THE CANTONMENT AREA: SETTLEMENT AND ITS SOCIOLOGYCASE STUDY OF SECUNDARABAD CANTONMENT

Anusha fatima , 2 nd year , Department of Planning and Architecture

Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology , bhopal

ABSTRACTSince time immemorial, cantonments have been considered as a very sensitive zone and so carrying out a research in these areas is a tedious task . This paper attempts to study the various perspective of a cantonment area in terms of types, services and security. The secundarabad cantonment has been taken as a case study .The paper concludes with the focus on army settlement , their role in the society and in the planning field.KEYWORDSSociology , cantonments, security

INTRODUCTIONCantonments refer to military residential areas, which are primarily established for the Defense and Army personnel, although kept in separate boundaries; they are intermixed with civil population areas, offering peaceful and insulated living in urban areas for the military personnel. The word cantonment derives from the French word canton meaning corner or district and describes a place during a military campaign, such as winter quarters, where units of an army may be encamped for longer periods than they are during advances and retreats.Cantonment area is an important criterion in categorisation of rural and urban area .India has about 63 listed cantonments.There are about 107 cantonments housing defense personnel spread over the country .Also another 15 locations which were cantonments earlier are now absorbed by civil corporations for public living, such as Bangalore, Baroda, Hisar, Tiruchirappalli etc. The majority of the Cantonments in India are situated in Northern, North Western and North Eastern parts of India, apart from Delhi, the National capital, these cantonments exist in 16 other States. The first three cantonments were constituted in the in the 1811 century, Barrack pore in Bengal, Dana pore in Bihar in 1765 and St.Thomas mount in Madras in 1774.

ARMY PERSONNELS IN PARADE GROUND CANTONMENT BOARD OFFICE, SECUNDARABAD

CATEGORISATION OF CANTONMENT AREA

There are three types of Cantonments, namely, Class-I, Class-II and Class-III based on the strength of the civil population, as under:

Class-I Cantonments More than 10,000 (With 07 Wards)

Class-II Cantonments More than 2,500 but less than 10,000 (With 3 to 5 Wards)

Class-III Cantonments Less than 2,500 (With only 1 Wards)

HISTORY - CANTONMENT AREAThe Cantonments in India were established during British raj, right at the time East India Company, started installing its military establishments in 19th century, through a legislation as early as 1824AD. Cantonments were established after the Plassey War, sequel to which there was Sepoy’s mutiny in 1857AD, whereas presently the Cantonment Boards managing each of the cantonments are functioning as per the Cantonment Act of 2006.The paramount consideration in setting up all these cantonments:The historical reasons necessitating the formation of individual cantonments are different for different cantonments depending upon the prevailing political and military realities of the times. The need for military camps in various strategic locations of India to establish, maintain and consolidate the rule of a foreign power. The sudden spread of diseases like, diarrhea, malaria, and venereal diseases among the troops necessitated the cantoning (insulation) of these military camps from the local population. Moreover , The records of 19 th century British India reveal that health and hygiene of the troops was one of the major areas of concern which the rulers of the day had to contend with. This consideration coupled with the desire of an alien ruling elite to distance itself from the native population led to the development of an insulated type of character in all these cantonments which has continued till date.Secundrabad cantonment was established to assist the Nizam of Hyderabad, militarily against his local adversaries, whereas Lucknow Cantonment was established to maintain pressure on the Nawab of Oudh and to finally capture that state. Similarly the need for cooler climate for the British troops and strategic importance of Doab dictated the setting up of hill cantonments and cantonments in modern day Uttar Pradesh respectively.While most of the cantonments came to be established in early part of 19 th century, but the characteristic civil and military administration took around seventy five years to come into the shape which is still in existence in the sixty two cantonments of the country.

CASE STUDY- SECUNDARABAD CANTONMENT

INTRODUCTION

Hyderabad and Secunderabad form one of the few twin cities of the world. Secunderabad is located on the northern side of the Hyderabad urban agglomeration. The cities have merged through an imaginary line drawn across the Tank Bund, which is still used to demarcate the cities. The Secunderabad Cantonment comprises a number of defense establishments. In 1798 through an alliance signed between Hyderabad's Nizam Sikander Jah and the British East India Company, an area north of Hussain Sagar Lake was made into a cantonment named Secunderabad after Nizam Sikander Jah. Presently, Secunderabad Cantonment area falls under the Secunderabad Cantonment Board, which is a local body falling under the administrative control of Ministry of Defence, Government of India. Primarily, the Secunderabad Cantonment Board is responsible for carrying out the civic amenities to the residents of the Cantonment area. The area of Secunderabad Cantonment is about 40.17 sq. km and the civil population is 2,06,102 as per the 2001 census.

LAND USE PROFILE The total land under the Secunderabad Cantonment is about 40.17 sq km. Cantonment land area has been classified by the Board into eight major categories.A1 LAND -Under Active occupation of Army A2 Land Reserved for the future occupation of Army (Vacant)B1 Land Placed under mangement of Central Govt. (Hyderabad Airport Development Authority Land included) B2 Private Land B3 Land belongs to Ministry of Defence but given on lease (Outside civil area) B4 Land Defence Land (Vacant) C Land Cantonment Board Land for its use Civil Area Land belongs to Ministry of Defence but given on lease

58.06

0.044.2

27.48

4.9

0.91 2.03

PERCENTAGE OF LAND

A1 LAND A2 LAND B1 LAND B2 LANDB3 LAND B4 LAND C LAND CIVIL AREA

SOURCE : CDP SECUNDARABAD

HOUSING TYPES

Cantonment Board accommodates nearly 12500 housing units

HOUSING CHARACTERISTICS

The houses are mostly individual house with multi family units. The outer periphery of these areas generally inhabits slum and scattered re-settlement with few un-authorised colonies.the main cantonment area follow a row housing pattern which are almost mostly identical.The Regular Army provides subsidised accommodation for its servicemen and women.

SINGLE LIVING ACCOMMODATION

The Army provides Single Living Accommodation to single servicemen and women. These type of housing are provided to those with a family who choose not to have their family with them at their postingSERVICE FAMILIES ACCOMODATION

The Army provides Service Families' Accommodation for servicemen and women who are married or in civil partnerships. These accommodation are also provided to widowed, divorced or separated with dependant children.

Housing – service family single servicemen lower rank / servants quarters

FEATURES The accommodation is usually close to, or within 10 miles of, their duty station. Most are fully furnished, though tenants may use their own furniture if they wish. Existing householders may decide to continue living in their own home.Moving to a new postingWhen a serviceman or woman is assigned to a new posting, the Army meets the costs of moving personal possessions, within certain limits. These limits are available to service personnel in ArmyNET.

HIEARCHY OF OPEN SPACES

Hierarchy – open space in a cantonment

SPORTS GROUND – POLO BATTALION GROUND

TOTLOTS-space used for the recreational purposes of

small children.

STADIUM- 12000 seats capacity

athletic track, sports groundBATTALION FIELD- parctise use / operation of weapons

PARADE GROUNDParade Grounds is a large concrete open area ,army

personnels celebrate .

PARKS-a large public garden or area of land used for

recreation.

PARADE GROUND TOTLOTS

GENERAL FEATURES -CANTONMENT AREA

Usually located at the Periphery / outskirt of the city. They are Walled from all sides with a very large open spaces- hierarchy. The entry of outsiders are prohibited due to security reasons. An individual has to undergo very strict security check up to enter these areas. The roads are maintained by the Cantonment board. The houses there are usually row housing with similar facilities to similar rank officers in almost all cantonments across the country.

FACILITIES AND SERVICES

The army personnals and Officers enjoy these medical facilities for free of cost.Also family of commissioned officer gets medical benefits.After retiring also officers and their families get free medical services for a nominal one time payment.it also provide canteen facility given by the government. officers may buy grocery items, beauty products, electrical items, clothing and many more items in discounted price.With canteen facility quality of the items is also assured. Officers of Indian armed forces gets canteen facilities irrespective of short service commissioning or permanent commissioning. They also get free ration on daily basis. Mess facilityis open for unmarried commissioned officers. There is abundant of facilities of sports and games to serving officers and their families available in the vicinity of their residence. Officers get two years paid leave to pursue higher education which means all officers may avail two years to study and that too they will be paid full salary.

CANTEEN FACILITY MESS FOR ARMY PERSONNELS

CANTEEN SMART CARD- FOR ARMY PRSONNELS

SECURITY- cantonment

The entry to these areas are through passes only . A tight Inspection of goods, octroi, terminal tax and toll occurs at the entrance. Every person bringing or receiving any goods, vehicles or animals within the limits of any cantonment .The army has thePower to seize the goods. Also Camera or other items prohibited within the cantt. Area ( for outsiders)

RESTRICTED ENTRY AT ARMY HEADQUARTERS AT SECUNDARABAD

ARMY SETTLEMENT AND THEIR ROLE IN THE SOCIETY

The army perosnnels are solely responsible for national defence. They safeguard the sovereignty, territorial integrity and the unity of the nation and protect the country from terrorist attacks/ hijacking, floods, earthquakes and tsunamis ,massive fires and industrial disasters. They protect us from any insurgencies Internal disturbances/riots within the country. They are responsible for providing relief on the occurrence of local epidemics, floods, famines or other natural calamities by the establishment or maintenance of relief work or otherwise. Lastly , the preservation, improvement and upgradation of environment is also their prime motive.

CONCLUSION- ARMY, SOCIOLOGY AND PLANNING

A great French sociologist “ Durkhein ” defines sociology as the study of social institutions like schools, church, etc. sociology deals with how the people interact with each other and in turn how they respond to the society as a whole.

In planning context, Albert J. Reiss has defined, “sociology is the study of social aggregates and groups in their institutional organization, of institutions and their organization, and of the causes and consequences of changes in institutions and social organization. , kindness and thinking for the well being of each and every individual . Nevertheless, planning deals with making of policies and laws for the well being of the people. Thus enhancing monastery settlements and giving it an important place in a society will definitely help in a peaceful and prosperous growth of society as a whole encompassing every individual be it rich, poor , black or white. The aim of people in a society should not be just their welfare,they should not be selfish to their needs but taking care of each and every individual of the society- should be their sole motive.In India, a soldier is respected and rank high in people’s esteem. Officers and soldiers were the state in the past. Due to emancipation of women in the society at large one can witness entry of lady officers in the armed forces. Traditionally, sociology saw the binary division of men and women into distinct social roles but never questioned the ways that patriarchy and heterosexuality exerted social control.

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