Unusual visitors are suddenly thronging Pascal Maidan in Jogeshwari (East), Mumbai.The enthusiastic, curious, camera-wielding youngsters busily making notes, some conversing with locals, are students of various architecture colleges here — some from as far as Navi Mumbai. Their latest challenge is the hunt for creative solutions, to reinvent an area where the polarisation in the aftermath of the Babri demolition in 1992 remains as stark today.The maidan, located in the vicinity of the infamous Radhabai Chawl, served then as an epicentre of violence for residents of both communities in the surrounding slums. Ten years later, the ground remains a symbol of ghettoisation, serving as the divide between the settlements of Shankarwadi and Pascal Colony.The theme of the students’ challenge is ‘‘An intervention to address the gradual ghettoisation within a community in Jogeshwari, Site — Pascal Maidan.’’ Labelled ‘‘Architecture of The Edge,’’ the competition asks participants to suggest physical intervention, either in the ground or in the slums, as a corrective measure or as a memorial. The end objective is to offer an alternative to the notion of ‘‘self-sufficient ghettos with walls between neighbours’’. The competition is one of the several efforts made by the youth festival ‘‘India Sabka’’, which celebrates the spirit of Indianness, plurality, secularism and multi-culturalism. The festival organised by the Majlis and Open Circle is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday at the Y.B. Chavan Centre.Jay Vidyut Shah, a final year student of the Academy of Architecture, visited the site with other members of his group. He says, ‘‘The maidan symbolises a partition, so a religious monument is out of question. We feel the one thing binding us all is arts and crafts. And because every child has talents within, we decided to target 10 to 15-year-olds.”Atul Paralkar, of Rizvi College of Architecture, initially felt the problem was a hopeless one. ‘‘There was a clear divide. Even now, the activities we propose will be more important than the architecture. Even if nothing happens, it would have been a worthwhile attempt,’’ he says. He adds that his group did considerable reading on the riots and on the area: ‘‘We were looking for reasons, why, how.”A group of girls from Sir J.J. College of Architecture talk about how small matters in the area could get out of hand so easily. ‘‘We saw how a stray firecracker in a wedding procession can incite violence. We felt that if these two communities lived together, things would improve. We believe their problems are lack of education, employment and civic facilities,’’ says one girl. She says that the age group they will target is the one most vulnerable to provocation — 20 to 30-year-olds. They are also considering employment-generating ideas.Leading architects Uttam Jain and Chandrashekhar will judge the competition. Chandrashekhar says, ‘‘I will be looking for a totally secular position. It should also act as a bridge between two communities.”
