Housing for floating urban workforce, Mumbai

Abstract

Cites always have been a center of attraction for all people looking for opportunities to make a better life or a better living and so is reflected in the economic contribution of these cities to the growth of a nation. This economic contribution is also dependent on people of the city also. Which makes this a self-feeding cycle, more the economic opportunities in the city, more the influx of people, driving the growth of the city further and making more economic opportunities. Such is the case of Mumbai, a metropolitan that without failure has continued to reinvent itself to be a center of growth. From being dependent on the Primary sector (seaports, fisheries) then transitioning to the secondary sector (textile mills) subsequently to the tertiary sector (national financial capital), Mumbai is and has been on an upwards trend since then, so much so that Maharashtra has the highest contribution nation’s economy. Out of this contribution, 58% comes from the tertiary sector and as a result, one can see a certain group of India's population become the huge immigrant population to the city. Migration data (census 2011) shows the same, compared to any other state more people move to Mumbai (Maharashtra) for work and education opportunity and out of all the people who move to Mumbai the age group 18-35 is the highest in number. These are the young people who are in a transitory stage of their life where in they move from city to city looking for work and education opportunities and as a result become a important of city and nations economy. Making the biggestcontribution to the GDP and widely called as nation’s biggest asset is the youth of the nation, 35%of India’s total population lies under the age of 30. These educated young Indians attract huge investments from Banking, IT, and many other industries looking for skilled people. While there is a growth in the percentage of young Indians (under the age of 26) who are now buying houses, this pattern takes a turn around in Mumbai where the rate is falling continuously. Not only that city has constantly failed to come up with a proper way to accommodate all the people who move in, so much so that the only way of getting a home in Mumbai for most of the working class is indulging in illegal built projects or slums. The old idea of what a house should be also adds to this problem. Our outlook on what constitutes as a necessary element of the home need to change and adapt to the lifestyle of these young Indians. Hence this thesis aims to look at housing for young people from a different perspective. It aims to create an affordable housing solution for young people that is molded around their needs.