It has been 64 years since
India got its freedom and being independence from
British Empire. It was a undoubtedly the suffering period of Indian people. But after
India got its independence is another story. From my point of view, after
India got its independence the city had a conflict of how the city going to move on. One choice is to create a
new city in which of course anti every system which related to old British system or to follow the footstep that the English had prepared from them. After I visited Old Delhi,
New Delhi and Chandigarch, a lot contradiction and contrary between those cities are very obvious in term of how the city was planned and how people react to those individual existing built environment. As in Old Delhi, Chandi Chowk, the city where the British was constructed. It was totally chaotic city. Initially, the city was planned with such a small amount population, but as the population has increasing, the landscape could not control the people behavior anymore. On the other hand, the
New Delhi also constructed and planned by the British. The style of the building is neo classical; the rich in decorative and ornamentation show the power of the imperial period of the British. It is the idea of follow what is already good and use it to benefit the country. The landscape in
New Delhi is better than the Old Delhi, with the entire wall surrounding the buildings and houses. It is clearly show the different of class of people. The road is organized.
Moreover, the other attempt of trying to create a new city, which perhaps the attempts of anti British imperial system and show to the world that India has come to the new era with the new power of Indian people and no longer under the Crown rule. Chandigrach, the modern city planned by Le Corbusier by using the international style. The characteristic of the modernism which is the honest of architecture, the reveal of structure and the raw of the materials: concrete, glass, steel.
The city has changed the way people behaviors, no more chaotic trafficking, less horn blowing, and jaywalking on the road unlike in Old Delhi.
To sum up, I personally think that both
New Delhi and Chandigrach had achieved their goal of trying to create a new system of order and organization to the Indian, if you compared with Chandi Chowk. But of course, Ones would want their city that represent their own culture, art, architecture. But it is also undeniable that the British system in governing the city and some culture still have been influencing
India. Since British Empire had colonized
India for such a lone period of time.
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| Chandigarch Plan |
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| New Delhi Plan |
