Holistic Care for the Wellbeing of Children Living on the Edge: A Design Proposal of a Child Care Centre for Slum Children in Allahabad, India

INTRODUCTION

This thesis aims to understand the emotional and psychological problems the poor slum dwelling children go through as an isolated community who have lost their identity and remain segregated from the rest of the society. The project thus, is so designed that it would provide a secured place for the poor children including a learning center that would help to enhance the overall growth and creativity of the children living in slum area by exposing them to various activities and providing them a comfortable, free and friendly environment, this will help in inducing confidence, making these children a better citizen and help them in merging with the rest of the society. This thesis focuses on the understanding of the emotional and psychological problems the poor slum dwelling children go through as an isolated community who have lost their identity, remaining segregated from the rest of the society and to find a solution. The building is designed to generate hope within children, creating lots of open spaces for the play of natural light, for children to interact and also breaking the monotony of spaces.

The development planners in India made basic education as an integral part of the national development plan for achieving the objectives of the growth with equity and social justice. The recently enacted 93rd constitutional amendment recognizes elementary education (6-14 years age group) as a fundamental right. But ‗Education for all‘ is still an incomplete task in India. The recent rapid urban population growth and relative lack of attention to urban poverty has exacerbated deprivation of education in urban areas. Thus, affecting the quality of education of an area. • Majorly in this poverty-stricken area, where impoverished and deprived parents of young children go out to work and earn, have nowhere to leave their child in safety. Such young and poor children are deprived of basic education, food and are

• To provide a safe and secured child care Centre for the poor working parents. • To ensure that all 6–14-year-old children from socially disadvantaged groups complete primary education cycle of appropriate quality. • To enhance the overall growth of poor children by providing facilities of various other activities. • To provide proper medical care specially to the children up to 5 years of age. • To enrich their status so that they merge with the society and do not remain as an isolated community. • Providing care and affection equivalent to their home. Physical- A comfortable living shelter and healthy food. Social- Providing means for healthy, interactive environment among the children in the center. Educational- Formal schooling as well as vocational training and also awareness regarding their duties and obligations. Psychological- Providing care and affection.

- Health care and day care facilities - Proper care and health checkups for the children. - Provision of food-children will be provided with nutritious food regularly to help cope with the problem of malnutrition. - Education center-formal education for all children (6-14 years). - Life skill education- children will be given training on art, craft, dance and music etc.

- Daycare facilities for children only upto age of 5 years. - Designing of spaces for staff quarters shall not be dealt with.

India‘s poorest states, with total of 598.19 Lakh population below poverty line (Census -2011) - Allahabad has 185 slums spread all over the city .The total population living in slums is 318000 which is about 30% of the entire city population .Thus, with huge population of poor income group and lack of proper facilities of child care centers in Allahabad ,site is located in Allahabad. - The site in Allahabad is located near a slum area known as Dharkar Basti which 0.5 km from the site and krishnanagar basti, to cater the needs of the children of that slum area and also another slum known as Pura Dhaku basti and Krishnanagar basti located in the same ward. After doing a lot of research the following datas and facts were the sole reason for my site selection. Source of data- Planning commission press note on poverty estimates (22nd July 2013) Total Population of some major cities of Uttar Pradesh Data source:- MLE Measurement, Learning and evaluation project for the urban reproductive health initiative . Base line survey report by National institute of urban affairs March 2011 106 slums are located in the core part of the city while the other 79 slum in the fringe areas. The abutting land use around the slum is predominantly residential in nature On the basis of the above fact, the site for this project is selected in Allahabad.

As this thesis focuses on the slum children ,the site has been chosen near to slum areas.The slums that are at a distance of 0,2 to 0.5 km from the site are Krishnanagr and Dharkar basti.The conditions prevailing in these slums have been studied and researched scrupulously.It has been found that though there are organisation like Anganwadi (according to official records) and government run elementary schools in some of the slums but Dharkar basti and Krishnanagar The selected site is most appropriate as it will cater to the needs of the slum dwellers of Dharkar basti and Krishnanagar basti and other poor people residing along the river side.

Total population of Dharkar Basti- 712. Total dwelling units- 244. Another slum area , Pura Dhaku , Kydganj also lies in the same ward , with Total Population -969

DHARKAR BASTI

LOCATION – Chaukhandi, Kydganj,Allahabad. SURVEY ANALYSIS OF DHARKAR BASTI • Population –More than 1500 (2016 survey) • Religion- Hindu • Occupation–Plastic /Garbage collection, Basket Making, Rickshaw Pulling, Sweeping. • Income-They earn Rs 100 /day for garbage collection and Rs 150/ day for rickshaw pulling. • Working hours of parents- 8 hours per day (Both men and women). • Age group of children- upto 15 years. • Number of children in each house- 5-8 (7 average). • Number of women in each house- 3 (Average). • Activities of slum children- Cricket, Playing with marbles, Kite flying, household work. • Education of children in slums – In every 50 children in slum ,only 2 go to proper school and 10 (approx) go to anganwadi. - The need for child care services has been emphasised in the National policy for children 1994, National policy for Education 1996 and the National plan of action for children 2005. - Labour Legislations also contain provisions for child care facilities for women workers - The National common Minimum program also emphasises enhancement of child care and development services in the future. Thus, there is a need for an expanded effective scheme for child care facilities. - The Indian Council for Child Welfare is one of the pioneer voluntary organisations providing early childhood care through the crèche programme across the country for over three decades. The programme was recast by the Government of India in 2006 as the Rajiv Gandhi National Crèche Scheme for Children of Working Mothers. According to this programme the standards are:-

- Should be clean well-lighted with adequate ventilation. - Clean toilet and sanitation facility. - Adequate safe play area outside. - Sleeping facilities for children. - Cooking area with basic cooking equipment

- Adequate cooking facility. - Safe and regular drinking water source - Provision of food with nutritional value. - Basic first aid. NGOs may be sanctiones to take up such scheme specially in uncovered districts. Data source:- Handbook by Government of India ,Department of women and child development.

monitoring will be conducted through independent agencies. - It is expected that every crèche will be inspected at least in period of two years.

3.1 Location 3.2 Access to the site 3.3 Site dimensions 3.4 Topography 3.5 Infrastructure facilities 3.6 Climatic analysis 3.7 Site surroundings 3.8 Concept and proposal

SITE AREA- Area of the site is 2.8 heactares Lenght is 222.07m and width 152.26m

BY LAWS OF SITE

1) Setback 2) Ground coverage -35%

3) F.A.R -1.00.

4) Height can be above 15M if the width of road is 18M and above.

Master Plan of Allahabad specifies the land use as residential land use.

Latitude- 25.43 degrees North Longitude- 81.85 degrees East

Site is surrounded by burial ground on either side and open drain on the periphery of the site, site also consist of temporary water tank for cattle and few wild grass. The slum areas

The annual mean temperature is 25.9 degree celcius. The highest recorded temperature in summers is 48 °C (118.4 °F), and lowest in winters is −2 °C (28 °F). Solar radiation- Sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Max. heat of the sun is in the south façade and west façade. Sky conditions- Generally clear sky conditions during summer and winter seasons.

The site is located in an area where there is extreme summers and extreme winters. Therefore, designing has to be done keeping in mind both the extremities. All room spaces should be planned in the direction of wind. Sun heat is one of the major issues on the site. Thus, provision of chajjas, box windows and plantation on south and west façade mainly.

Allahabad known as Prayag or sangam depicts the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and hidden Saraswathi rivers, it is a land of spiritual knowledge and upliftment of human race. Thus, the Concept of the design represents that as the different rivers are merging into one, so will the isolated children of the slums will merge with the society after their holistic development in the institution. In the design, the primary pedestrian access within the site connects the central open space which is raised and holds the whole built mass together. The central open space depicts mergiing, that after complete development of a slum child, such a child will be to transformed and will merge with the society.

www.wikipedia Primary Census Abstract for Slum Slum Free City Plan of Action – Allahabad Regional Centre for Urban and Environmental Studies (Sponsored by Ministry of Urban Development, Govt. of India) Osmania University, Hyderabad – 500007

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