Rejuvenation of nag river corridor, in Nagpur city

Abstract

Throughout ages rivers have given birth to human settlements and civilizations; with several great cities across the world map being located at rivers junctions and according to their proximity to the river. Rivers had great economic-political utility, for they provided convenience of transport of goods and people, and as gateways to the city. They have also given birth to unique cultures and played important in the rituals and customs of its region’s religion. They also played important role in the morphology of the settlement, with important and ordinary structures planned and situated in accordance with their proximity to the river. Thus River edges were not merely boundary lines between the human settlement and the water body but have played important ecological, social, economic and aesthetic roles. This importance drastically reduced with the oncoming of Industrial Revolution and advancement in technology, their importance in economic and social life of the city declined. Over time, urban rivers became undesirable, and even detested places. Indian rivers are faced with many such problems of pollution, drastic reduction in their widths, loss of catchment areas, giving a shoddy image to the cityscape, etc. Fortunately in recent years, the rivers have once become important part of urban planning. And the approaches to rejuvenate these dying rivers have ranged from taking them as important city artifacts to utilizing their economic potential again. Nag River of Nagpur city has been taken as a case for exploration of the topic. The city has three watersheds running parallel to each other within the city limits, and has three rivers flowing in each watershed. The extent and nature of urbanization is unique for each of the three watershed regions and each of them present different challenges and opportunities. Central zone is most historic and has dense in population while the other two are new. The study involved understanding of the behavior and characteristics of the streams. Parallel to this, study of how each of these are impacted upon by the surrounding human activities. Primary focus was an examination of different sources of pollution (Nallahs, storm water drains, sewage systems) and their causes. Besides, documentation of existing flora fauna along the river edge, building- use, and land use was undertaken. The method for study was collection of data through primary and secondary means. The primary means were photo documentation, interviews, field visits, site surveys and observations while secondary data was collected from a number of departments such as NMC, NEERI, through published documents such as City Sanitation plan, City Development Plan, Environmental Status Report the dynamic of the city was understood and interviews with the officials. After Gathering the drainage maps and sewerage maps for the city, the mechanism and network of streams were understood. After analysis, the rejuvenation strategies were developed which is demonstrated through a master plan for the river and also through guidelines at macro level. Wherein, potential areas were identified for design interventions along the fluvial corridor. Strategies adopted for river rejuvenation were : protection of river by study of its historical context and key learnings from past - how the river has interacted with human life; creating a healthy ecological system by restoring its natural from , purification of water before it is hannelized into the river ,etc.; and balancing the urban development and the existing human habitat through a number of strategies such as development guidelines , stitching of the human habitat with the river by creating an open space network, public realm along its edges, etc.