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Situation before the initiative Challenging commuting corridor
• Forest corridor and its biodiversity needed to be revived by plantation of indigenous revenue personnel, Patwari, was called to the site for earmarking the boundary of the forest
and native species. land. The boundary of the land parcel was established with metal grills while keeping the
visual connections with the adjoining properties.
Mobilization of resources
A 200 m pilot stretch was first implemented and then another 800 m was also developed.
inancial resources: Initiated by a MoU between an NGO (I am Gurgaon) and the Forest With a complete makeover of a filthy stretch to a thoughtfully designed public place, other
FDepartment, Haryana, the project was developed on a Public-Private-Partnership model private companies were approached for funding by the NGO. Eventually, the complete 5.2
and fund-raising was made from Corporate bodies, who contributed CSR funds for the km length of the bundh was taken up. Plantation drives were conducted by the NGO.
project implementation.
The beneficiaries of the project are:
Human resources: A technical team of Landscape Architects, Urban Designers and The targeted groups of primarily economically weaker sections, who reside in the
Architects made a proposal, which was first implemented on a pilot stretch on an • neighbouring slums and urban villages and use the Bundh for short distance travel
experimental basis. This was well received by corporates like American Express, Indigo and within the city on a daily basis
others who committed to sponsor the entire project on the basis of a carefully worked out
cost estimate, that decided the budget for implementation. • Residents of the neighbourhood high-end apartments who found the transformed
Bundh an ideal place for their daily fitness/ leisure activities.
Other resources: The team on ground comprised of several contractors who were awarded
work on the basis of competitive bids. A site supervisor was employed by the client for day Result achieved
to day monitoring of work on ground.
bundh was transformed to create a barrier-free, ecological network in the form of a linear
Process A nature park, with walking and cycling tracks forming a non-motorized, environment-

he Chhakarpur-Wazirabad Bundh project was a collaborative initiative. The land friendly linkage across the city.
Tcame under the jurisdiction of the forest Department of the government of Haryana. Accessibility improvement: An alternative movement corridor has been created to provide
A Gurgaon-based NGO took the initiative, hired the architectural firm as the technical an eco-friendly linkage across the city, with separate tracks for cyclists, pedestrians and
consultants; a concept proposal was prepared and presented to the forest department. the differently-abled/vulnerable groups. Ramps have been provided for people using wheel-
chairs, strollers, walkers etc. and tactile pavers have been installed for the visually impaired.
The proposal looked into aspects related to the existing land uses, accessibility and It has given the vulnerable user groups a much required sense of dignity of movement and
mobility around the site, made observations of the existing sectional profile of the bundh feeling of social equality.
and its relation to the nullah and suggested design possibilities for a pilot stretch, 200m
long, on how to improve the quality of the place and bring this lost space back into the A Public space was also created in a natural setting for leisure and community activities.
urban activities of Gurugram. Pervious pathways and concrete tracks were laid out in a way that kept the existing trees
undisturbed and hence, created a shaded movement corridor winding through the forest.
Having received an approval from the Forest Department, the NGO approached top More native plants were added to supplement the existing vegetation and enhance the
Corporate companies in Gurgaon for mobilization of CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) biodiversity of the forest trail.
funding; presentations were made and after due deliberations, a top multinational bank
agreed to fund the first phase of the project. Subsequently, topographical survey was Sustainability
conducted along with detail mapping of existing trees and a base map was drawn. As
the site encompasses a historic Bundh along the nullah, the nature of the land parcel was nnovative Use and Recycling of Materials: Resilient and maintenance free materials
essentially linear. The design, thus, looked at the opportunity to develop the site as an Ihave been chosen for long-term durability and waste materials have been leveraged and
alternative sustainable mobility corridor for pedestrian and cyclist movement along with recycled for effective cost control. Old discarded kerb stones were recycled to make toe-
universal accessibility measures. Resting spaces with seating facilities were created as walls and retaining walls on the bundh and 35,000 cubic meters of construction debris from
nodes within the linear corridor. Based on the spatial and technical standards, ramps, gates landfill and construction sites in Gurugram, have been utilized for earth-fill operations and in
and other components of the tracks were worked out. preparation of base layers of paving of the 5.2 km long stretch of the bundh site, facilitating
utilization of roadside waste and reduction of project costs.
The key hurdles during the initiatives were essentially regarding the illegal occupation of Environmental Sustainability: A complete rain water harvesting system was established
the Bundh at several locations both within the site as well as at access points along the with the help of French drains, sub-surface piping and recharge pits. Water bodies were
roads. These needed to be dismantled after appeasing the discontent and hostility of the rejuvenated and the nullah, wherever exposed was fed in with storm water overflow after
unauthorized occupants. Stake-holders consultations and one-to-one discussions helped surface percolation through permeable pedestrian walkways and green areas. Trenches
to convince people, with the help of the police and forest departments. A local level land

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