ABSTRACT
The rapid urbanization causes enhanced load on infrastructure due to natural increase in population and migration towards cities. The excessive use of infrastructure results in its deterioration causing urban blight. The city cores are mostly affected by the process of degeneration. It is not only accessed by the permanent dwellers but also by high number of floating populations that comes only at some particular time of the day. These pockets of underused land weaken the city’s image, liveability, and productivity. To tackle the issues of decline and urban decay, the cities need urban regeneration in order to bring about a lasting improvement in the economic, physical, social and environmental condition of an area that has been subject to change.
The study deals with the process of identification of factors causing decay in built environment of city core area. The research presented is applied to core area of Nashik city, one of the four locations for religious gathering of Kumbh Mela. The study outlines relations between historically important structures in and around the core area and surrounding development over the period of time. The study also focuses on understanding the land use- transportation dynamics and various multi use urban spaces.
This study combines quantitative stakeholders’ analysis with empirical methods to design and evaluate alternative strategies for the regeneration of the cultural core. The study considers perceptual viewpoint of residents and tourists to identify the architectural elements that manifest the built heritage of city. The study further looks into several strategies for crowd management during the religious mass gathering to avoid stampedes. It thus provides suitable area based and policy-based recommendations for urban regeneration of core area observing the redevelopment potential index and urgency index to upgrade historic urban cores and involve more economy-driven projects.
