THESIS "ADAPTIVE REUSE- REVITALISATION OF DERILICT MILL LAND IN CENTRAL MUMBAI"

“no other metropolitan city in world, not new York nor Los angels have had the opportunity as you have had in Bombay, to do something historic as a key to development”

Sir Bernard Fielden, (British conservative expert)

Ghost town. Rust belt. Symbol of industrial decay. These are some of the epithets Mumbai's downtown Parel had come to acquire since the death of the traditional textile industry in the 1970s. textile mills in this area have either closed down or have been declared sick after they piled up huge losses. Mills that were nothing more than junkyards till a few years ago have suddenly turned into gold mines, attracting investments and churning out wealth - estimated at Rs.1,000 crore.

Taking advantage of a 1991 amendment to the Development Control Rules - which allows a company to put excess industrial land to commercial or residential use - promoters of textile mills are rushing to set up showrooms and residential apartment complexes on their mill land.

Phoenix Mills, a sick unit referred to the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR), is bustling with activity today as Mumbai's hip crowd unwinds at the swank CO2 bowling alley the mill now houses.

 Initiated in the early 19^th century, the cotton textile industry in Mumbai played a significant role in the city’s economic progress, urban development and social structure today the central district (the mill precinct) of Mumbai where the mill was once flourished stands defunct and it is the hot spot of Mumbai real estate market. Some of the recent development of the mill land is merely commercial of political exploration. This development do not consider the century long history of cotton industry and its contribution to the city, mill districts social requirement and Mumbai’s environmental health. With the rapid urbanization, population explosion 600acers of mill land is a critical factor for Mumbai’s urban resurrection. In addition to this economic backbone of the city the ‘mill precinct’ deserves a due recognition and identity in the ‘image’ of the city Mumbai.

“IT IS NOT A SENTIMENTAL/ HISTORIC APPROACH BUT A DESIRE TO CREATE NEW FORM AND FUNCTION ­­INSPIRING OLD FABRIC .”                                -POWELL [INSPIRED QUOTE]

“WHAT WE NEED IS CONTINUITY , HISTORIC PRESERVATION IS NOT SENTIMENTALITY BUT A PSYCOLOGICAL NECESSITY WE MUST LEARN TO CHERISH HISTORY & TO PRESERVE WORTHY OLD BUILDINGS… WE MUST LEARN HOW TO PRESERVE THEM NOT TO PATHETIC MUSEUM PIECES BUT BY GIVING THEM NEW USES.”                                                  -ADA LOUISE  “IN HEALING THE CITY SCARS”

GIRANGAON – THE MILL PRECINCT

Location

“Girangaon” is a Marathi word for “Mill village” or the mill precinct, which is characterized by industrial architecture of more than 50 mills. Over 600 acres of land in this region was dedicated to textile industry in early19th century. Girangaon was home to thousands of mill workers and their families. The unique housing settlements by workers, their social networks and communities dominated Mumbai’s mill precinct for decades. Diagram to the left highlights Girangaon on the map of Mumbai. The precinct stretches from Lalbaug to Parel and Worli to Sewri and spreads across an area of 25sq.km. The entire mill precinct is efficiently integrated into Mumbai’s mass transit system and well connected to major streets in the city

Origin

The inception of textile industry in Mumbai goes back to late 19th century when the first mill was established by Cowasji Davar in the year of 1856. By 1862, four mills were added and this number grew to 21 by 1885. By early 20th century there were more than 50 textile mills in Mumbai which transformed it from a trading town to a manufacturing center. Increased employment opportunities in mills drew thousands of migrants from towns and villages all over the state. By 1931 half of the city’s population was economically dependent on textile industry.

Development

Residential, institutional and infrastructure development had already commenced in the south region of the city and development plans were now being modified and extended towards the north. To encourage the development of textile industry and promote industrial production, acres of lands in Central Mumbai were given to the mill owners at concessional rates by the colonial Bombay Government. Mumbai’s development as an economic hub was greatly enhanced by these very mills.1 Areas where mills were located grew to become the heart of the city. Eventually central Mumbai witnessed a distinctive skyline of tall chimneys and gigantic mill structures.

Characteristics

Over 50 mills in less than a 3 mile radius converted this portion of the city into an incredibly crowded, lively and dynamic hub. Almost all of the workers employed by mills lived in close proximity of their place of work. Such an aggregation of worker within a smaller region of the city increased the social and cultural involvement of the workers in the community. This led to stronger community ties and a rich network of physical and social infrastructure.

Social Structure

In the period of 1891 to 1921 the population of Parel & Byculla doubled where as the population of Worli & Sewri increased by five times. Mumbai now received migrants from not just east and coastal Maharashtra, but it was also populated by crowds from Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat (some of the other states of India) all employed in textile industry. Mill workers included people from all castes and religion. Soon they established their distinctive places of worship such as temples and mosques and started side businesses in meat and vegetable markets. Initially in the migrant population, the men arrived alone in order to find employment. Later as they settled they brought their families along. In 1875 when the textile industry was at its peak the housewives of workers too, started working in the mills for additional income. However the male population among the workers community always dominated the female population. Most of the single men lived in groups. As a result a number of housewives started buffet services and canteens for lunch and dinner. In 1970’s, the mill precinct had over 500 canteens predominantly serviced by the female group. Along with these, most of the residential buildings incorporated side businesses of workers such as retail,26 grocery, newspaper, flower, sweets shops, snack centers, ice-cream parlors, pharmacy, service shops like laundry shop, domestic flour mills etc. on street level.

Housing

Due to housing demands from the mill workers, the Bombay Development District (BDD) and Bombay Improvement Trust (BIT) built rows of low cost houses in Girangaon. These 1-2 stories high, single to double room tenements with a common narrow corridor, and a block of shared toilets situated at the end of the corridor came to be known as “Chawls”.

A group of 3 to 4 Chawls were built around a central courtyard that became the venue for family celebrations, weddings, sports, festivals, community fairs and meetings. This congested tenement living created a “Chawls Culture” based upon a unique, shared lifestyle and collective identity. Since the dwelling units in Chawls were very small in area, (Hardly 200sq.ft) most of the residents spent their days in the common corridors and staircases. Small grounds, sidewalks, spaces between the two Chawls, benches under trees, boundary edges, shop fronts and street corners also known as “Chowk” or “Naka” became the social gathering spaces. 

Mill lands were designed in such a way that they will have sufficient amount of open space around them, so that the nuisance to surrounding community is limited. Hence these lands efficiently merged into the surrounding urban fabric as opposed to standing exclusive. In addition to ‘workplace’, mills became a second hometown for mill workers. They included a place of worship, family clinics and canteens.

Culture

IMAGE 15 CULTURE

Many of the social groups in a single Chawl shared a common hometown. Sometimes they belonged to the same extended family, had common interests and cultural outlooks. Girangaon was dense, poor & illiterate. Yet it was filled with talent in theatre, music and arts. The mill precinct gave many talented and versatile artists to city. People here enthusiastically celebrated different Indian festivals throughout the year. During the festive season the streets and Chawls of Girangaon looked no less majestic than a wealthy south Mumbai neighborhood7. In fact the hard work, simplicity, honesty and benevolence of people added to the attractiveness of this precinct. Even today, the festivals are enjoyed with same exuberance and honor; however the workers’ society is poorer, hurt and unhappy.  The mill workers also staged brilliant theater and sustained folk arts like Lawani, Tamasha, Bhajan, Namaan, and Shahiri Powadas. All these art forms narrated the storiesof their life style, their social and political upheavals, the freedom struggle of the country and Samyukt Maharashtra Andolan. Girangaon or the mill precinct of Mumbai has experienced a great amount of upheaval over the past two decades. Textile industry in Girangaon - the backbone of city’s economy gradually set out to disintegrate under pressures from various othersectors. Hence the decline of Mumbai mill lands is rooted in several economic, social and political issues. Even after their decline in Mumbai, the textile industry remains India’s second largest employer after agriculture. It accounts for a fifth of industrial production and employs 18 million directly. If one adds all those engaged in related industries, like textile machinery, dyes and chemicals, marketing, transport - not counting the millions of farmers growing cotton - the number dependent on it goes up substantially. Moreover, it 29 contributes over 30 per cent of all export earnings. Export of Indian textiles comprise of 2.4% of the world trade.10 Mumbai Mills contributed significantly towards the creation of country’s finest cloth. After led by the textile mills, several other large and medium scale industries were established in the post-independence era and the development plans made provision for the same through earmarking industrial zones for manufacturing, trade and logistics operations. Mumbai has shown how to build the enormous potential in industrial production and almost became one of the country’s backbones of industries and economy.

DECLINE OF THE TEXTILE MILLS

In mid-nineteenth century, textile industry experienced several technological changes all over the world. The conventional handloom technology faced a severe competition from the advanced power loom techniques. The mill owners did not update the machinery in the Mumbai Mills to keep up with the changing trends and the low skilled workers were also comfortable with this policy. During the same period the fuel prices and costs of raw material increased. Reservation policies and adverse taxation discouraged the mill owners from investing more in the industry. By 1980’s it became uneconomical to maintain large scale industrial units within the city limits on account of high power and tax costs.1 Also, the economic and technological change struck major mill towns like Manchester in UK and Lowell in Boston and eventually there was an overall slump in the world textile market. By 1990’s the employment rates of service industries increased by large numbers.

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Another reason for the ultimate shut down of mills is the 18 month long strike by mill workers’ union in 1982. Nearly 250,000 workers & more than 50 textile mills went on strike. Rashtriya Mill Majdoor Sangh (RMMS) the largest workers union in the city led by Congress (political party) fought the government and mill owners for their rights. The Bombay Industrial Relations Act, 1946 (BIR Act) sought to establish a single union, the Congress-led RMMS as the only approved union. This move was taken primarily to renounce the option of strikes and focus on other means of resolution. The strike of 1982 was called for primarily to strike down the BIR Act along with increase in wages. The strike did no good for the workers instead it opened a new strategy for mill owners. During the strike, mill owners outsourced the work to workers in Bhiwandi, a distant suburb who were paid almost 50 percent of the wages in spite of longer this led to huge losses and the running of the Cotton Textile Mills became unviable. Several mills were declared sick and a few even shut down their operations. Only a few managed to survive. There were 58 cotton textile mills in Mumbai. Of these, 26 were deemed ‘sick’ and, therefore, taken over by the Government of India. The remaining 32 mills continued in the private sector.

REDEVELOPMENT OF TEXTILE MILL LANDS

Redevelopment of mill lands in Girangaon is one of the few options left for a sustainable revival of the city. Mumbai’s ecological, social & cultural aspects are the fundamental drivers in this process of urban revitalization.

When textile mills were fully operational, they were excluded from reservations for public amenities. According to an ex-government planner, there was no reason to believe they would shut down and hence these lands were regarded as industrial zones alone. But a few years later, with technological changes and economic restrictions many of the mills were declared ‘sick’ and it was hard for mill owners to pay thousands of workers unless they were allowed to sell their assets. As a result, in 1990, DCR 58 (Development Control Regulation) came into existence. DCR 58 allowed the mill owners to sell part of their land. For the first time Mill owners were allowed “change of user” from Industrial to Residential / commercial on the condition that they use the resultant funds for the revival of the mills. They were allowed to sell only 15 percent of the mill land and use the resources to modernize the mills.

In 1991, five to six mills were developed on the basis of DCR 58, but not a single mill undertook any kind of modernization. The skyline of Girangaon began to change steadily with the arrival of high rise luxury towers. When Phoenix converted one of its structures into Bowling alley (the permission for this was obtained on the pretext of building a recreation center for the workers), Girangaon was really shaken. The issue of mill lands no longer was limited to mill workers alone: it concerned the issue of urban development. Please note that the objective of DCR 58 was not supposed to be real estate development, it was meant to protect the jobs of the workers, by allowing only a partial sale. If the development of mill lands was the main objective, then the government should have worked on comprehensive development plan to include all mill lands, in fact the entire Girangaon. It should have been addressed as an urban planning issue instead. The

actual outcome as can be seen by all is a piecemeal, ad hoc and often surreptitious exploitation of real estate for immediate gains. Under the banner of GKSS (Girni kamgar sangarsh samiti) Mill Workers Action Committee, a protest march was organized by the workers along with artists, activists and local residences against government. All of them spoke against the new real estate developments in which, needs of the neighborhood were totally neglected

CHARLES CORREA STUDY GROUP REPORT (1996)

Holistic approach

The current piecemeal and individual development of mill lands is one of the

major problems when it comes to retaining the character of Girangaon. This approach

initiated by the intransigent mill owners denies the integrated development the city needs.

It also points out the lack of any overall planning and development strategy seeking to

create coherent urban form and address other issues like housing for low income groups,

civic amenities and new employment opportunities for ex-mill workers.

Girangaon needs a comprehensive urban renewal plan that will take care of mill

sites as well as the surrounding communities. Since these lands are in close vicinity to

each other, each could be developed differently in accordance with its location, size and

neighboring uses and yet is a part of an integrated master plan for the entire mill district.

A complete system of urban network could be established by introducing new

destinations for entertainment, public, retail & commercial activities, transit and

recreational purposes. Consequently the Government of Maharashtra set up a study group

to prepare an integrated development plan for textile mills in Girangaon.

The study group chaired by architect & urban planner Mr. Charles Correa created

a design solution for a comprehensive redevelopment of textile mills in Girangaon. It

appointed teams of architects, engineers & conservationists to visit the 58 mills and

appraise & document the various structures and other prominent features in each of them.

However the group was denied access to 32 mills in private sector. 3 of those mills were

already keen to sell some of their land right away. Hence the report deals with remaining

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25 mills that are with NTC and were accessible. NTC too retained some of its mill units

which they felt were viable and declared to dispose of the rest. This report principally

addresses the mill land that is to be disposed of by NTC.

The report identifies a triangular area between Matulya, Paragon and Mumbai

mills and develops an integrated master plan for the same. The strategy for land-use

division adopted by the study group supports the DC rule of 1992. It recommends that the

division between the City, MHADA and the owner should be fixed at one third each,

regardless of the size of the site. The report proposes one third (7 mill sites) for public

housing to be developed by MHADA, one third (4 mill sites & portions of other 4 sites)

for open spaces and public amenities and the last third (3 mill sties & portions of other 3

sites) for development by NTC. Study group believes that with this methodology, instead

of a meaningless hodge-podge of development, large and viable parcels of land can be

made available for each of the 3 land uses specified, in a pattern which makes overall

urban sense for the city.

Redevelopment plans proposed by the study group are based on the following factors –

Transport

·          Establish important connector roads.

·          Widen capacity of the existing road and rail network.

·          Improved pedestrian movement.

·          Exclusive roads for buses to support heavy traffic of passengers travelling between

buses and trains.

Urban Form

·          Indentify heritage structures on mill sites.

·         Preserve and recycle them as studios for artists, workplaces for fashion designers,

·         computer software engineers etc.

·          Creation of a new center in the heart of the city, with its own distinctive character,

·         vitality and ambience.

·          Establish key design guidelines regarding the urban Form.

·          Development of larger footprints for economical & energy-efficient construction.

·          Use of building facades to help define streetscapes.

Open Spaces

·          Open spaces of different sizes to allow variety of uses.

·          Principal roads widened and lined with trees to create leafy boulevards.

·          Pedestrian plazas in front of railway stations.

·          Covered shopping arcades alongside major roads.

·          Land for public open spaces could be used for other social facilities like schools,

clinics or community centers depending upon the needs of the neighborhood.

Employment generation

·          Generation of semi-skilled employment similar to that provided by existing mills.

·          Development of new high-tech, non-polluting industries like computers and garment

industry.

·          Large number of household jobs would be created with the development of high-end

residential zones in place of former mills in private sector.

Housing

·          Land taken over by MHADA could be used to develop low income housing, reconstruction of dilapidated buildings or redevelopment of slums.

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·          MHADA could hand over some of the construction to other contractors.

Private Mill development

·          Prepare an Outline Development Proposal (ODP) for mill sites.

·          Include surrounding area with road network.

·          Identify and document heritage structures that need to be preserved.

·          Provide land allocation for three types of uses & an outline of the built form.

Pooling of land

 Pooling the land for increased FSI of 2.0 (compared to FSI of1.33 in island city)

 Beneficial in creating large new public spaces.

 The cluster of taller buildings generated by the additional FSI would create a visible

landmark, recognizable across the city’s skyline as a symbol of the generation of

Parel and with it, the city of Mumbai.

 In conclusion, the study group recommends further research and analysis of the existing

conditions in Girangaon. This report is limited just to the mill plots themselves,

yet some attention has been paid to the surrounding areas.

 The report also says “to bring about more comprehensive & decisive urban renewal,

detailed planning would have to be undertaken to address many problems of the area

such as chawl reconstruction, hosing for the pavement dwellers, parking for intercity

buses etc. This would also involve resolution of legal considerations related to repairs

and reconstruction of old buildings.”

TODAY’S TREND OF DEVELOPMENT OF MILL LANDS

City developers and builders have already redeveloped a number of defunct milllands. The land in most cases is used for residential high rises and in some cases for

commercial, retail and entertainment sectors. Almost all the existing structures on these

mill lands were demolished completely (except a few factory features like Chimney) for

redevelopment. The first textile mill to redevelop is central Mumbai’s entertainment and shopping hub. A hotel and a multiplex added later in the development. The new development replaced mill buildings with very little green open space. Some of the developers did 40 create some public spaces like shopping complexes, multiplexes and other retail outlets,

however the benefit of these areas and buildings for the ecological sustainability of the

city is questionable.

Phoenix Mill:

The first to redevelop the textile mill is today’s Central Mumbai’s

entertainment and shopping hub. A multiplex and hotel are currently being added here

though the Bombay Municipal Corporation lease deed in 2005 gives the mill over 20,000

square yards of land at the annual rent of a rupee for ‘residences of labor staff, and

welfare services like a school’. 

The entire plot of new hind textile mills is dedicated to mass housing for mill workers.Under the ownership of mhada, this project will have 3500 dwelling for ex-mill workers while some buildings will serve as transit tenements.currently under construction, this residential complex has around 20,20 storey buildings that are all physically linked to each other.

In addition, a playground and other facilities like bank, community hall and market have been proposed on the same plot. This ntc mill was modernized and reopened a few years back. Originally a composite mill, it now only hands spinning. The mill employs more than 400 workers on permanent and contract basis. The plot area is comparatively less than other mill sites studied in the study area. Digvijay mill is one of the NTC mills that are slated for redevelopment through joint venture. NTC will hold 51% stake in each of thes projects and 49% will be given to private developers. Proposal for the above mill land is not yet finalised

All mill structures on this site were completely demolished in 2009. Currently the plot remains empty. Redevelopment plans for this mill lands are uncertain as this area is now privatly owned. This mill too, is stated for redevelopment under a joint venture program. Built structures on the site are currently being demolished. One of the major NTCmills, Indian United Mill no 4 proposal redevelopment under a joint venture program. Redevelopment programme started but yet to finalise it. The plot of Indian united mill no 2 & 3 has been handed over to city municipality and reserved as a recreational zone. Whereas the area around this mill land is declared as a heritage precinct.

Along with a recreational ground, a number of heritage structures on site are proposed to be reused as a museum and other public amenity.

Study region

·         Textile mill structures are vital part of Mumbai’s heritage.

·         Hear of Girangon there are 7 mill lands spread over an area of 580 acres of which 60 acres is total mill land area.

·         The region lies between 2 most important artery roads in Mumbai.

·         Each mill lands are in close vicinity to each other and each varies in term of area functionality location and structural make up.

·         Two of the mill land use has already changed i.e. the entire plot of new Hindu textile mill is dedicated to mass housing for mill workers.

Why Indian united mill no. 2 &3?

·         IUML no. 2&3 is the very first mill structure to be part of Mumbai’s heritage list.               

·         The BMC team along with conservation architect Abha lamba has come up with a number of relevant and interesting ideas for the development of this land. Development of this site will not only affect its neighborhood but it will have significant impact on the urban fabric of Girangon as whole. If developed appropriately , it has the potential to become an important landmark in the city.

·         Natural water body and dense vegetation on site demonstrates a high potential for developing a green retreat within the crowed city. some of the structures on site are still in a fair structural condition and could be reused for several purposes. Considering the community’s needs and historic significance, mill buildings on site could be reopened as public buildings like museum community halls, cafeterias art galleries etc.

·         The size and central location of the site in the study area increases its importance in the overall strategy of this design project. Surrounding land uses and urban form could be effectively modified with the development of this particular site. In addition, detail design of 1uml 2&3 premises will serve more opportunities to create increased pedestrian flows and street networks along the length of the plot. This will enhance the exciting and eventful landmarks along the heritage walk within the precinct.

·         Hence the design component of this project supports the government’s idea of adaptive re-use of some of the heritage structures on site and develops a master plan for the entire premises of IUML no. 2&3.

Urban analysis

The two artery roads –Ambedkar road to the west & G.D. Ambekar Road to the east of are the main source of vehicular traffic that flows into the internal street areas. Will defunct mills standing idol for years, this region has less active streets compared to other streets in the city. Over the years, new residential and commercial developments have come up which alters the ‘mill characteristic’ of this area.  Presently this area embodies a mix of contemporary and historic architecture. It lacks a distinctive urban form that might bind the two for a cohesive whole.

The 15 ft high wall around acres of mill site reduces the visual and physical connection between adjacent blocks. Permeability and mixed land use are two of the distinctive features of an organic city like Mumbai. For the development of textile industry, mills were given huge chunks of lands that had ample open space around the built structures. This was done in order to minimize nuisance to surrounding neighborhood. However today, the same but inoperative lands spread over long distances, obstruct the pedestrian flow and reduce the required pedestrian permeability. Furthermore their singular use makes them exclusive as opposed to a richer mixed-use development seen everywhere in Mumbai.

Climate & topography

The predominant wind direction of Mumbai is North-West. Currently the massive mill structures on the west side of the site block the NW winds entering IUML 2&3 premises. The site falls into warm & humid climate of costal India. Hence summer months of April,May & June receive highest solar radiation where as the monsoon clouds from july through September reduces the heat. The premises comprises of rich tropical vegetation on a flat terrain.

Land use

Most of the land use around the site has remained unchanged since the initiation of the mill in early 19^th century. The mixed use residential zones around the site comprises of traditional worker’s chawls with street side shops including commercial services.

Two of the seven mills considered under the study area, are in the vicinity of the premises. Both these lands are currently unused. With no major landmarks around, the location of this site could be considered as reclusive.

Street

IUML 2&3 premises are situated alongside one of the main artery roads of the study area to the East. This road has too active & busy street junctions. Other streets adjacent to the property vary in levels of pedestrian & vehicular activities. Street to North & South have moderate pedestrian activities because of their mixed use residential street fronts. (Residence+retail+commercial)

The west street in comparison is virtually a dead zone resulting in an enclosed and narrow roadside between the boundary walls of two mill sites. Mumbai’s local bus transport stops are situated at several locations along the East, North& south streets of the premises. Street to the West however, has no such stops and hence lacks a significant amount of pedestrian flow