INCREMENTAL HOUSING

BELAPUR, MUMBAI

K.AKSHAY
18261AA018
SEM-6, SEC-A
LOCATION : Belapur, Navi Mumbai, India

ARCHITECT : Charles Correa

Charles Vision :

This is the site of New Bombay, an idea first promoted by Charles Correa and a group of colleagues in the 1960s as a
means of reducing pressure on an old city physically constricted at the bottom of the peninsula between the harbour and
the Indian Ocean, yet subject to an enormous-and increasing-influx of work-hungry country people

Correa’s new housing scheme at Belapur offers hope. It is a model which draws on the immemorial patterns of Indian life
while being related to the structure (physical and economic) of the New City

In the scheme, Correa has been able to put into practice several long held beliefs about the nature of housing and
community.

Based on observation of traditional Indian settlements, he has suggested that cities should be developed using a spatial
hierarchy which ranges from the private world of the individual dwelling, through the ‘doorstep’, to the communal court
(which traditionally contains the well or common tap), to the greater public space - the maidan – the public promenade of
the community
TOTAL AREA OF THE SITE : 5.4 Hector

CONSTRUCTION COMPLETED : 1983

•Belapur housing located about 2km from the city

center of the new Mumbai. Attempts to
demonstrate how high densities(500 persons per
hectare, including open space, schools, etc) can be
easily achieved within the context of a low-rise
typology.

•The site plan is generated by a hierarchy of

community spaces and courtyards.

•Starting with a small shared courtyard 8mX8m

around which seven houses are grouped.

•houses do not share any party-wall with their

neighbors- which makes these houses truly
incremental.

•Each family can extend their own house

independently.
•The main concept of this project was to create a hierarchy of open
space from small community spaces for cluster-level activities and
large community spaces for community-level activities

•Large community spaces are used to celebrate different festivals and

for function by residents.

•Hierarchy is designed in such a way that you move from large open
space to small cluster level open space

•Every house has open space in front of the house which plays a major
role in the interaction between the people.

•Instead of going to a high rise-low density project, Charles Correa’s

main focus was to create a low rise-high density so that each house
will be built on its individual land.

•Charles Correa designed open spaces as shared community spaces

that every individual can use it.

•Charles Correa thinks that the involvement of the residents is also

playing a crucial part in housing projects.
•Every cluster includes a variety of housing typologies and a central open
space with a tree.

•The form of the structure is simple so that it can be constructed by the local
masons and craftsmen which generates employments for the locals.

•The window is placed on those sides only where the setback is provided so
that it will help in cross ventilation.

•common roof type I .e. Pitched roof is used for all the houses in Belapur
housing.

•Schemes are produced for all income groups like LIG(lower income
group), MIG(middle-income group), HIG(higher income group).

•7 units are grouped around to form a courtyard of size 8m x 8m size.

•3 of these clusters are combined to form a bigger cluster of 21 houses with

a courtyard of size 12m x 12m.
• “So basically it’s a proposal for mass affordable housing in New Bombay (Navi Mumbai), which
demonstrated how high densities could be achieved with low-rise courtyard homes, built with simple
materials at a human scale. Based on clusters of between seven and 12 pairs of houses arranged around
communal courtyards, the buildings did not share party walls – allowing each family to extend and adapt
their own house independently. 550 families were planned for in a 6-acre area limitation”.