STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL ATTITUDE and APPRAISAL ON A CONFIGURATION 1

INTRODUCTION TO THE AREA:

Popularly known as “jutobazaar”, this wholesale leather market in Kolkata at Padmapukur CIT Road is almost half a
century old. To reach the place, from Moulali take CIT Road and stop near the first round about crossing and you’ve
arrived.

BACKGROUND OF THE AREA:

Over a century old, it once used to be known as ‘Chamra’ haat (leather bazaar). After the shifting of the tanneries
from east Calcutta to Bantala, the traders here quickly switched from leather to finished products like shoes,
chappals, bags, belts and raw materials. Benshull Haat is not just the largest wholesale market for shoes catering to
retailers and individual buyers but also a shoe-maker’s delight for accessories and materials like leather, soles,
adhesives, rexine, rubber, nails and cobbler tools. It is to footwear what Metiabruz is to dress materials.

SYSTEM:
The Leather Market (Chamrahaat)

TABLE 1: Parameters alongside the description

PARAMETERS DESCRIPTION

Market mainly for shoes and various leather products. Closed on Friday for
Sensor (S)
prayers. Near bus stop.

Goal (G) Maximizing sales. Promote Pro Environmental Behaviour amongst people

Error Detection (E) Rains have negative impact on sales since it is an open market. Bandh, Riots

Effectors (E’) People, Shopkeepers, Vendors

CONFIGURATIONS:
Temporary in nature but have survived for years in that position. Hence have had a transition from less stable to stable.
It is more of a generalized “Continuous” system having a high rate of probability of transition. The transition has also
been associated with evolution. There are few shops which are permanent but most of them are temporary in nature.
Yet with the creative endeavour and hunger to survive they have come up with new designs, new materials and
following the latest trends has led them to survive (by becoming stable configurations with adequate resources and
similar appearance) in the competitive market where online sales has taken the entire markets by storm.

USERS:
- Shopkeepers
- Shoppers
- Shoe Makers
- Mobile Hawkers
- Street Vendors
- Pedestrian
- People on vehicles

BEHAVIOUR PATTERN OF USERS:

- Since it is a wholesale market, small shopkeepers come during the morning and buy products in large quantities

- The shopkeepers follow a daily routine. Opening their shop at 9 am in the morning; closing it from 1 pm till 4 pm
during the afternoon and then coming back and reopening at 4 pm till 8 pm at night

- Shoppers are mostly seen during the morning and in the evening. Not gender biased, everyone comes and buys
after inspection & trial.

SOUMYADEEP DUTTA | PG 1ST YEAR, 1ST SEM | DEPT. OF ARCHITECTURE, JADAVPUR UNIVERSITY
 STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL ATTITUDE and APPRAISAL ON A CONFIGURATION 2

- The shoe makers and street vendors sell their items on the street and footpath. They set up their itineraries on
temporary racks made of bamboo or folding bed.

- During festival times these narrow areas widespread with stalls witness large gatherings creating chaos. Yet people
seem to find products according to their choice. We can safely say- there is order in chaos too.

- People on vehicles use the left side of the road while the market is situated on the right side. There is an imaginary
edge created that separates pedestrians and vehicular traffic.

- People looking to access the bus stand often go through this area since the road is too risky to walk.

- Mobile vendors selling food items and ice-cream vans also ply in this area.

- Space used for parking on days of Jummah, since the market remains closed.

MEASUREMENT OF BEHAVIOUR:

After making a visual survey and interviewing 20 people in the area including the users in the system, their behaviour
was listed and graded. ‘DESIRABLE’ if people found it to be okay, ‘UNDISERABLE’ if people found there is a loophole
and needs attention.

GRADING
SL. NO BEHAVIOUR
(DESIRABLE / UNDESIDERABLE)

1 Small shopkeepers buying from wholesale market during morning DESIRABLE

2 Mobile street vendors littering area and leaving UNDESIRABLE

Market outgrowing onto side street and narrowing down vehicular
3 UNDESIRABLE
movement
4 Continuous movement with no civic amenities (public toilet, sitting) UNDESIRABLE

5 Buzzing during festival time with customers DESIRABLE

6 Provision for fast food while shopping DESIRABLE

7 Clash between para-transit and pedestrian movement UNDISERABLE

8 Shops folded and packed once market closed everyday DESIRABLE

9 Area filled with plastic bags and paper with no dustbin available UNDISERABLE

10 Walk through market to reach bus stand DESIRABLE

IDENTIFYING MOTIVATIONAL FACTORS:

Analysing the place on the basis of factors that influence behaviour.

1. HEDONIC FACTORS
i) Beneception & Nociception
- The variety of products one gets at this place attracts people.
- People of different background come here. Socially interactive zone with no gender biasing.
- The smell often creates nausea but people still go there to shop.
- Use of tarpaulin sheets creates suffocating environment as it cuts down the ventilation, yet it acts a low cost
technique to protect the products from rain.

ii) Appetitive & Aversive

SOUMYADEEP DUTTA | PG 1ST YEAR, 1ST SEM | DEPT. OF ARCHITECTURE, JADAVPUR UNIVERSITY
 STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL ATTITUDE and APPRAISAL ON A CONFIGURATION 3

- Want for low cost yet trendy products.

- Overcrowded during festival times with very little spaced to move freely.
- Lack of public amenities (public washroom, water tap) often creates few problems.
- Plastic bags flying around with no allotted dustbin to dispose them.
- Lack of awareness amongst the people since they are highly skilled but not that much educated.

iii) Affect Rich & Affect Poor

- There is everything for all (Bags for ladies, shoes for men, women & kids, belts).
- Irritating to walk since vehicles often whizz past you if you are shopping on roadside stalls.
- Presence of food nearby after shopping gives a pleasant feeling.
- Noise and persuasion shopkeepers make to attract customers.

2. GAIN FACTORS
- Variety of new and latest items at a nominal cost.
- Then luxury of giving trial even though it is an open market.
- Street lights are mostly used. This reduces the load and also saves electricity.

3. NORMATIVE FACTORS
- The goat skin from meat shops are used to make products. Animals are not slaughtered specially for making these
products.
- Temporary nature of these stalls. When the shops are not in use, the space is utilised for parking.
- The buzzing market also makes the area safe for people (especially women).

4. HABITS
- Throwing of plastic bags directly on the streets.
- Spitting of gutka, pan masala while sitting in their own space.
- Street vendors leaving the place littered at the end of the day.

PROBLEMS IDENTIFIED:
- Waste generated has no specified location to be disposed. Hence lies on road.
- No specified movement pattern. Haphazard since the shops are not aligned.
- Outgrowth of market encroaching the streets.

INTERVENTIONS:
Based on the problems identified few broad recommendations (informational/antecedental interventions) can be
made:
- Keeping metal barricades to separate movement of vehicles and pedestrian.
- Signboard that spitting and littering would lead to a fine and placing a civic volunteer there to monitor.
- Alignment of shops to channelize movement.
- Placing of dustbins & few small motivational rewards like on cleaning their own vicinity they would be given certain
subsidies.
- Stringent rules like if food vendor leaves place littered then he would not be allowed to sit from the next day. This
would be monitored by civic volunteer posted at the area since it is also a node.

ASSESSMENT
After these recommendations were made, another visual survey was undertaken and it was found that:
- The metal barricades made it easier for the pedestrian to move about. The edge was also given a demarcation.
- Spitting was reduced to some extent, however more solid regulations needs to be thought of.
- Aligning the shops was a huge success and reduced the haphazard pedestrian movement to a great extent.
- Civic volunteer often showed signs of laziness and irresponsibility which encouraged the food vendors to leave the
place dirty.
Alternative – Give the shopkeepers of market the responsibility to keep the area clean for which they would be given
Government benefits like selling their products online. This would motivate them.

SOUMYADEEP DUTTA | PG 1ST YEAR, 1ST SEM | DEPT. OF ARCHITECTURE, JADAVPUR UNIVERSITY