ARANYA LOWCOST

HOUSING
INDORE

CASE STUDY FACTS

Location - 6km from the

centre of Indore
city, M.P.
Client- Indore
Development Authority
Principal Architect Balkrishna Doshi
Project Associate - Mr.
Himanshu Parikh
Structural Engineer - M/s
Stein Doshi & Bhalla, New
Delhi
Project Engineers
-Environmental
Engineering
Consultants, Bombay
Total Built-up Area
-100,000 m2
Project Cost - Rs. 100
Million

PRE-DESIGN STAGE
ANALYSIS
Objectives
:
To improve and upgrade the existing slum area
To provide serviced sites for new housing
developments instead of building complete
houses.
To provide for 6,500 residential plots ranging in
size from 35m2 for
EWS to 475m2 for high income groups
Financial Aspects:
The idea was to mix some middle income plots
with EWS plots to use the profits to raise capital
towards development of local trades.
Funding 100% public sources.
Local sources
National
Sources

OBJECTI
VES
The general objectives of Aranya were to:
Create a township with a sense of continuity
and fundamental
values of security in a good living environment.
Achieve a community character by establishing
harmony between the built environment and the
people.
Create a balanced community of various socioeconomic groups to evolve a framework through
design.

EVOLUTION OF
MASTER PLAN

Plan proposed
by IDA

Later stage of development

to with rectified
orientation to minimize
heat gain and increase

Initial stage of proposed

plan with distributed
open spaces and street
hierarchy

Proposed
master plan

DISTRIBUTION OF AMENITIES

Community facilities
grouped in local sub
centers.
Formal organization

Community amenities
distributed evenly
Informality created
Accessibility improved
Lower level community
facilities
organized in green
spaces
Even distribution
Maintains link with

ACCESS TO AMMENITIES
( in minutes)

THE NEIGHBOURHOOD
CONCEPT
Concept
Slum development
project
Inspiration from
existing slum
settlements in Indore

Characteristics
Mixed and multiple
land use
Formation of small
neighborhoods and
houses extending
to the outdoors.
Small shops
operating within
congested areas.
Trees planted in

SITE ANALYSIS
Urban Indore city 214 sq.
km.
Major development along
Delhi Mumbai highway
running through the city in
the north south direction
Surroundings: - DelhiMumbai
highway on the east
- Developing industrial
areas on the
north, south and west.
- Internal city roads to the
north,
south and west.
Approach through the
Delhi
Mumbai highway
Site selection criteria:

Existing
features:

1.85 hectares
allotted for
existing light
industries.

Geographical
features:
Flat site
A natural water
channel running
diagonally across the
SW corner.
Top strata of the
black cotton soil 2-2.5
m thick.
Gradually sloping
(Gradient : 1:110

Township
level:

The aim was to create a central spine. The master

plan was informal with interlinked space of cultural
context, maintenance of hierarchy of road, open
spaces, a central location of basic community
services.
The central spine was a focus of the converging six
sectors

Six Sector level:

This enabled segregation of pedestrian and vehicular
movement, good distribution of built and unbuilt
spaces by promoting interactive land use.

ZONING I

Resident

commerc

ZONING II
DISTRIBUTION OF PLOTS
ACCORDING TO INCOME GROUPS

Lower income and economically weaker

sections of the society
EWS

65%

LIG

11%

MIG

14%

uniformly
distributed
uniformly
distributed
close to artery

HIERARCHY OF
ROADS

60
m
30
m
12
m
15
m
9.5
m
4.5

ROADS
Segregation of
vehicular and
pedestrian traffic
Offsets break visual
monotony
Hierarchy is based
on the volume of
the traffic and
activities

The roads suit

human scale
Use of cul-de-sacs
to avoid
traffic

CIRCULATION AND
LINKAGES

For clear segregation of

vehicular and
pedestrian traffic:
Vehicular access in the
form rectilinear and
formal roads in the
hierarchy of 4.5m wide
to 15m wide road draw
the vehicles outwardly.
Pedestrian access in
the form of
informal
interlinked open spaces
draws people inwardly.

Vehicular roads

Informal pedestrian
pathways and open

HIERARCHY OF OPEN
SPACES
Interlinked informal spaces
Continuous system of open
spaces is provided
Staggered roads create
spaces for
community congregation
A single large open space
is avoided

Access to open spaces

LAND USE DISTRIBUTION

Ro
ads
26
%

Open
Spaces
9%
Commun
ity
&Com
mercial
facilities

Resid
enti
al
Spac
e
58%

CLIMATE RESPONSIVE FEATURES

Most of the plots small in size and clustered in low
rise blocks
Longer side faade oriented in the north-south axis
to reduce the solar
radiation on the building.
Each house has minimum exposure to wall surface
and a common wall.

The north south

orientation of
clusters

The building height to

street width ratio is
such that streets are
shaded except when the
sun is overhead

CLIMATE RESPONSIVE FEATURES

The two openings on the north and south permit
light and cross
ventilation.
Courtyards within the houses, cul-de-sacs, public
squares and small
activity areas shaded adequately by adjacent
buildings.
Use of locally available building materials.
Topography used for orientation of major
infrastructure network and
spatial organization.

Plan showing varied houses with backyards

(private open spaces)

SITE AND SERVICE SCHEME

OF DESIGN
In this scheme services
like water tap, toilets
and street lights and a
plinth are provided
around which houses
can have different
configurations.
Longer side of a block
of row house was
oriented north south
to reduce solar
radiation
Provision of vertical
expansions
Housing was seen
more as a
process than a product

SERVICES
SITE AND SERVICE APPROACH
Cost-effective
Progressive development of
facilities.
Houses built by the people
themselves to
suit their needs.
Each family provided with a
plot having a
water tank,
sewerage connection, paved
access with street lighting,
storm water drainage
Service cores - key to this site
and
service scheme.
- nuclei around which
houses were built.
Houses were clustered in
groups of 10.
Septic tank provided for every
2 clusters.

SEWERAGE SYSTEM
Major alternatives:
- Sewer-less sanitation.
-Conventional
Th soil being
sewerage
system.
e
so impermeable
dept
bla
il
of
2mh,
conventio
sewer
ck was age
nal
syst
adopted. aft
thorou
em
Designe ertopography
gh
naturally
d
slopes

analysis NW
towards
of
Higher income groups,
using more water were
located at high ground
Low toincome
level
generate large
flow..
less
er waterlocated
groups,
at
ground
lower
using
level
This
in 10resulted
15%
savings.

TREATMENT
SYSTEM
For conveyance system, a wet well and lift station was
constructed near the final manhole.
- located on the NW corner
Oxidation
pond
of the site.
- removes biological oxygen
- simple in operation
- effluent suitable for
disposal

STORM WATER DRAINAGE SYSTEM

Very efficient and facilitates healthy and clean living.
Combination of underground and surface drainage
system.
Underground used for wider roads
Surface drainage used for internal roads
ELECTRICITY
High income and middle-income groups were provided
with overhead cables.
Economically Weaker Sections were provided with
underground cables

CONSTRUCTION
DETAILS

Foundation: Under rimmed piles in concrete, cast in

situ locally was used
as the soil was black cotton soil.
Structural members: Reinforced concrete plinth
beams, load bearing brick walls, reinforced
concrete slabs.

 Exterior finishes: Bright colour in the faade,

railing, grills and cornices
seen in the old houses of Indore used in some
houses in the township.

Residents were free to use any material like brick

or stone that were
locally available

LANDSC
Landscape and green areas include flowering and
APE

shade giving trees

with thick ground cover,
including lantana, an ever-green tree , that
requires little maintenance.
Trees include casuarinas, bottle brush and

CONCLUSION

Consistency in every
aspect
Staggered roads,
prevent thorough
traffic, reduce
speed of vehicles
Climate responsive
and site responsive

It understands the traditional

Indian habits
Planning and design is in
accordance with the prevailing
socio-economic and
technological conditions
Cost effective construction
materials and techniques have
been adopted
Planning is whole to part
i.e. From
township level to dwelling unit
level.
Accessibility has been an
essential factor for
designing.

PRESENTE
D BY:

Utkarsh gupta
9th sem