In a nutshell: perspectives on the Crown

For Crown development by the ATDC based on the Master Plan

1) The Galaxy concept was created under Mother’s guidance and received her approval. The Crown is one of Roger Anger’s key ‘non- negotiables’ for manifesting the Galaxy as a means of linking the four zones. It is a key mobility and infrastructure corridor.

2) As such, it was an important part of the Master Plan, which was approved by the Residents Assembly in 1999 and subsequently gazetted by the Government of India.

3) No key changes were made between 1999 and what was sent to the Government of India in 2001.

4) This Master Plan is not for all land pro- tection in Auroville. It states that it is only pro- tecting land for the manifestation of Master Plan.

5) This Master Plan has been used for fund- raising activities and money has already been received. Nobody would have donated to Auroville if such a plan had not been there. The Government is prepared to invest large amounts in manifesting Mother’s city. We should show gratitude and work to achieve it.

6) The Youth Centre violated agreements many years ago by situating buildings and trees on the alignment of the Crown. This was a deliberate blocking act on city development.

allowing an infrastructure route through the Youth Centre and Bliss forest is that the last part of an urgently-needed High Tension cable, part- ly paid for by the Government, has not been allowed to be laid in the ground. This is causing a daily loss of Rs 5,000 to the Electrical Service.

8) Some do not want Mother’s city of 50,000 but a much smaller ‘eco-village’. They have deliberately stalled or blocked develop- ment with excuses that further studies are neces- sary.

9) Regarding alternative studies, no serious attempts have been made to integrate ground realities in a way which would not distort or block the development of the original Galaxy concept.

10) The Master Plan Perspective 2025 does not require a Detailed Development Plan for the Crown, radials and ring road, as these are Master Plan roads contained in the first 5 year plan.

11) The city is designed to be 50% green, and contains four city parks. The area of forest that would need to be cut for the Crown is a very small percentage (0.36%) of the total Master Plan area and for each tree cut, four will be replanted elsewhere. The space allocated to all roads in the Master Plan is only 1.64% of the Master Plan area.

12) People are sitting on ‘private estates’ in the city area and holding back manifestation of Mother’s city. It is selfish and unsustainable for 3,500 to occupy 3000 acres. And we are being selfish in taking decisions today without considering the needs of the 47, 000 who have yet to join Mother’s city.

13) There are double-standards. No environmentalists objected to clearing a large area of urban forest for a frisbee ground, but they object to a smaller area being cleared for the Crown. Moreover, while all the present buildings along the Crown were constructed without a Detailed Development Plan being in place, nobody objected to this.

For collaborative Crown development based on present realities

1) The Galaxy is a wonderful concept, accepted by the majority of Aurovilians. However, it is not cast in stone, but is to be interpreted and mani fested collaboratively.

2) The Master Plan is an interpretation of the Galaxy; it was not approved by The Mother. The Master Plan was approved by the community in 1999 on the basis that only the four zones specified by The Mother were beyond discussion. It was agreed that the rest, including the Crown, had to be formulated collaboratively, not imposed.

3) The Master Plan which was gazetted by the government was different in some respects from the one which the community had voted on. The community had not endorsed the gazetted version, and it has been used for fund-raising without this wider endorsement. The Master Plan has also not been endorsed by the Tamil Nadu Government, which is responsible for land matters in the state.

4) The Youth Centre, Bliss and Forest Group had presented an alternative routing for the High Tension cable, which meant it could have been laid many months ago.

5) Nobody is trying to stall the development of the city. Various proposals have been presented to the Auroville Town Planning group over the years which have integrated ground realities while respecting the form and spirit of the Galaxy. However, all have been rejected because of a rigid interpretation of how the Galaxy needs to be manifested.

6) The forested areas of the city are key water catchment areas, helping ensure the city’s and the bioregion’s water supply. Cutting a wide road through these areas would destroy important water catchment and erosion control structures, as well as destroy a precious forested environment.

7) The Auroville Universal Township Master Plan Perspective 2025 specifies that certain steps need to be taken between formulating a concept plan and manifesting it on the ground. They include drawing up five year Detailed

Development Plans, which would be reviewed at the end of each five year period, and Annual Plans with detailed plans and schemes. None of these have been done. The present ATDC wants to manifest roads without key studies, like socio-economic and mobility studies, being in place and agreed upon.

8) The present completed stretches of the Crown Road have seen uncontrolled motorized traffic. The Town Planning group says this is a mistake, and wants to prevent this on future stretches, but has not presented any way of doing this. They have even increased the width of the planned crown road from the width of the present stretches, so further encouraging fast-moving vehicles, which is against what Mother envisaged for the city.

9) Manifesting the Crown as a perfect circle makes no sense on the ground. It is a dogmatic interpretation of one aspect of the Galaxy concept, an attempt to impose a rigid symbolism upon a developing city.

10) The needs of the youth who benefitted from the Youth Centre which they have established have not been properly considered or addressed by our town planners.

11) The planners have elevated principles above people. The city should evolve from the evolving consciousness of its inhabitants, not be imposed upon them. The planners also need to consider the needs of the present residents, like a need for more affordable housing, which should therefore be given a higher priority than more roads.

12) The present Auroville Town Development Council lacks the professional expertise to do planning for the city.

13) There is no hurry to finish the Crown. The sections already paved will serve the needs of 10,000 people by 2025.

14) It makes no sense to preserve the same lay- out for the whole Crown. The Crown should adapt to the different environments it passes through, taking into account topography, present need, the existence of alternative routes etc.