“With
the uncontrolled urbanization going around Kathmandu
and the fast deterioration of its open space system,
one wonders where we are heading to. Furthermore, by
the time the concerned institution wakes up from
hibernation and makes an effort to publish an
‘inventory’ of the open space system in the Valley
in order to manage it, all that will probably
be left will be the book only.”
– Prof. Bharat Sharma, Landscape Architect
The facts
page in the official web site of Kathmandu
Metropolitan City puts the population density of the
city as 13,225 per sq. km. Scroll a little above and
you will find that the population of Kathmandu city
is stated as 671,846 with CBS2001 written in
brackets – meaning that the figure is based on the
last census taken in the year 2001, i.e., almost 10
years ago! The census also specifies that of the
three municipalities within the Valley, Lalitpur had
an urban population of 162,991, while Bhaktapur had
72,543. What the figures are today can only be
guessed at and most researches and planning papers
project the figure to be between 1.5 to 2.5 million
collectively within the Valley. This alarming jump
within a decade is no doubt disturbing and fuelled
by the political upheaval and instability in the
country, the trend shows no signs of abating within
the near future. So what holds in store for us urban
frogs basking in its past glory leads to the above
statement by Prof. Bharat Sharma and to our focus in
this issue – Urban Open Spaces. Nevertheless, it is
not that we are not aware of what is happening
around us, and at times, concerted and combined
efforts of professionals and concerned citizens have
been made to put things right (the Ganatantra
Stambha proposed at the Ratna Park being one
prominent example). However, one can find that such
priorities are still obscured by short-sighted
decision makers and unless political commitment is
ensured, plans, however feasible and lucrative they
may be, will simply remain on paper, collecting
dust.
The cover
feature this time is the Royal Norwegian Embassy at
Lalitpur designed by architect Kristin Jarmund of
Norway. As with the American Embassy at Kathmandu
(SPACES -Sept/Oct 2007), embassies reflect the
psychology of the people of the country it
represents and as we found out, their designs
portray the culture and beliefs of the people of
that country. While the American Embassy was
completely designed and constructed with
international input, the Royal Norwegian Embassy
used local expertise for both its design details and
construction, and as Kristin’s Nepalese counterpart,
architect Biresh Shah puts it, ‘was a huge leap in
time and space!’
The Burj
Khalifa – the tallest structure in the world – is
the latest in man’s relentless effort to surpass his
limits. This building, standing at 828 metres, is an
extra ordinary feat, which for us in this part of
the world, is something we can only look at and
wonder.....
News & Happenings
Dear Customer,
If you had missed the
earlier edition of SPACES,
you can view it through
following link :
