Panaji: Mulfaced by the fate of the Makadmare tribe in Nirankal, Ponda, a group of architectural students decided to learn their needs, and make the small community focus on their project for national competition.
The students are now one of five winners of the Alliance of Observation and Action Network (OAN) organized by the National Architecture Student Association (NASA) and the Collective Center for Life and Urban Design.
This group has won a grant of Rs 1.2 lakh, which eventually accommodated the promise to provide literal roof makadmare tribes above their heads.
The students have designed a community shelter, which, according to the provisions of the NASA contest for OAN grants, now must be built in June 2022.
The student project involves the construction of shelter with members of the tribal community itself.
Living around 20 straw huts, these tribes must reconstruct their temporary structure every year and have to survive water flowing into their homes during the rainy season.
After spending hours with Makadmare community members, students realize that community shelter can be the answer to the tribal problems that do not have this land.
The student team, who won a grant, including fifth grade students of the Goa College of Architecture, Mark Vas, Gyles Ferrao, and Raveena Deshpande, fourth year students from Ayesha de Sousa College, and a fourth year student from Spa Bhopal, and Saavi Natekar.
Under the mentor, architect, and their social worker, Tallulah d’Silva, the students refer to their project ‘Vangad – ongoing work’.
The name Vangad refers to the participatory process where the project is designed, said VAS.
“The structure will function as a full-scale direct precedent to guide them in rebuilding their homes in a more cost and sustainable way.
This will be built by the community under the Guidance of Vandad Team – Making a Construction Process is a Skills Development Action in the Tribe.
Used to accommodate sanitation drives, community classrooms and other initiatives, “he said.
Twelve selected teams in all for OAN NASA grants from all over the country.
Goa students began working on their projects in August.
“The Makadmare community has been on the news for a while, so we decided to work on the project for them.
We spend most of two days with the community and talk to every household to understand their requirements.
Since then we continue to return to them while designing the project To get their input, “Dishpande said.
The students now plan to use a third of grant money to build a community center, while the remaining money will be removed for tribal members for the annual reconstruction of their homes.
“The community does not have a roof, and we learn that the only place for women to spend time in community activities is a temple.
So the project hopes to provide multipurpose shelter for the community, which can last for seven to nine years.
We plan to Start working as soon as we get a grant, “Dishpande said.