does the threshold between different typologies work?
How do edge conditions change with change in typology?
Sewri East houses a number of industrial units especially those of Petrochemical industries. Sewri West is largely residential, consisting of housing societies like Sewri koliwada, BDD Chawls, Mulraj Bhuvan. The Mulraj Bhuvan Group (MBG) is also a very famous club in this area known for its sporting and social activities. built by British in year 1925, Dnyaneshwar Nagar, Shivaji Nagar, Gulmohar Society, Labour Camp and Bhatwadi. The market area is called "Sewri Naka".
Maps showing the change in landscape
1933
1969
2000
2019
In the 1870’s the reclamation of land started with the emergence of cotton mills. Around this period, tanners and dry fish dealers started to relocate in this area, in informal settlements. With time, these settlements grew in number, as workers of the mills started to live in these settlements
In the late 20th Century, the cotton mills saw a decline in the market and were shut down. This period also had simultaneous growth of factories and manufacturing industries. One such was Colgate Palmolive Company in 1937. With the increase in these numbers, the density of informal settlements increased. Mudflats and Salt pans were also used to make these houses starting in the 1960's. In the 1990’s, these settlements were majorly residential with few scarp segregating works in the ground floor of houses and industrial sale units in a few.
By 2000 almost all of the area was urbanized. The area covered by these informal settlements in the year 2000 was around 6000sqm and increased by 200sqm till the year 2014.
After 2000’s, the Koliwada region also saw few apartment buildings come up in the area. An important part of residential development was the construction of SRA buildings under the low income housing scheme.
Some major transport connections also run through Sewri. The Eastern Freeway constructed in 2013, the Trans Harbor link, which is an under construction sea bridge, begins from Sewri, connecting Mumbai to Navi Mumbai.
For the detailed study, visit the following link:
https://sites.google.com/sea.edu.in/story-of-mumbais-eastern-edge/home