JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY 07

The city's excellent track record of

sustainable and efficient
management of all resources led to,
in 2004, it becoming one of the six
cities across the world and the only
South Asian city to be invited to be
a part of the UN Global Compact
Cities Pilot Programme. The
programme aims at replicating
solutions to intractable urban
problems worldwide.

Tata Steel chose to undertake a

Public Private Partnership Project to
deliver safe water to the last-mile
consumer. The city has repeatedly
been voted by its citizens as one of
the best cities to live in India.

Water that can be consumed from the taps is the

hallmark of civic services in Jamshedpur

Parks and gardens liberally dot Jamshedpur

08 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY

The industrious spirit

It is the industrious spirit, dynamic environment and
climate for investment offered by the city that draws
entrepreneurs to set up base in the Steel City.

An urban agglomeration and among the largest

industrial hubs in eastern India, Jamshedpur is home
to Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Tata Power, Tata Cummins,
Lafarge Cement, Telcon, BOC Gases, Praxair, TCE, TCS,
Timken, TRF, Tinplate and many more among the top
100 and top 500 companies in India.

Adjacent to the city, a drive across the river Kharkai, is

one of the largest industrial zones of India - the
Adityapur Industrial Area Development Authority
(AIADA) - where more than 1,200 small and medium
scale industries are located.

The spirit of the steelman and steelwoman fires the furnaces of

industry all around
Among the important industries situated in this
industrial belt with a global reach are Usha Martin
Group, Adhunik Group, RSB Group and Tata Growth
Shop (TGS). Several of them are export-oriented
industrial units with markets in the USA, Australia and
Europe. These world-class players cater to diverse
sectors such as Auto Components, Special Steel Rolls,
Forging, High Pressure Hoses, Aluminium Extrusion,
OTR Tyre Retreading, High Speed Diamond and Pin
Point Crossings for Indian and Foreign Railways.
 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY 09

Strength from plurality

People of all hues have built the steel city
The folklore of Jamshedpur reflects
the cultural narrative of the city. In
the early years, the tough Punjabis
were lured off Punjab Mail to come
to work in the mills of the steel and
tinplate companies. A vast variety
of different communities were
drawn to the city because, as
Mahatma Gandhi observed: "in
serving the Tatas you serve the
nation".

Often described as a "microcosm of
India", Jamshedpur represents the
varied ethnicity of India, its linguistic
groups, diverse religions, castes,
professionals, business communities
all of who moved here in the last 100
years.
at a wide range of restaurants to fit
every pocket and palate, the evening
"chai" at Bhola Maharaj, followed by
a sun-downer at one of its famous
clubs before choosing Muglai,
Chinese, Awadhi, Continental or a
Gujarati or Rajasthani thali and
finishing with a kulfi opposite Basant
Cinema or a 'paan' near Gopal
Maidan!

At the same time, the city has an

overwhelming desire to preserve
within this diversity the unique tribal
heritage of the original people of this
ancient land. Though a modern
planned city, some anthropological
studies date its civilisation to the
same era as that cradle of mankind.

An ideal day in Jamshedpur would

be spent experiencing its diversity
through a culinary journey, starting
with dosas for breakfast at Madrasi,
the mid morning cuppa and samosas
from Sakchi Mishtan Bhandar, lunch
10 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY

An epicentre of sporting activity

Tata Steel's aim of making India a powerful sporting nation, by
fostering participation aimed at empowering the community,
has led to the creation of extensive sports infrastructure in
Jamshedpur. It perhaps has no parallel in the private sector in
India. It includes the JRD Tata Sports Complex, an arena of
international standards, with 13 training centres for various
disciplines and a Sports Hostel.

Tata Archery Academy was set up to leverage the indigenous

talent of tribal youth in this sport, encouraging them to aspire
for personal growth. It has trained and nurtured talented
youngsters to become India's best archers.

The Keenan Stadium, named after John Lawrence Keenan,

a former General Manager of Tata Steel
 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY 11

The Tata Football Academy was established in 1987 to provide

mainstream national football with a perennial pool of young
footballers. Its cadets today comprise a significant part of the Indian
National Football team.

Among the greatest beneficiaries of the Tata Athletics Academy

have been rural children, who, once given the impetus, raced
gazelle-like to national and international arenas.

At the school level, Jamshedpur has nurtured a rich reservoir of

talent in multiple disciplines including Archery, Athletics Badminton,
Basketball, Boxing, Chess, Cricket, Football, Handball, Roller Skating,
Table Tennis, Lawn Tennis, Volleyball and Swimming.

The sprawling football ground nestled in the

JRD Tata Sports Complex
12 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY
A competitive city of the future
Aware that high quality urban
infrastructure and services are
factors that allow people and cities
to realise their true economic
potential, Jamshedpur has
consistently benchmarked its urban
infrastructure and service to match
global standards. The city has
adopted an eQ™ Index to measure
the satisfaction level of the residents.
Sustained investments are made to
improve the efficiency with which
resources are managed in
Jamshedpur. It is the only city in India
to be managed by a private sector
enterprise. Availability and
realiability of water, electricity, solid
A transformation in the making
waste and the environment
management are measured by
service level guarantees.
Resource efficiency with a focus on
the ecosystem have also led to the
inclusion of the last mile consumer
and equitable development. This
approach allows the city to offer
augmented services such as schools,
playgrounds, recreational parks,
hospitals and dispensaries and a
healthy environment.
The city has one of the most efficient
water systems in the country with
benchmark levels for Non Revenue
Water losses, meter-based water
tariffs and water quality of the
standard that can be consumed
straight from the tap.
Despite a high per capita
consumption of power, availability
and reliability of energy is among
the highest in the country due to
minimal transmission and
distribution losses. The result is lower
tariffs for domestic consumers.
Jamshedpur has one of the highest
green covers in the country. The
public health system in the city was
instrumental in it achieving health
targets such as total immunisation
of children etc, much before the rest
of the nation.
 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY 13

Excellence in education

The XLRI campus

The urban agglomeration, which In 1921, the Jamshedpur Technical Managing Director from 1970 to
includes Jamshedpur, the Institute was set up to train Indian 1972, it remains one of the best
neighbouring notified area of technical experts to replace their technical training institutes in the
Mango and the industrial belt of foreign counterparts. Rechristened country with sophisticated labs,
Adityapur, has a literacy rate of 85.94 Shavak Nanavati Technical Institute advanced training aids and among
per cent (Census 2011), which is in honour of the Company's the most experienced faculties.
higher than the national average.
The city has over 180 schools, an
inter college and renowned
institutes including Xavier Labour
Relation Institute (XLRI), National
Institute of Technology (NIT), Shavak
Nanavati Technical Institute (SNTI),
Xavier Institute of Tribal Education,
R D Tata Technical Education Centre
and MGM Medical College and
Hospital.

Students of R D Tata Technical Institute

14 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY

Xavier Labour Relations Institute

(XLRI), one of the oldest business
schools in India, was established in
1949 as a partner in the
development of India. Ranked
among the best B Schools in India,
the premier institution is situated at Creating tech-experts at SNTI
the heart of the city.

The National Institute of Technology

(NIT) was one of the eight regional
engineering institutes established
in the country in the year 1960. It
caters to over 3,000 undergraduate
and post graduate students.

An educational institute for tribal

education, Xavier Institute of Tribal
Education (XITE), grooms talented Sacred Heart Convent School, one of the oldest missionary schools in the city

tribal students and other youth to
hone their skills so that they can
fulfill their true potential as
professional leaders in our modern
society.
School of Hope is a haven for
specially-abled children where these
minds are taught with the utmost
care to become confident
individuals.

Tata Steel's Education Excellence

programme promotes the pursuit of
excellence in over 40 schools in the
Steel City. It is a tool to enable
schools to improve the quality of
education so that they may offer
greater value to students and create
a culture of excellence to nurture the
"citizens of tomorrow".

Students of School of Hope

 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY 15

A heart of gold

Prime Minister of India, Dr Manmohan Singh, releases a postal stamp to mark 100 years of Tata Steel’s contribution to
the nation and its community

Much before the advent of corporate social responsibility, Sir Dorabji

Tata had decided that the “welfare of the working classes must be the
first cares of an employer”. As the legal boundaries of Jamshedpur became
a ‘microstate’ of economic growth, J R D Tata was determined that
Jamshedpur should not be “an island of prosperity in a sea of poverty”.

He, therefore, instituted various initiatives to reach out to the community. Today, while the city has
among the highest per capita incomes and per capita consumption levels in the country, with an
above average literacy rate, the Human Development Index of East Singhbhum district, of which
Jamshedpur is the headquarters is also among the best in the State of Jharkhand. In some villages
of the district, it is above the national average.
16 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY

Tata Steel’s social service agencies,

Tata Steel Rural Development
Society, Tribal Cultural Society, Tata
Steel Family Initiatives Foundation,
along with those of other Tata
companies, take the lead, it is the
plethora of voluntary associations,
non-government organisations and
societies that reflect Jamshedpur’s
heart of gold.

Over 50 philanthropic societies work

in a wide range of social service
avenues, such as healthcare,
disability management, women’s
empowerment, disaster
management, recreation and
amusement as well as for
professional excellence. They cater
not just to the city but the villages
beyond. It is the service and succour
that they offer which attracts people
from afar to Jamshedpur.
Tribal Culture Centre
In October 1936, Herbert Bryant, a
field representive of Rotary
International in India, invited few
local citizens over for lunch, and
proposed the idea of a Rotary Club
for the city of Jamshedpur. About a
month later, the Rotary Club of
Jamshedpur was established. Today
seven clubs serve the steel city.

Jamshedpur’s network of social

workers also includes nine Lions
Clubs that work towards restoring
sight, serving youth, cancer
detection and assisting during
natural disasters.

Health outreach programme of Tata Steel

 A tastefully decorated Jubilee Park on Founder’s Day

Creative Support Sumita Maniktala Associates Printed at Steel City Press

For more information please contact:

Corporate Communications, India & SEA

4 Armoury Road, Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, India 831 001

Phone : +91 657 243 1142
Fax : +91 657 242 5182
e mail : communications@tatasteel.com
www.tatasteel.com
Butterfly Park in the Tata Steel
Zoological Park
“
The Jamshedpur story reconstructed at the Tata Steel Archives

Be sure to lay wide streets planted with

shady trees, every other of a quick-growing
variety. Be sure that there is plenty of space
for lawns and gardens. Reserve large areas
for football, hockey and parks. Earmark areas

”
for Hindu temples, Mohammedan mosques
and Christian churches.

- Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata's magna carta

for the scientific development and
planning of the Steel City
 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY 01

Vision of a city
"On the 28th of February 1908, near the confluence of two peaceful rivers, one of which sported the romantic
name of Subarnarekha (River of Gold), a worker dug his spade into the earth unaware of the historical importance
of his act. Yet at the moment began the quiet patch of Bihar jungle into the great Steel Works and the industrial
town of Jamshedpur as we know them today."
- J R D Tata on the
Golden Jubliee of Tata Steel in 1948

When Jamsetji Tata began his lonely
quest to set up a steel plant in 1882,
weathering the scepticism of the
British Government, he had already
conceived of a city where the life
and livelihoods of people would find
a balance.
His search for a suitable site with rich
deposits of iron ore ended in
December 1907 with the sighting of
Sakchi by prospectors Srinivas and
Weld, the village on which the steel
plant now stands.
Jamsetji Tata’s passion, ideals and
vision shaped the creation of India’s
first business conglomerate.
The same nationalist passion that
led Jamsetji Tata to seek the best
and the brightest for his business
ventures, including the dream of
setting up a steel plant, also shaped
the blueprint of a city that can claim
to be modern India’s first planned
city and the birthplace of modern
Indian industry, Jamshedpur.
Established in 1907, in its first decade
the steel company attracted
professionals, businessmen and
workers from across the country. The
Company’s ethos of nation building
led to Tata Steel voluntarily
developing civic amenities to serve
its residents.
FC Temple’s Jamshedpur Town
Planning Scheme in 1919 was
perhaps the first such plan for a
modern Indian city. It suggested the
creation of hexagonal settlements,
houses, lawns and gardens, water
supply, sanitation and roads systems,
all of which were developed.
02 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY

Modern principles of urbanisation

come to India
Within a few years of the first brick
being laid in December 1911,
Mr Lovat Fraser, Editor, Times of India
said: "The town seemed a model for
all great industrial enterprises. I
walked through street after street of
commodious one-story brick houses,
all well ventilated, all supplied with
running water and lit by electric
light."

The saga of urbanisation deep in the

jungles of Bihar in a small village
called Sakchi, and progressively the
villages of Susnigaria, Jugsalai and
Beldih, is full of romance and valour.
The pioneers spent a hard and
Mrs Sahlin on an elephant
adventurous life, defying all dangers
and discomforts. They lived in tents,
surrounded at night by wild animals To acknowledge Tata Steel's it ‘Jamshedpur’ in honour of Jamsetji
that prowled around. contribution to the war effort, Lord Tata. Later, the Government of Bihar
Chelmsford, then Viceroy of India, and Orissa renamed the railway
They built roads, provided housing, visited Sakchi in 1919 and renamed station of Kalimati as Tatanagar.
lighting, supplied pure water,
constructed septic tanks, schools, a
hospital and dispensaries, while
planting saplings for each tree felled
for development.

The best steel technologists were

invited to build one of Asia's earliest
integrated steel plants as were the
world's best sociologists Mr and
Mrs Sidney Webb, Professor L T
Hobhouse and Professor Urwick of
London University, who provided a
scientific development plan. New Year’s Day at Sakchi in 1910

Early thinkers embed
green urbanism
Tata Steel's emphasis on continuously
improving the quality of life meant
an unrelenting effort to ensure
sustainable growth with a healthy
living environment.
Messrs Julian Kennedy Sahlin of
Pittsburg, USA, prepared the first
layout of the town. It was designed
more or less on American lines with
roads cutting each other at right
angles. In 1920, Mr Frederick Charles
Temple, who was then the Sanitary
Engineer to the Government of Bihar
and himself a Town Planner, was
engaged as the Chief Town Engineer.
He created the web of hexagonal
Jamshedpur City Plan
JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY
dwellings juxtaposed with open,
green spaces.
In 1936, Major P C Stokes, who was
connected with Quetta
reconstruction after the earthquake,
was invited by the Company to advise
on town planning and development,
thereby seeding the concept of
resilience in the city.
At Independence in 1947,
Jamshedpur was the only centre of
heavy industry in India. The first Prime
Minister of the country, Pt Jawaharlal
Nehru, charged Tata Steel with the
task of doubling its steel output to
03
feed the newborn nation's hunger
for steel. Thousands of professionals,
skilled and unskilled labour swarmed
to Jamshedpur in search of a
livelihood and to contribute to the
dream of building India.
Dr Otto Koenigsberger, a
distinguished architect and town
planner, was invited to conduct an
extensive study of the existing
conditions and future requirements.
His master plan aimed at making it a
sustainable city capable of serving
the functional and aesthetic needs
of a growing population, while
simultaneously reducing its
ecological footprint.
04 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY

Historic Landmarks
Jamshedpur is modern India's first and perhaps among its largest industrial towns. It was the benchmark for the
development of all post-independent Indian industrial cities. This township had two different sections. The roads
were named in an alphabetical order. The A to F Roads constituted the Northern Town while the rest comprised
the Southern Town.

The planning ideals included the co-existence of wide, open, green spaces along with industry. British, American
and Indian influences in bungalows, churches, clubs and schools are evident in Jamshedpur's architecture. The
fortitude of any of its edifices and homes are due to the engineering capabilities of its town planners and a unique
mixture of lime, jiggery and brick with a top layer of a local soil.

Steel Works: When the Steel Works

was established in 1907, it was not
large. It was built with two 200-tonne
furnaces, four 40-tonne open hearth
furnaces, 180 Coppee coke ovens, a
steam-driven blooming mill and a
rail & structural mill. Today, at the
same location, 9.7 million tonnes of
crude steel is produced annually.

Tata Main Hospital started in 1908.

It is the first public welfare institution
in India to be established by the
private sector. It is a 914 bedded Tata Main Hospital
multi-speciality hospital.

Khurshed Maneckji Bharucha, Tata

Steel's first Indian chief cashier, built
the unique colonial style edifice
Regal Mansion in 1935 to house
outstation Parsi youth who came to
work for Tata Steel.

The Tisco Institute with its Gothic

architecture style was established
on C Road in front of the Director's
Bungalow. It was later renamed United Club

United Club.
 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY 05

The large, detached Kaiser

Bungalows set on independent
plots of land reflect the cultural
neutrality of employee housing in
Jamshedpur, where people from all
parts of the country came to work.

Jubilee Park was a gift by Tata Steel

to the citizens of Jamshedpur on the
completion of its 50 years. In the
200-acre park is a banyan tree
planted by the India's first Prime
Minister, Pt Jawaharlal Nehru, when
he inaugurated the park during his
visit to Jamshedpur to
commemorate the completion of 50
years of Tata Steel. The first Prime Minister of India, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru visits Jamshedpur
to attend Tata Steel’s Golden Jubilee celebrations

At the edge of Jubilee Park is the Centre for Excellence (CFE) - a unique structure designed by the famous
architect, Hafeez Contractor. It houses the Tata Steel Archives. The four galleries of CFE not only elucidate the story
of Jamshedpur and Tata Steel but also give all those who enter its portals a holistic view of the pioneering efforts
of the Founder who shaped the destiny of India and launched her on the path of industrialisation.

The Centre for Excellence provides a holistic view of the Company’s history
06 JAMSHEDPUR - MODERN INDIA’S FIRST PLANNED CITY

Responsible and efficient urban

infrastructure services
Surrounded by the Dalma Hills, Jamshedpur is bordered on the North by the river
Subarnarekha and on the East by the river Kharkai. The leasehold area of Tata Steel or
the steel city is spread across 64 square kilometers.

To serve the early residents, Tata

Steel created a Town Division in 1911
which voluntarily provided civic
amenities. Jamshedpur's Town
Planning Scheme of 1919
recommended building employee
housing, lawns and gardens, water
supply, sanitation and road systems
to be managed by the steel
company.

Comprehensive urban infrastructure

services covering water and
wastewater, power distribution,
infrastructure planning,
development and maintenance,
along with municipal solid waste
Road rollers ready to go into operation - Sakchi 1909
and public health management are (JUSCO). Its Environment
now provided by Jamshedpur Management System is certified to
Utilities & Services Company Limited ISO 14001 quality standards.

The picturesque road girdling Jubilee Park