Jan April 2016

Vastu Samvad
The Newsletter of
The Indian Institute of Architects, Northern Chapter
www. iianc.org

The Road Ahead Contents

Institutions(including Educational Institutes & Smart Cities Conference 01

Professional Bodies) representing various Design Chairman's message 02
Aspects of Built Environment came together with Real Estate Bill 03
Northern Chapters of the Indian Institute of
The Conference on 'Architects and Smart Cities Mission',was jointly organized by Architects, at the end of the Conference, and agreed Article 04
Northern, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal, UP and Uttarakhand Chapters of The Indian for working together in a collaborative environment, Kanvinde@100 05

Vol V, No. 1
Institute of Architects. initially for a period of one year, for finding ways Conference Contd 06
The conference witnessed over 300 people on its first day. The events commenced l to understand Challenges created by the GoI's Article 08
with an Inaugural Session which saw Ar. Vijay Garg, Representative of the Smart Cities Mission for Urban Renewal at a Mass
Government of NCT Delhi in the Council of Architecture, Ar. Shamit Manchanda, Scale Book Review 09
Chairman, Northern Chapter, The Indian Institute of Architects, Ar. Rohit Jain, Ar. Jeet Malhotra 10
Conference Coordinator, and Ar. Ashish Gupta, Conference Organizing Secretary, l to formulate Ways and Methodologies to assess
together on the dais. the Profession's readiness to take on the Students Center 11
Challenges to GoI and society Conference Contd 12
The chief guest, Ar. Satyendra Jain, Honorable Minister for Health, Industries, Home,
Public Works Department, and Power, Government of NCT, Delhi, was escorted on l to formulate Ways, and agree on Methodologies to
the stage by Ar. Shamit Manchanda, and Ar.Rohit Jain, and, Ar. N.K. Negi, Chairman, make the Profession More ready to take on
Himachal Chapter, The Indian Institute of Architects felicitated him with a bouquet. these Challenges for positioning the Profession in
During the welcome note, Ar. Shamit Manchanda welcomed the Chief Guest, and all a Leadership position
the Delegates on behalf of the organizing committee. He praised the Chief Minister l to initiate Collaborations amongst Institutions for
as being one of the most approachable ministers, and, that his views on the subject advocacy of the Design Professionto the GoI's
of Smart Cities were eagerly awaited by all. He commented that in togetherness
there was strength; that Northern Chapter, The Indian Institute of Architects, was
privileged to be actively supported by not only its neighboring Chapters, but also, l
Smart City Mission's delivery mechanism
to position the Institutions to work in
next
The Public Works Department, Government of NCT Delhi, School of Planning & Collaboration with GoI's Smart City Mission (thru' Chai, Coffee and
its ULBs) and Society (through our understanding
(continued on page 6) of the problems) for adding the Profession's inputs
Architecture !!!!
into the Smart City Mission.
Friday, 29th April, 2016
We at the Northern Chapter intend to
New Committee Room
Call it the Year of the Smart Cities
4.30 pm S.P.A., New Delhi
We plan to launch initiatives to connect to all aspects
of our Profession and work Towards a better future of (Details inside)
the Design Industry for the youth of our Profession.
01
 Editors Message Chairmans Message
NORTHERN CHAPTER
www.indianinstituteofarchitects.com Dear Fellow Professionals, Dear Fellow Architects,
www.iianc.org
Always a pleasure to connect with all of you! With NATCON 2015 and the recently concluded IIA
Chairman
Ar. SHAMIT MANCHANDA It is the Age of Smart-ness all around us. We develop Smart Awards at Calicut, behind us, the last few weeks have
Goals, use Smart Phones, drive Smart Cars, invent Smart seen a lot of activity which culminated in the organizing
Imm. Past. Chairman
Ar. ASHUTOSH KR. AGARWAL Technology, believe in Smart Lifestyle and Smart Health, of the Conference : Architects and Smart Cities
employ Smart Infrastructure, and, above all dream about Mission. Besides being a burning topic this conference
Vice-Chairman
Smart Cities! was unique in more ways than one. The event was jointly
Ar. MAHESH T. PALIWAL
organized by IIA Northern, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh as well as
Hon. Treasurer In the middle of all this Smart-ness, why should we Architects get left
UP & Uttarakhand Chapters making it a Northern Regional Conference.
Ar. ROHIT JAIN behind??
The Conference was actively supported by various academic &
Jt. Hon. Secretaries This Issue focuses on Architects getting Smart. professional organisations including Delhi PWD, SPA Delhi, SPA Bhopal,
Ar. MANOJ MATHUR
Ar. ASHISH GUPTA While Open Source Software shows us a way towards Smart Technology of the Ansal University Gurgaon, SPA Alumni New Delhi, Inst of Town Planners
future, Digital Media presents a Smart way of showcasing our works, and, our India, Inst of Urban Designers India, Indian Society of Landscape
Ex. Committee Members Architects, National Institute of Urban Affairs, and the Delhi Urban Arts
Marathon Runners lead the way for a Smart Lifestyle! The spirit of Smart-
Ar.AJAY MIGLANI
Ar.AJAY PURI
ness, rubbed on our editorial team as well. Their Crossword will test your Commission. It has laid the foundation for new synergies with these
Ar.AMARJEET SINGH Smart-ness quotient... organizations. The Conference concluded with the announcement of
Ar.AMEET BABBAR Year of the Smart Cities a year-long initiative to make the required
Ar.ANUJ SRIVASTAVA
And, of course... our Mega Event!! The Conference on Architects and Smart
Cities Mission was an effort to bring together various chapters of the Indian changes in the industry to take on the challenges of the Smart Cities
Ar.HARISH CHANDER
Ar. KIRAN CHIMALWAR Institute of Architects, with various other institutions, all working in the Mission. This will include series of programs and events to create an
Ar.NIKHIL MOHAN MISHRA field of Design and Planning of Cities, under one umbrella, in order to interface of the industry with Academia, Government of India and its
Ar. NILANJAN BHOWAL
explore the role and relationship of the Architect in the Government of institutions and society at large.
Ar. SHARAD KUMAR CHOPRA
Co-Opted Members
India's Smart City Mission. Chai Coffee and Architecture is back and we shall be taking up the topic
Ar. ARCHANA KHANNA
This time, we also salute some of our seniors of the Northern Chapter. We of the recently notified Building Bye-Laws for Delhi 2016.
Ar.RAJIV BIALA
bring you glimpses of the event held to commemorate the centenary of Ar. Looking forward to you continued support in working for the profession.
A.P. Kanvinde, a look into the life of Ar. Jeet Malhotra, the latest recipient of
VASTU SAMVAD TEAM the Baburao Mhatre Gold Medal, and condole the loss of Ar. M. N. Andley. Ar. Shamit Manchanda
Convenor
Ar. ARCHANA KHANNA Once again, we apologize for all errors and omissions.
Editorial Team Please contribute Articles on issues of Concern in the Profession. Participation Invited
SONAL SRIVASTAVA
SHUBHAM BATRA Also, please feel free to write back to us with your valuable suggestions and
NISHTHA DUGGAL We invite contributions in the form of Sugestions,
AISHWARYA DEOPUJARI views. They will go a long way in helping us better this periodical as we go Articles, News and Advertisements including
ROHIT KUMAR along.
ARCHIE TYAGI corrections in facts stated, if any.
Published For Northern Chapter Happy Reading and Best Wishes till we meet next!
Please send your contributions to
The India Institute of Architects,
Ar Archana Khanna
8-B, Shankar Market, Connaught iiancdelhi@hotmail.com
Circul, New Delhi: 110001
Editor
Tel.: 23411699, Telefax: 23413483
e-mail: iiancdelhi@hotmail.com
website: www.iianc.org

DISCLAIMER
Opinions expressed and matter contained
within the Vastu Samvad are of thier
respective authors and not necessarily IIA
Policy and the Publication Board may or may
not subscribe to the same in part or in whole.
(for private circulation only)
 Jan April 2016
Real Estate Bill 2016: Opportunities for Architects Project,Common Areaand other terms The architects are DID YOU KNOW?
encouraged to understand the meaning of these, since they look like
A Total of 100 Smart Cities
Part 1 common English words but they have distinct meaning and would
appear in the contracts and work orders issued by the promoters and were selected under the

"
The bill The Real Estate Bill (Regulation & Development) 2016 was these words transfer LEGAL ONUS on the architects. Governmentof India's Smart
passed in Mar 2016. Since Land is a state subject, the states will be
City Mission.

Cut on the doted line

required to make rules under this Act within a year and implement this 3. Estimated cost of real estate project means the total cost
act. This act contains many provisions that compel the promoter to seek involved in developing the real estate project and includes the land
cost, taxes, cess development and other charges the bank (where Out of these, the
the architect's approval/consent even beyond the drawings and GFC.
the promoter maintains the project escrow account) will demand a Government has shortlisted
It is up to us how we strategies and position ourselves to have the same certificate from the architect (& engineer and CA) before it releases 20 cities in Phase 1, to be
dominant position in the Building Scenario that we once enjoyed the fund. The architect will have to certify the % age project made into Smart Cities. This
Three distinct provisions require involvement of architects and one complete. If we control this aspects then realizing our fee is no
accounts for 3.54 crore
provision needs advocacy of the institute. longer dependant on whims/fancy of promoter.
people.
Clause 4(2) (k) requires the promoter to announce name of his Architect 4.Promoter has been defined and it's the second most important
on its/RERA website. Till now we had seen projects with celebrity names definition and it includes Govt Agencies like DDA/PWD. Bhubaneswar leads the20
and celebrity architects, later the work was done by a local architect. All the terms like contractors, builders, developers are now history Smart Cities list. Pune and
This clause prevents such misuse. This clause could also be intended to and will not find any mention in our contracts. Jaipur follow as the top
eliminate the use of foreign architect's name. Unfair practice if reported
or noticed by RERA will invite cancellation of registration under Clause three.
(The Northern Chapter of Indian Institute of Architects, in a
7. series of articles, will put forward the basic take- aways from To build Smart Cities, the
Clause 4(2) (l) (D) requires the promoter to take a certificate from the this Bill to enable its members to understand the benefits that government is providing
Architect certifying the percentage project complete before may be derived from the provisions in the Bill.) central funding of Rs 48,000
approaching the bank to release funds from his escrow project account.
This dependence on us architects will allow us to realize our fee.
crores.
OUR MARATHON RUNNERS!!
Clause 14 requires the promoter to adhere to the plans and prevents Implementation of the Smart
Leading the way for a healthy Lifestyle!!
deviations in the name of minor additions or alterations. These Cities Mission at the city level
architectural changes have to be certified by an authorized Architect. will be done by a special
This again increases the importance of the architects during the project.
purpose vehicle (SPV) created
Clause 41(4) defines the composition of Central Advisory Council that for the purpose.
will advise and recommend to central government, and this shall consist
of ten members to represent the interests of real estate stakeholders The SPV (special purpose
including academic bodies. The advocacy of the institute can help its vehicle) will be headed by a
members find a place in this council. full time CEO and have
More importantly the States are now required to make rules within one nominees of central, state
year, and bodies that will further enable the role of Architects. The
government and a ULB onit's
Chapters must closely liaise with State Government and approach them
offering assistance as subject matter experts. Relevant Modifications in board.
some Definitions: Ar.Harish Chander , Member, Executive Committee, Northern Chapter
1. Carpet Area means the net usable floor area of an apartment,
excluding the area covered by the external walls, areas under services
shafts, exclusive balcony or veranda and exclusive open terrace area,
but includes the area covered by internal partition walls of the
apartment
Now all the invented terms like super area are history, architects
will have to calculate and document Carpet Area for each flat, so the
promoter will now charge a rate for Carpet Area + Rate for Exclusive
Balconies & Exclusive Terrace + Covered Parking.
2. Apartment,Building, Development Works, Internal/External
Development Works, Garage,Planning Area, Real Estate Ar.Anuj Srivastva , Member, Executive Committee, Northern Chapter (Copyright belongs to the original owner)
03
 A NEW HORIZON: A NEW BEGINNING
By Navneet Malhotra*
"
With every passing year, our small architectural consultancy
firm would feel elated and energized on accomplishing yet
Cut on the doted line
another challenging project. Our success barometer was
dependent on customer satisfaction more than financial
viability. Our portfolio bulged with exciting projects:120
bedded hospital in Bhutan, for the Royal Bhutan Army,236
primary schools in 5 states, and so on, but a painful question
lingered on and that being How do we showcase our work and
reach out to people at large?"
The digital media became the obvious choice as it is the most
popular medium at the moment. Our website was built
anticipating traffic that did not come and needed regular
updates, search engine optimization techniques, marketing
strategies, firewalls, security systems and so much more. On
Google, people search for best home designs in xxx or
amazing designers in or for xxx and not for ourname. How
could they? They didn't know us,right?
So we started looking for a platform where Indians came in
large numbers, looking for Ideas or Designs or Architects.
Foreign sites were of no help while most Indian sites had very
little traffic. We also could not evaluate if it was worth
creating our page on top of a site where people came searching
for pots & pans, where our work would be incidental
information. And most important of all, we could not find a site
where photos were king. Let's be clear, people understand
design through real live project photographs more than words
or three dimensional images or two dimensional plans. We then
started creating such a site. After eight months of tireless
working with web designers marketing agencies etc on the 3rd
of September 2015, www.RENOMANIA.com was born. It is
India's first and only home design and home building online
platform that attracts homeowners with inspiring images and
designs presented by their proud creators like you!
*Ar. Navneet Malhotra is the co-founder of Renomania India. He is a regular Q&A columnist on Better Interiors. He did his
undergraduation in Architecture from S.P.A., New Delhi in 1989, followed by M-Tech from I.I.T. Delhi.
Indian architects currently overshadowed by predominantly
foreign design platforms can finally show their unmatched
talent to the world and get the respect they truly deserve
creating a strong connection with people who love their work.
To strengthen the platform with rich content, we entered into
several alliances like 'Ideal Home and Garden', Poggenpohl,
Hacker, Jaquar, Kajariaand Eggermann, to name just a few.
What does RENOMANIA give you?
n Easy to set up and update your company's profile
information, including cover and profile photo, and
company logo, contact details.
n Upload as many projects as you like with appropriate tags
along with each image for improved discovery of the same
in each search. Add text to describe the project features.
n See how many followers you have on RENOMANIA.
n Check reviews, ratings and comments about you/ your
company as well as others in the community.
n Give brief description about the firm and its strengths.
n With one or two clicks, you will be able to share your work
on social media like Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Linked
In and Twitter.
n Special service for fellow architects: the White Glove
service.
The RENOMANIA team can create your web profile for you,
cropping & resizing them for best results on site. The team of
designers would gladly tag each image with its appropriate
attributes for example: small open kitchen design with black
and white tiles will be recognized by the system to display
relevant image.An extra special service for fellow architects is
the free photography service.We are very keen to make this
platform your most important link to the world.We hope you
like our endeavor and join us to build RENOMANIA into a
thriving platform that connects homeowners with high quality
experts like you.
 Jan April 2016
Celebrating a Life:KANVINDE@100
Tuesday|09th February|2016|NewDelhi

Birth Centenary Celebrations:

A.P.KANVINDE
A Srivasthan Miki Desai Narendra Dengle Ranjit Sabikhi

The year 2016 marks the centenary of the legendary architect, Architect and author Miki Desai was the third speaker, who
Achyut Purshottam Kanvinde. To honour him and celebrate his spoke on reinterpreting the definition of modernism. While
contribution to the field of architecture, a grand seminar was doing so he gave various examples like Panjarapol Asylum and
recently held in Delhi, followed by a Book Launch on his Life & Hospital for Animals, The Solarium and also buildings by
Works. Claude Batley, who was Achyut Kanvinde's mentor.
Born in 1916 in Maharashtra, A.P.Kanvinde completed his The last Speaker was Prof. Ranjit Sabhikhi. He spoke of the
graduation from the famous J.J. School of Architecture and Challenges of Urbanization where he discussed the Concepts
went to Harvard for further studies. He served as the Vice of Urbanism in campuses designed by Kanvinde. He also
Chairman of IIA Northern Chapter from 1960-63 and as its
discussed the needs of urbanism in the context of problems
Chairman from 1963-65.He then went on to serve as the
faced by the city of Delhi, like the metro or the badly used
President of IIA from 1974-75. He was also the first recipient of
open spaces.
the esteemed Baburao Mhatre Gold Medal in 1984.
The final presentation was given by renowned architect Ashok
The event took place at Azad Bhawan, which was incidentally,
B Lall on Kanvinde-His Life & Times, which was followed by a
designed by Kanvinde himself. The audience comprised of
professionals, academicians and students of all age groups. video clip of Kanvinde speaking on his own philosophy.
Starting with the traditional lighting of the lamp, the inaugural The event was concluded by the launch of the book titled
address was presented by the current chairperson of the ICCR AchyutKanvinde @100, and a final vote of thanks by Sanjay
Mr. C. Rajashekhar. Kanvinde & Tanuja B K.
Achyut Kanvinde always spoke about the education system and
how it needs to be more developed for better learning of
students. A Srivasthan, an architect-urban designer from CEPT,
Ahmedabad, was the first speaker who spoke about Achyut
Kanvinde's ideas on acedemics and the quest for quality
education. The second speaker was Narendra Dengle, who,
apart from being an architect, is also an educationist & writer
based in Pune. He discussed the future of architectural practice
as we know it, and also talked about some fine works of
Kanvinde.
Ashok B Lall Sanjay Kanvinde Tanuja B K (Copyright belongs to the original owner)
05
Nov Dec 2015
(continued from page 1)
Architecture, New Delhi, Ansal University, SPA Alumni, Institute of Town
Planners of India, Indian Society of Landscape Architects, and the Delhi
Urban Arts Commission.
Conference Coordinator, Ar. Rohit Jain prefaced Sessions of the
Conference. He mentioned that the Various Chapters had have been
debating on the Smart City Mission, for a long of time, the result of which
was this Conference.
He explained that the Conference aimed to find answers to the questions
of how each person would contribute to Smart Cities and how we in this
profession could make a place in the Smart City Mission.
The Conference was to be in 5 sessions, he said, aimed to initiate a
debate, to make desirous change, to our cities to make them Smart.
Seniors and experts, he felt, could ensure all the thoughts and ideas get
included in the conclusions, to incorporate the same to the stakeholders.
Ar. Vijay Garg, then introduced the Chief Guest, Ar. Satyendra Jain, who,
he said, is, apart from the public figure that the country knew him as, an
active member of Northern Chapter, The Indian Institute of Architects.
He requested the Chief Guest too touch upon the vision of making Delhi a
Smart City, and their initiatives towards Role of Architects in the Smart
City Mission.
Ar. Satyendra Jain then addressed the august gathering. He discussed
with the audience, his experiences as Minister for Public Works, in the
Government of NCT, Delhi, and his inputs about the Smart City Mission.
He explained that so many options exist for making Delhi Smart, but only
if we simplify things can we be truly Smart.
He emphasized on how to make existing things better for future, rather
than creating new structures. Efficiency, he said, is not smart, but how to
use resources smartly, judicious use of resources, both renewable and
non renewable. On his recent visit to Pompeii, he shared Rome has 75%
of land left for future expansion. The management there believes in
self- survival of land with nature being its caretaker. The effective use of
the 25% built area makes it a smartly accessible country. He also grieved
on how the money has been used on non returning factors in terms of
infrastructure in the last many decades. He laid stress on the fact that to
make a city smart, we also need to be smart. For a good design, we need
not compulsorily re-invent. To make things better, we need to start
06
standardization and create a benchmark in the design process. Instead of
creating 50 different designs for different projects; we need to make one
single ideal design that can be implemented on major projects.
He spoke of sharing knowledge for the benefit of the city. His simple and
straightforward approach left the audience spellbound during the
speech.
Ar. Ashish Gupta, Conference Organizing Secretary, gave the Vote of
Thanks.
A lamp lighting ceremony by the Chief Guest, and all the dignataries,
along with esteemed members of The Indian Institute of Architects, was
followed by an inauguration of the material exhibition. The exhibition
also displayed some works by the students of the department of Urban
Design, SPA, New Delhi.
Session One of the deliberations discussed the Government of India's
perspective on the Smart City Mission.
Ar. Punit Sethi, Chairman, Haryana Chapter, The Indian Institute of
Architects, the host for the session, invited the speakers, Dr. R. Srinivas ,
Head Metropolitan & UT division, New Delhi, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Head of
Department, Department of Urban Planning, SPA, New Delhi, and Ar.
Jagan Shah, Director, National Institute of Urban Affairs, New Delhi, and
Ar. Balbir Verma, Past President, The Indian Institute of Architects, as the
moderator. Ar. Jagan highlighted the respected Prime Minister's vision
stating that The smart cities mission is driven by one ethos, that is, how
we can spend less money, waste less resources, and deliver the kind of
outcomes required; these outcomes could be public health, livelihood,
etc. He spoke about India's complex situation, the thrust of the mission
and its ultimate goals. He concluded the presentation with a note to
Architects, where it was for them to decide, how exactly they could be
helpful towards the mission, and that nobody shall be entitled to
advocate their Role to them.
Ar. Srinivas stated Smartness is to plan very well, but if it isn't operated
smartly, then its smartness stands failed. ICT technology needs to be
transparent.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta discussed the components of Smart Cities, how a Smart
City needs to be self sufficient and compact. New age technology needs
to be brought in, like the traffic timer, parking management applications
etc.

Balbir Verma summed up the session by explaining the role and
collaboration of IT and Design together, for the successful completion of
Smart City Mission; how pilot studies need to be taken into consideration,
backed up by serious evaluation.
Session Two, which spoke of the Industry Perspective, commenced with
Ar. Sanjay Goel, the host, inviting the presenters and the moderator. The
first presenter, Ar. Prasanna Desai, left everyone hopeful towards the
Mission, as he discussed how the small efforts put in by him, had
brought about significant changes in Pune. If helping people, live
happier and longer, is not the goal of Smart Cities Mission, then I don't
know what is, said Ar. Desai. Human interaction, better living
conditions, better breathing environment, free walkways, less money,
and more output was the key. He shared his experiences in Pune, where
he himself and some friends, jointly brought about significant changes.
Dr. Shikha Jain, the second speaker, discussed the importance of keeping
the heritage values of the cities in mind, while implementing the Smart
Cities Mission. She discussed how the government had finally started to
look at heritage cities differently and exclusively.
Ar. Minesh Parikh, the last speaker of the session, presented the view of a
landscape architect towards the Smart Cities Mission. A great
revolution is going to take place. We are going to need many architects
and urban planners. And we are still talking about how we can
contribute? questioned Parikh. He went on with, Find a way to get
involved; profession has vast number of designers, people should get
along and join the journey. Task is voluminous. People will go on and
make excuses, like they do. They blame it on our colonial rule. They
blame it on the GDP. The fact is, we need to get rid of our obsession with
growth, and rather imparting knowledge should become our obsession.
Because, we are producing a large mass of illiterate people, who have
clothes and mobile phones, but insufficient knowledge.
Moderator, Prof. Chetan Vaidya, concluded the session by encouraging
the architects to think about their role and responsibility towards the
Smart Cities Mission.
The launch of Conference Commemorative Publication had Ar. Satish
Singla, Past Chairman, Haryana Chapter, The Indian Institute of
Architects,, inviting Ar. Biswaranjan Nayak, Chief Architect, Odisha,
Ar.Amitava Roy, East Zone representative of IIA at COA, Ar. N K Negi,
Chairman, Himachal Chapter, The Indian Institute of Architects, Prof.
Manoj Mathur, Convener Technical Committee, Ar. Kiran Chimalwar,
Member, Technical Committee, Ar.Kapil Mehta, Convener, Publication
Committee, Ar. Archana Khanna, Member, Technical Committee, and Ar.
Jan April 2016
Kapil Setia, Chief Architect, Chandigarh, on the dias.
Prof. Manoj Mathur thanked the Publication and the Technical
Committees for their hard work towards bringing out the
commemorative.
A panel discussion, the last event of the day, between the esteemed
panelists Ar. Abhijit Ray, Past Chairman, Northern Chapter,The Indian
Institute of Architects, Ar. Ranjit Sabhiki, Eminent Urban Designer, New
Delhi, Prof M.N. Ashish Ganju, Eminent Architect, New Delhi, Prof. A.G.K.
Menon Eminent Conservation Architect, New Delhi, along with Prof.
Manoj Mathur, HOD Department of Architecture, SPA, New Delhi as the
moderator.
With their many years of experience and expertise, the panelists
discussed the enormous changes in cities, both good and bad for the
society, in the last so many decades. Prof Mathur concluded by
questioning, whether we were lacking inventiveness or initiation?
With this food for thought, curtains were drawn on Day One.
The success of the event was more evident on Day Two with a houseful
arena, and the delegates all pumped up with enthusiasm, as Ar. Rohit
Jain, Conference Coordinator, raised the curtain for further sessions
during the day.
Ar. Shamit Manchanda hosted the Session Three: Redefining the
Architects' Role for Practices of the Future. Dr. P.K. Sarkar, HOD,
Department of Transport Planning, SPA, New Delhi, emphasized on Smart
mobility and infrastructure. For the world to get smarter, he said, smart
buildings are a must. Technology is an important part. 3Cs law and rule
for the smart cities mission to get started, C1 : collecting data and all
the information needed and pre-requisites for the mission, C2 :
communication of that data appropriately, C3 : crunching the collected
and communicated date precisely, so that a decision can be made,
keeping in mind all the knows' and how's' of the Mission.
Ar. Sujata Hingorani, Landscape Architect, New Delhi, as the next
speaker in this Session, discussed the pan city development proposals for
Smart City Guwahati, and, last but not the least, Ar. A K Jain, Former
Commissioner Planning, DDA, spoke of digitized mapping, automation of
internet access, integrated utilities, and many other techniques towards
Smart City Planning. Ar. Surinder Bahga, Municipal Councilor,
Chandigarh, moderator, concluded the Session.
Session Four of the Conference dealt with Integrating Academic Research
(continued on page 12)
07
PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE: I WANT TO BREAK FREE The Alternative to Windows Operating System: Ubuntu - It's simple and easy to
install, it's Virus Free and this saves the annual antivirus cost. In the new interface
By Rohit Jain* the first thing that the users find different is the location of the buttons with which
one minimizes or closes the application/browser. If one is able to accept this small
This article is first in series of articles intended to showcase my experience in change, then rest of the other things become easy.
Breaking Free from the dependence on proprietary & expensive software. This
article will focus on software used for General Architectural Office tasks. The Alternative to Microsoft Outlook: Thunderbird - Thunderbird is a free email
application that easily replaces MS Outlook. It is compatible with all major email
The next one would be on software used for Graphics & Desktop Publishing like
providers.
Adobe Photoshop and InDesign. The last of the articles would be focused on low
cost alternates to AutoCAD.
The Challenge
My computer is slow and it cannot handle the new software, we need to buy a
new machine was the comment I heard one month after I installed the new and
legal Windows and Microsoft Office. It was not fair to me as a business owner,
being caught in the vicious cycle of new software leading to a slow machine,
managing licenses and ultimately being arm twisted in buying an upgrade to the
machine itself. MS Excel is called Calc MS PowerPoint is called Impress MS Word is called Writer
The Utopia
Imagine, what if you didn't have to spend any money to buy software, or have to
upgrade your existing computers for the next 5 years or worry about accounting
for different versions of legal software licenses installed on your computer
networks. Imagine concentrating on just architecture and business, and not
losing sleep over software compliance audit to check whether you are using The Alternate to MicroSoft Office Suite
pirated software. Imagine software expense as a negligible component of your
The Alternative to Microsoft Office Suite: Libre Office
operating expense.
LibreOffice is a free office suite that's 100% compatible with MS Office meaning the
The Need
files made in MS Office can be easily opened edited and exchanged without loss of
The operating expenses became a major concern. After years of not noticing the
formatting of data. The exchange is bidirectional.
software expenses, the cost of doing business had gone up significantly. It
brought about challenges of staying legally compliant, while remaining n The equivalent of MS Word is called Writer
commercially viable. n The equivalent of MS Excel is called Calc
This article is a collection of the experiences in our journey to the transition and n The equivalent of MS Power point is called Impress
the strategy we used and will continue to build upon. These resistance to change was the biggest hurdle faced. The resistance was less
The Strategy visible at the very top and visibility increased as one moved down the hierarchy.
n Consider that All Software are Just Tools Everyone was used to doing their task in a particular way.
n Remove the User Resistance n Non-restrictive ways.
n Segregate the Computer Task n We campaign for these freedoms because we believe that everyone
Target the General Office Task deserves.
The tasks that do not need much computing power and should usually be done on Interested to learn more, please contact the Chapter at
machines that are no longer suitable as CAD machines. iwantToBreakFree@iianc.org

*Ar. Rohit Jain is a practicing Architect and the Hon. Treasurer of IIA, Northern Chapter. He completed his studies in Architecture from the National Institute of Technology, Bhopal in
the year 1992, and further went on to do Post Graduation in Building Engineering & Management from SPA, New Delhi In 1998.
 Jan April 2016
Book Review: Le Corbusier-Ideas and
LE CORBUSIER: IDEAS AND FORMS
LE CORBUSIER: IDEAS AND FORMS William J R Curtis
A Book Review

Marking the 50th anniversary of Le Corbusier's death, the

second edition of William J R Curtis' seminal book, "Le
Corbusier: Ideas and Forms was released. It reveals Le
Corbusier's works with the help of over 500 images and their
analysis. The author explains how Le Corbusier's legacy has
changed in years, but also why the book is needed as much now
as it was back then.
Today, the long-term relevance of Le Corbusier is no longer in
doubt, although there are many ways of 're-reading' and
transforming his example. Apart from being unquestioned in the
academic world, his brand name has proved profitable in

Forms
furniture industry also.
In this edition the author has cut through irrelevant details to
refocus attention on the works themselves, submitting them
further into their deep intentions.

Le Corbusier lived a life, had political views, painted pictures,

wrote books, but he was first and foremost a designer of
extraordinary buildings and it is his architecture that continues
to be the main focus of this study. Due to this, the author has
tried to evoke visual and physical qualities of his works,
including their relationship to site and landscape. Great
emphasis has been placed on drawings, not just for the
evidence they supply, but also for their visual quality as
next
documents. Chai, Coffee and
Architecture !!!!
Even though this book explains various aspects of Corbusier's
designs in a pictorial manner, no photograph can recapture the
feeling of moving through spaces designed by him of different Deliberations on
intensity, the touch of materials or the unfolding of views.Over Unified Building Byelaws
the years, the author has revisited Le Corbusier's buildings notified for
often, meditated upon them, been surprised by them and
always found something fresh or unexpected, which is Delhi 2016
reflected in the book.
09
 BABURAO MHATRE GOLD MEDAL MAKI & ASSOCIATES TO DESIGN AMRAVATI

IIA-NC
AR. JEET MALHOTRA ASSEMBLY AND HIGH COURT

The prestigious Baburao Mhatre Gold Medal for the year 2015 World renowned Japanese architecture and planning company,
has been awarded to Ar. Jeet Malhotra, Architect - Planner, Maki and Associates, bagged the contract of designing the two
based in New Delhi. He served as the Vice Chairman of IIA iconic structures, Assembly and High Court, at proposed new
Northern Chapter for two terms, first from1971-73 and then capital Amravati.
again from 1973-75. Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu announced this on Friday,
Jeet Malhotra was just 21 years old when he started working 25th of March, 2016, after assessing presentations from three
with iconic town planner Dr. Otto Koenigsberger, and moved on companies- Richard Rogers (England), D V Joshi Architects
to work on the UN project during its transition from the League of Nations in 1949. (India) and Maki and Associates (Japan), which submitted their
From 1951 to 1966, he closely assisted Pierre Jeanneret and Le Corbusier on the plans. The important component is that the two iconic buildings The State
Chandigarh Project and witnessed the Assembly and the High Court will be designed by the Japanese company.
transformation of the city from a sketch to a According to Chief Minister, Maki & Associates' design was recommended by the
concrete reality. Later, from 1981 to 1985 he jury of six renowned architects as well. We want to construct a best capital that
went on to serve as the Chief Architect in should become one among the top ten cities in the world. The capital will be eco
the Punjab Government. friendly and embodies the green and blue concept. It should be a people's capital.
We conducted a competition among to elicit best design from companies of
He is one of the pioneers in evolution of
international repute and finally we have got some wonderful designs, the CM
concept of Environmental Planning in India.
said.
His expertise in the field has been of great
benefit to younger architects as well, which Naidu said the design would be placed before public for their critical
he has been spreading through extensive appreciation. The designs of two important buildings in the capital city are with
us now. They are good. But let us place them before public for discussion. We also
lectures, apart from heading the
want to elicit opinions from engineering colleges, premium institutes like IITs. We
Chandigarh School of Architecture for a
will integrate all the suggestions we receive from them into the plans of Maki's
number of years.
firm, the CM said.
This felicitation honours Jeet Malhotra for
The company, Maki and Associates, was set up in 1965 by Fumihiko Maki, a former
the high reputation and immense critical
professor and Pritzker Prize winner. He is best known for his studies in the use of
acclaim for his contribution in the field of
new materials and also for the fusion of the cultures of East and West.
Architecture, through many years of hard
work.

MEMBERS WHO HAVE LEFT US FOREVER

Ar. M. N. Andley, noted architect and senior member of IIA
Northern Chapter, left for his heavenly abode on the morning of
29th February, 2016. He was an Office Bearer with the Northern
Chapter for two terms; from 1994-96 he served as the Jt. Hon.
Secretary, and from 1999-2000 as the Vice Chairman (co-opted).

He will be forever missed in our hearts.

(30.06.1941 - 29.02.2016)
 Sonal
Nishtha
Aishwarya
Shubham
STUDENTS' CENTER

Rohit
Archie
Contributions By: Students of Amity School of Architecture
3

Down
Across

(9)

(12)
(10)
5

8
1

management (10)
1z

10. Indias first smart city (6)

2. Out of Smart city race (9)

7
4

6
CROSSWORD - 01

4. The Worlds bigest metropolita city (5)

2

10

8. Union Minister of Urban Development (13)

9

1. President of FIRST, and SCC India founder (12)

Development minister for a smart city mission (10)

Look out for the solution in the next issue of Vastu Samvad.
3. New capital of Andhra Pradesh to be built as a smart city

9. Maximum no. of to-be-developed smart cities in this State

6. These are used for intelligent energy consumption

7. this city is considered to be a pioneer in digital networking

5. First nomination to be received by the Urban

Cut Along with doted line "

IIA DIRECTORY UPDATE

1 Name: Mr/Mrs/Ms ......... .................. ................
(Surname) (First name) (Middle name)
2 Contact Details:
Postal Address Address line 1 ............................
Address line 2......................
City................. State................ Pin............
Contact Nos. .......(O)...(R)..........M)...................................................
Email id.......................

IIA Membership No. .....................

11
 (continued from page 7)
with Industry. Ar. PK Das, Architect & Activist, Mumbai, whose energy and experiences left the
audience thrilled, was the first speaker. He spoke of the mapped open spaces of Mumbai, the
Station Squares and the Market Places, sharing the Juhu Vision Plan and the Pimpri Chinchwad
experiences with the audience.
The other two speakers, Ar. Namrita Kalsi, Dy. Chief Architect, DMRC, New Delhi, and Ar.
Deependra Prashad, Architect, New Delhi, urged the propaganda of the Smart Cites. Is smart
the new modern? What happened to jugaad? lamented Ar. Namrata Kalsi. Architect
Deependra Prasad referred to Smart City v/s Happy City. He spoke of traditional cities and
their walkability, city expansion v/s city compaction. Moderator Ar. Vibhuti Sachdev,
Associate Dean, SSAA, Ansal University, Gurgaon, summed up by : Smart as an adjective is
getting obese; is it efficiency, is it safety, it is moksha? these meanings were once adopted
by Modernism... with this, the host, Ar. Mahesh Paliwal, Vice Chairman, Northern Chapter,
The Indian Institute of Architects, ended the session.
With the Smart City Design being the subject of the discussions could Urban Design be left far
behind? Session 5, was dedicated to The Urban Design Approach. Ar. Vijay Matange, urban
designer, New Delhi, hosted the session, and Prof. Ranjit Mitra, Former HOD, Department of
Urban Design, SPA, New Delhi, the moderator. Prof. P.V.K. Rameshwar ,Former Head,
Department of Urban Design, CEPT, Ahmedabad, addressed the issues of territoriality
segregating people, fundamental for urban design. He was followed by Ar.Kanak Tiwari,
HUMOUR!!! Urban Designer, New Delhi, who elaborated on the Child Friendly Smart City, and by Ar.
Manisha Bhartia, Urban Designer, New Delhi, elucidated on the principles of agile and
compact smart cities with smart mobility, and lastly, Ar.Arunav Dasgupta, HOD, Department
of Urban Design, SPA, New Delhi, quite appropriately quoted we oscillate on benefits of
technology, while referring to Manali and Khandeshwar railway station projects.
Q. Which Austrian architect only designed
After all the presentations, the last Session of the event, the Panel Discussion had Prof. Kavas
toilets?
Kapadia, SPA Alumni, New Delhi, talk about how people's active participation is vital and
smart city intervention a breakthrough. Ar. Amit Hajela, Hon. Secretary, IUDI, Ar. Jasleen
A. Adolf Loos. Waraich, Chairperson, ISOLA, Delhi Chapter, and Prof Tapan Chakravarty, Dean, SSAA, Ansal
University, Gurgaon, all discussed, how design creates a lot more than just beauty, and for a
Q. Have you heard about the crime in multi- Smart City Design, how the rule book of construction needs reconstruction; how applied art
story parking decks? and applied technology have to work hand in hand, for the success of this Mission. Ar. Ashish
Gupta, Jt. Hon. Secretary, Northern Chapter, The Indian Institute of Architects, concluded
A. It's just wrong on so many levels. The field is wide open, there is space for everyone in this Mission. It is for us, and, on us,
how we take it forward.
Q: What do architects eat with Chinese meals? The last event was the Valedictory Session. Conference Coordinator, Ar. Rohit Jain, was the
host. Ar. Ashish Gupta thanked all the supporting organizations for their support and
A: Spatial Fried Rice cooperation during the Conference. Their representatives, along with the entire organizing
committee, student volunteers and the student rapporteurs were called on to the stage,
justifiably applauded by the audience.
Q: Can a kangaroo jump higher than the
Empire State Building?

A: Of course. The Empire State Building can't

jump

Q: What did the blanket say to the bed?

A: "I got you covered."