Contextualizing factors influencing resilience of Ahmedabad world heritage city
Singh, Pratima
Contextualizing factors influencing resilience of Ahmedabad world heritage city - Vol.21(3), Jul-Sep - New Delhi Institute of Town Planners 2024 - 12-22p.
Ahmedabad is a 600 years old, historical city and has been on the forefront of many natural as well as man-
made disasters such as earthquake, flood, communal riots and economic downturn, among the others. In 2017,
the historic core of Ahmedabad, covering an area of approximately 5.5 Sq.km, was inscribed as a UNESCO World
Heritage site. The City was among the first in India to receive such as status. An essential ingredient for achieving
this status was the tangible component which included the traditional buildings and structures constructed with
climatically conscious materials such as wood (with embellishment), stone, clay and lime. There are nearly 2700
heritage listed buildings and structures in this part of the core city which contributed to building the resilience
against natural and manmade disasters. The historic core of Ahmedabad has remained as an example of resilient
urban development due to its ability to effectively withstand urban heat stress, floods, earthquake, Covid crisis,
among the others. However, over the years there has been a steady decline in the number of these traditional
heritage buildings and precincts as well as in its socio-economic and cultural landscape, making the historic core
increasingly vulnerable to urban shocks and stresses. This research attempts to identify and document the key
factors contributing to the historical resilience of the core city and how to effectively mainstream these factors
while developing a comprehensive City Disaster Management Plan and resilience strategy. Based on a detailed
primary survey and assessment of two important municipal wards in the Ahmedabad core city, this research reveals
the underlying social and socio-cultural factors that are contributing to the overall resilience of this historic city.
However, while developing a Disaster Risk Management Plan, normative approach has focused mostly on natural
factors and the important “non-natural” factors have largely been ignored.
URBAN PLANNING AND DESIGN (AR-UPD)
Contextualizing factors influencing resilience of Ahmedabad world heritage city - Vol.21(3), Jul-Sep - New Delhi Institute of Town Planners 2024 - 12-22p.
Ahmedabad is a 600 years old, historical city and has been on the forefront of many natural as well as man-
made disasters such as earthquake, flood, communal riots and economic downturn, among the others. In 2017,
the historic core of Ahmedabad, covering an area of approximately 5.5 Sq.km, was inscribed as a UNESCO World
Heritage site. The City was among the first in India to receive such as status. An essential ingredient for achieving
this status was the tangible component which included the traditional buildings and structures constructed with
climatically conscious materials such as wood (with embellishment), stone, clay and lime. There are nearly 2700
heritage listed buildings and structures in this part of the core city which contributed to building the resilience
against natural and manmade disasters. The historic core of Ahmedabad has remained as an example of resilient
urban development due to its ability to effectively withstand urban heat stress, floods, earthquake, Covid crisis,
among the others. However, over the years there has been a steady decline in the number of these traditional
heritage buildings and precincts as well as in its socio-economic and cultural landscape, making the historic core
increasingly vulnerable to urban shocks and stresses. This research attempts to identify and document the key
factors contributing to the historical resilience of the core city and how to effectively mainstream these factors
while developing a comprehensive City Disaster Management Plan and resilience strategy. Based on a detailed
primary survey and assessment of two important municipal wards in the Ahmedabad core city, this research reveals
the underlying social and socio-cultural factors that are contributing to the overall resilience of this historic city.
However, while developing a Disaster Risk Management Plan, normative approach has focused mostly on natural
factors and the important “non-natural” factors have largely been ignored.
URBAN PLANNING AND DESIGN (AR-UPD)