[Urbanstudy] Urbanstudygroup Digest, Vol 49, Issue 2

sharan at sarai.net sharan at sarai.net
Sat Mar 8 11:10:51 IST 2008


Dear Lalit, Zainab and List Members,
Do notice the disappearance of the 'moral' aspect in the latter definition.
Here's my hypothesis: in the period of upto about 1970s slum improvement
was closely tied to the idea of moral reform of the inhabitants of the
slums; since then the focus has been mostly on the physical infrastructure
or (il)legality - either by way of land-use, as in the case of squatters or
in terms of 'illegitimate' access to such things as water and electricity. 
This aspect - the (il)legality of built structures - was not entirely
absent in the earlier phase, but seems to have been clearly subordinate to
the moral question.

I have been trying to understand the nature of this transformation and its
implication and would apppreciate any comments on it.

Cheers,
Dipu

On 7:54 am 03/07/08 "lalit batra" <lalitbatra at gmail.com> wrote:
> dear zainab,
>
> the central act on slums, namely, Slum Areas (Improvement and
> Clearance) Act, 1956 defines slums as
>
>  "any area (where) buildings…(a) are in any respect unfit for human
> habitation, or (b) are by reason of dilapidation, overcrowding, faulty
> arrangement and design of such buildings, narrowness or faulty
> arrangement of streets, lack of ventilation, light or sanitation, or
> any combination of these factors, are detrimental, to safety, health
> or morals".
>
> then most states have their own state level slum acts.
>
> Census of India 2001 has adopted the definition of 'Slum' areas as
> follows: -
>
> (i) All areas notified as 'Slum' by State/Local Government and UT
> Administration under any Act;
> (ii) All areas recognised as 'Slum' by State/Local Government and UT
> Administration, which have not been formally notified as slum under
> any Act;
>
> (ii) A compact area of at least 300 population or about 60-70
> households of poorly built congested tenements, in unhygienic
> environment usually with inadequate infrastructure and lacking in
> proper sanitary and drinking water facilities.
>
> best,
>
> lalit
>
> On Fri, Mar 7, 2008 at 10:20 AM, <urbanstudygroup-request at sarai.net>
> wrote:
>
> >  Send Urbanstudygroup mailing list submissions to
> >         urbanstudygroup at sarai.net
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> >  than "Re: Contents of Urbanstudygroup digest..."
> >
> >
> >  Today's Topics:
> >
> >    1. Query about slums (Zainab Bawa)
> >    2. Mere stamp won't do, Customs to burn 'wrong' India map
> >       (Prashant Iyengar)
> >    3. bangalorevent-lis: What's on at MMB Bangalore - March     2008
> >       (varanashi)
> >
> >
> >  -------------------------------------------------------------------
> ---
> >
> >  Message: 1
> >  Date: Thu, 6 Mar 2008 13:29:03 +0530
> >  From: "Zainab Bawa" <bawazainab79 at gmail.com>
> >  Subject: [Urbanstudy] Query about slums
> >  To: urbanstudygroup at sarai.net
> >  Message-ID:
> >         <a86d95890803052359s2c474429ic45f008290690e24 at mail.gmail.com
> >
> >  Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
> >
> >  Dear all,
> >
> >  I need to find out how a slum is defined under planning. Can
> > anyone help?
> >  Thanks,
> >
> >  Zainab
> >
> >  --
> >  Zainab Bawa
> >  Ph.D. Student and Independent Researcher
> >
> >  Between Places ...
> >  http://wbfs.wordpress.com
> >  -------------- next part --------------
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> >  ------------------------------
> >
> >  Message: 2
> >  Date: Thu, 6 Mar 2008 17:57:26 +0530
> >  From: "Prashant Iyengar" <prashantiyengar at gmail.com>
> >  Subject: [Urbanstudy] Mere stamp won't do, Customs to burn
> >         'wrong' India map
> >  To: urbanstudygroup at sarai.net, "Commons law" <commons-law at sarai.net
> >
> >  Message-ID:
> >         <908adbd0803060427p10e5dbaexa050dbfad5ba3eb4 at mail.gmail.com>
> >  Content-Type: text/plain; charset="WINDOWS-1252"
> >
> >  http://www.indianexpress.com/printerFriendly/281066.html
> >
> >  Mere stamp won't do, Customs to burn 'wrong' India map
> >
> >  Anubhuti Vishnoi
> >
> >  Posted online: Thursday, March 06, 2008 at 0111 hrs IST
> >
> >  NEW DELHI, MARCH 5
> >  As The Sunday Express reported this week, any "offensive" map of
> >  India, depicting the Indo-Pak border in particular, when carried
> >  in a foreign publication is defaced with a blue stamp of denial by
> >  a 40-member cell in the Customs Department. But those who get away
> >  with a stamped map are the more fortunate ones. There are others
> >  who have to see all their printed material burnt.
> >
> >  Even if it's part of a brochure showing a firm's global network.
> >
> >  That's what's happened to a web-based global news and financial
> >  platform that feeds news agencies across the world. The agency's
> >  New Delhi office was to receive some 300 brochures from its
> >  headquarters in USA detailing its operations and reach. Instead,
> >  it received a show-cause notice from Customs for importing "in
> >  contravention of the Import & Export (Control) Act, 1947,"
> >  imposition of a penalty of Rs 5,000 for the offence and, worse,
> >  information that the entire consignment would be burnt.
> >
> >  Last week, when the Customs Department at the cargo section of
> >  Delhi airport opened the consignment — it had been lying for a
> >  month and a half in its warehouse — and pulled out one of the
> >  75-page brochures, it found spread across Pages 2 and 3 a world
> >  map showing the firm's international network. The map showed
> >  India's international boundary with Pakistan as the world sees it
> >  (without Pakistan Occupied Kashmir) and so was deemed "neither
> > authentic nor correct."
> >  A show-cause was sent on February 22.
> >
> >  "They sent us a show cause notice and said they will have to burn
> >  the entire consignment. We suggested they either stamp the map as
> >  incorrect or even tear out the two pages across which the map is
> >  spread out but they refused to do so. Customs officials say we will
> >  have to forego this consignment. The fact that we will not even be
> >  commercially distributing these and only planned to use it
> >  internally and share rate lists with some of our corporate clients
> >  has not helped. If they do destroy the consignment it is a major
> >  loss of time for us and re-printing takes quite long", said the
> >  agency's senior executive.
> >
> >  He said they were seeking legal advice on the issue as they had
> >  been importing such maps for six years now.
> >
> >  "While we had maps showing our global network imported every year,
> >  these were physical maps. This time political maps were also
> >  published and that is what is holding back the consignment.
> >  However, the intent is not even remotely dangerous or malicious on
> >  our part", the executive said.
> >
> >  Customs officials say the "destruction" of such a consignment is
> >  fully within rules. "Only a map certified by the Surveyor General
> >  of India can be published. If the map published in any printed
> >  material that is imported does not have that clearance, it is
> >  liable to be confiscated and destroyed under Section 11 of the
> >  Customs Act. It is fully within our purview to detain such
> >  material, issue show cause notice to the party importing it and to
> >  impose a penalty. There is also a Delhi High court order on this
> >  issue. In some cases the map is stamped to declare its
> >  inauthenticity subject to a close scrutiny — that is usually done
> >  for foreign news magazines but this being a brochure, we need to
> >  destroy it," said A K Khanna, Assistant Commissioner (Technical),
> > Customs department, IGI airport.
> >  In 2004, on the issue of import and sale of Chinese-made toy globes
> >  incorrectly depicting India's external boundaries, the Delhi High
> >  Court ruled that Customs officials should not permit imports of
> >  globes or maps which depict the territory of India incorrectly.
> >
> >
> >  ------------------------------
> >
> >  Message: 3
> >  Date: Fri, 7 Mar 2008 10:19:47 +0530
> >  From: "varanashi" <varanashi at gmail.com>
> >  Subject: [Urbanstudy] bangalorevent-lis: What's on at MMB
> >         Bangalore - March   2008
> >  To: <saneyocop at yahoogroups.com>, <urbanstudygroup at sarai.net>,
> >         <bangalorearchitects at yahoogroups.com>
> >  Message-ID: <47d0c97e.06045a0a.0461.5891 at mx.google.com>
> >  Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
> >
> >  FYI
> >
> >  Sathya
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >  What's on at MMB Bangalore - March 2008
> >
> >  Welcome to our update on cultural events! This newsletter serves
> >  as a personal invitation-cum-reminder about current events.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >   <http://www.goethe.de/bilder2/pixel.gif>
> >
> >   <http://bcp.wikidot.com/start> Discover Bangalore!
> >  At the Gavipuram Public Space Event on March 8, 2008
> >
> >  How well do you know your City? Make a start by exploring
> >  Gavipuram, an integral part of the City, but an unknown to most of
> >  its citizens. Gavipuram
> >  (the Kannada word for cave neighborhood) with its cave temple,
> >  small settlement and large tank in the valley existed long before
> >  formal Bangalore
> >  came into being. Though much has changed, remnants of the past are
> >  still to
> >  be seen and appreciated.
> >
> >  Find out more at the Bangalore City Project(BCP)-sponsored
> >  Gavipuram Public
> >  Space Event on March 8, 2008. The event starts at 3.30 p.m. at the
> >  entrance
> >  to Gavigangadeeshwara Cave temple. A guided walk around the temple
> >  and the area with commentary by a leading historian, a local
> >  street theatre performance, presentation of a media art
> >  installation on the cave temple by
> >  a local artist, display and sale of books on Bangalore and a group
> >  discussion at the Udayabhanu Kala Sangha. The event is being
> >  organised for the Bangalore City Project by Udbhava, a forum for
> >  urban design, built heritage, architecture and visual arts.
> >
> >  The event is free and open to all. For further information, please
> >  call the
> >  Bhavan(080 2520 5305/6/7/8) or Udbhava (080 2679 4220) or visit
> >  the BCP website.
> >
> >  The Bangalore City Project comprises a group of concerned citizens
> >  from different fields, including art, culture, urban planning and
> >  architecture, as well as organisations such as the
> >  Goethe-Institut/Max Mueller Bhavan and
> >  Udbhava. It aims to create awareness about art and culture in the
> >  City of Bangalore, by initiating discussions and programmes on a
> >  neutral platform -
> >  to publicise the importance of cultural infrastructure, as well as
> >  the history and importance of various places in the city that
> >  remain silent and
> >  veiled. One of the objectives is to help create a unique identity
> >  for the City, a concept that will bear special significance for
> >  the future, as Bangalore grows in manifold directions and on
> > manifold levels.
> >  Join the group, go to Gavipuram, make the City your own!
> >
> >  More details at:
> >
> >   <http://bcp.wikidot.com/start> BCP Website
> >
> >
> >   <http://www.goethe.de/bilder2/pixel.gif>
> >
> >   <http://www.goethe.de/bilder2/pixel.gif>
> >
> >  If you no longer wish to receive our newsletter, you may
> >  unsubscribe from the mailing list (bangalorevent-lis at goethe.de) at
> > any time:
> >  <mailto:mailserv at goethe.de
> >  ?subject=unsubscribec-lis&body=unsubscribe%20%20ba
> >  ngalorevent-lis> Unsubscribe
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >   <http://www.goethe.de/bilder2/pixel.gif>
> >
> >   <http://www.goethe.de/> C Goethe-Institut
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> >  End of Urbanstudygroup Digest, Vol 49, Issue 2
> >  **********************************************



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