Academic Year 2021-22, Electives-I (Contemporary Architecture)

Vidya Pratishthan’s School of Architecture

UNDERSTANDING PRESERVATION OF NEGLECTED ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE:

THE CASE OF UDAYGIRI FORT, UDGIR, MAHARASHTRA

By Shrutika Swamy

Guided by Ar. Bhawna Pandey and Ar. Prerna Thakre

 INTRODUCTION

Architectural heritage has different importance and different values in different eras. According
to UNESCO ‘Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live with today, and what we pass on
to future generations. Many cities in today’s time are facing the problem of maintaining the
Architectural heritage due to lots of different issues. Such an example is illustrated in this
research paper. The challenges faced by urban areas of the city Udgir, which lies in district
Latur, Maharashtra, in India, are leading to negligence in the process of preserving the ancient
fort of Udgir. These issues today are more challenging and are at the forefront of the
development of Udgir city.

 BACKGROUND OF STUDY

Udgir Fort in the Udgir city in Latur district, Maharashtra of India is a fort built in pre-Bahamani
age, dating from the twelfth century CE. It is famous for the historic Battle of Udgir of 1760, in
which the Marathas, led by Sadashivrao Bhau, defeated the Nizam, and after which the Treaty of

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Udgir was signed. The fort is named after the Hindu Saint Udaygiri Rishi. Scattered throughout
the surrounding hills, there are several old military observation points and rest houses, built from
an unusual white clay. However, all have long since fallen into disrepair. Udgir Fort may also
feature a deep tunnel that connects it to the forts of Bhalki and Bidar. The fort is bounded by a 12
m trench and contains several palaces, as well as the Samadhi of Udaygir Maharaj, which is 18
m under the normal ground level. It has some rare inscriptions written in Arabic and Persian
which testify to the promotion of knowledge and culture by the local Muslim rulers over the
centuries. The fort served as a military base of Marathas to maintain pressure on the Nijam. The
fort was under the control of Marathas till 1818 and later on, it shifted towards Nizam from the
British. Although the fort is so significant, still the development of the fort is stunted and
compromised.

 RESEARCH AIM AND OBJECTIVE

The main aim and objective of the research are to understand the importance and value of
conserving, restoring, and preserving the architectural heritage that resembles the rich cultural
validity it carries with itself. The paper also depicts the reasons why the architectural heritage i.e.
Udaygiri fort is neglected in today’s times and how the heritage should be preserved.

 RELEVANCE OF STUDY

The study discusses the changing time and with it change in approach towards conservation,
restoration, and preservation of architectural heritage. It is important to make sure ancient
heritage sites to be saved and people should understand the relevance of it because these sites are
our gift from the past, it represents not only our rich history but also human existence. The
outstanding cultural values of the society pave the way for the conservation of the historical
buildings. Conserved architectural heritage promotes the identity of the community, and the
society with great identity cares about its cultural values and strives to preserve them. It ensures
that present and future generations can experience and enjoy the physical expression of past
generations. The built heritage consists not only of great artistic achievements but also of the
everyday works of craftsmen (Joinery, 2016).

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 LITERATURE REVIEW

(Vikesh Kashyap, 2017) The paper discusses the role of Pragpur heritage village in preserving
and transmitting culture (local religious rituals, traditions, and ancestral languages) and makes
suitable suggestions for the improvement of Pragpur heritage village.
(Gnezdilov, 2019) This paper is devoted to the relevance of preserving monuments of the world
architectural heritage. The question of the importance of architecture for future generations
is raised. The new possibilities of restoration and reconstruction of the architectural monuments,
their historical development, and prospects are considered. It is shown that the importance of the
world architecture monuments preservation problem cannot be underestimated.
(Chika Udeaja 1, 2020) The paper says how currently, heritage is challenged in the Indian city of
Surat due to diverse pressures, including rapid urbanization, increasing housing demand, and
socio-cultural and climate changes. The paper also has examined the context of the challenges in
Surat and the efforts made with the view to make heritage an integral part of urban planning and
management and a presentation of the conceptualization of urban heritage conservation within
the city of Surat made.

 DISCISSION (FINDING)

The village Udgir is a village with historical importance. It has a gigantic fort which was built by
the Maratha emperor's influence on its Architecture. People in this village and the surrounding
village come together on the occasion of Gudi Padwa to seek blessing from
the Samadhi of Udaygiri baba. But for the past few years, the fort is losing its importance due to
negligence in maintenance and conservation. The stairs, walls, and structure are collapsing now
and then, but still, the government is taking no interest in developing the area. Now almost
nobody visits the place as it is abandoned from the village.

There is a huge scope of developing the around landscape of the fort and turning it into an
amusement park for people to visit there. The temple which is inside the fort could be developed
in a way that the visitors can enjoy as well as feel pumped up emotionally while walking by and
through this magnificent structure.

Governments must identify the importance of keeping the culture village heritage tourism at
priority and help in creating a healthy environment that supports tourism. Government should
create more heritage villages in the country. The Government of India should notify villages like
Udgir as heritage villages. The government should take further steps to preserve, protect, and
promote the traditional cultures and knowledge of the indigenous people. These villages should
be promoted as a destination of interest. The government must indulge with the Marketing
organization, which can help the destination to come on a platform where more people would
like to visit it. These efforts will be bringing more tourists to the area & help the locals to make it
contribute to the economy. There should be awareness or training programs to make the residents
more aware of the hospitality concept & to create a hygienic environment. These activities will
help the heritage village to represent itself in a better way.

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 CONCLUSION

Cultural heritage in our society plays a very important role in our life. It keeps us attached to our
tradition, religion & beliefs. Today we are moving away from our origin. By which we are
moving away from the deposits of our culture, for which our ancestors have worked hard &
given the customs, beliefs to our society. To make our heritage more visible, the heritage villages
can help us to keep us reminded and in touch with our ancient culture. The heritage villages can
be a model for the demonstration of our ancient culture. To create awareness the heritage villages
can play an important role. The Udgir village in Maharashtra is the role model for understanding
the need for preserving our culture. It can prevent the migration of rural people to urban i.e. it
helps in creating employment. These villages play critical responsibility to keep world history
intact for the coming generation so they may have the same opportunities to learn about the past
and keep their roots alive.

Governments must identify the importance of keeping the culture village heritage tourism at
priority and help in creating a healthy environment that supports tourism. Government should
create more heritage villages in the country. The Government of India should notify villages like
Udgir as heritage villages. The government should take further steps to preserve, protect, and
promote the traditional cultures and knowledge of the indigenous people. These villages should
be promoted as a destination of interest. The government must indulge with the Marketing
organization, which can help the destination to come on a platform where more people would
like to visit it. These efforts will be bringing more tourists to the area & help the locals to make it
contribute to the economy. There should be awareness or training programs to make the residents
more aware of the hospitality concept & to create a hygienic environment. These activities will
help the heritage village to represent itself in a better way.

 REFERENCE

Chika Udeaja 1, C. T. (2020). Urban Heritage Conservation . Insights from Surat, India.

Gnezdilov, D. V. (2019). The Problem of Preservation, Restoration . D V Gnezdilov et al 2019 IOP Conf.

Joinery, P. (2016, April 04). The Importance of Protecting our Architectural Heritage.

Vikesh Kashyap, A. S. (2017). PRESERVING THE OLD WORLD HERITAGE. (GARLI –PRAGPUR).

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 KEYWORDS
Architectural Heritage, Culture, Importance, Negligence towards restoration, Heritage
Tourism, Preserving Cultural, Urban Heritage Conservation, Historic Urban Landscapes,
Urban Planning and Management, Udgir’s Heritage, Sustainable Development