From resettlement colony to PG hub: How Satya Niketan was stretched beyond its limits
Satya Niketan, a former resettlement colony in Delhi, has transformed into a dense hub for student housing. The area's infrastructure has been severely strained by rapid, unregulated construction to meet the high demand for student accommodation.
Why it matters
It highlights the dangers of urban planning failures and the risks posed by unregulated construction in rapidly growing student neighborhoods.
NEW DELHI: Satya Niketan, a resettlement colony in south Delhi, has undergone a dramatic transformation from a low-rise neighbourhood meant to house displaced families and labourers to one of the capital’s most densely built hubs to accommodate students.Developed by Delhi Development Authority (DDA) during the 1970s and ’80s, the colony was planned as modest housing for families with limited means. Its original layout was markedly different from that of neighbouring Shanti Niketan and Anand Niketan, which were built in the 1960s as upscale cooperative housing societies, largely for senior govt officials and affluent people.Satya Niketan and neighbouring Arakpur Bagh Mochi, in contrast, comprised much smaller plots and low-rise residential structures.According to former DDA planning commissioner Sabyasachi Das, the original building norms allowed the construction of only ground and first floors in Satya Niketan and such colonies.
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