Social Cohesion and Urban Transformation in Heritage Cores: A Spatial-Demographic Study of Jaipur’s Walled City

International Journal of Civil Engineering

© 2025 by SSRG - IJCE Journal

Volume 12 Issue 7

Year of Publication : 2025

Authors : Manjari Rai, Yogesh Keskar, Alok Ranjan

10.14445/23488352/IJCE-V12I7P106

How to Cite?

Manjari Rai, Yogesh Keskar, Alok Ranjan, "Social Cohesion and Urban Transformation in Heritage Cores: A Spatial-Demographic Study of Jaipur’s Walled City," SSRG International Journal of Civil Engineering, vol. 12,  no. 7, pp. 71-82, 2025. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14445/23488352/IJCE-V12I7P106

Abstract:

The geo-social planning of the walled city of Jaipur is deeply intertwined with its historical and architectural heritage. This meticulously designed city meets the overall needs of its inhabitants while embodying the cultural values of the time. The city’s urban layout, based on the concepts of Hindu cosmology, has a network of carefully planned streets, public spaces, commercial setups, residential blocks of varied scales and typologies that not only serve practical purposes but also reinforce the city’s cultural identity and imageability. Despite its distinguished plan form and spatial organization, particularly at the mohalla level, which has aided in long-term cultural resilience and social cohesiveness, it is still not widely studied. Additionally, there is a study gap in our understanding of localized neighborhood dynamics and imageability within the medieval urban centre because most of the work currently in publication focuses on macro-level urban architecture. Based on the available secondary data and field surveys, this paper is an attempt to address these gaps by 1. a study of initial conceptualization/morphology and 2. imageability of the city by a detailed study of its urban form and city structure on varied scales. 3. Study of form, structure and pattern of residential mohallas and concludes that the planning of this medieval city reflected a balanced and harmonious coordination between physical structures, geographical settings, and the strong societal setup, giving it its distinctive shape and form. The study makes a significant addition to both scholarly debate and practical policy frameworks since these comparative advantages provide a reproducible model for urban planners working in heritage zones.

Keywords:

Imageability, Medieval city, Street system, Social Structure, Urban form.

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