The Challenges of Social Engagement

People are central to the idea of any intervention The unprotected urban heritage in Indian historic cities and towns is getting lost at a very fast pace. Heritage buildings have been abandoned, neglected, abused and left to decay. Innumerable risk factors, at the macro and the micro level of the historic urban settlements have been responsible for the decay of heritage buildings, posing a serious threat to the existence of the unprotected urban heritage. This article highlights the problems impacting urban heritage by investigating the built heritage in Bharatpur and Shekhawati regions of Rajasthan in India. The article draws attention towards lack of involvement of local communities in protecting the urban heritage. It discusses the role of local communities, especially owners and craftsmen, in conserving heritage buildings. Majority of the owners and occupants are not interested in conserving these structures nor do they have the necessary technical and financial means to do so. In this scenario, a participatory approach to conservation and management is the only means to conserve unprotected heritage buildings and structures. The article shares practical experiences and learnings from 21 years of practice in the field of built heritage conservation, highlighting the social aspects in the conservation of built heritage

Archaeology · Citizen journalism · Civil engineering · Cultural heritage · Cultural heritage management · Environmental planning · Environmental resource management · Geography · Human settlement · Industrial heritage · Pace · Political science · Urban planning · Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation · Engineering · Law

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