Dr. K.M. Vasudevan Pillai, CEO, MES
It gives me great pleasure to present the first issue of Tekton, a new research journal in the fields of Architecture, Urban Design and Planning, brought out by our Pillai College of Architecture, Navi Mumbai. With more than two decades of its existence, the college has progressively made its mark, this journal being the latest. With this publication, Mahatma Education Society reaffirms its commitment to the importance of research inquality education.
It is my personal belief that a generation educated is a generation saved. For India to count herself amongst fast developing nations, it is imperative that every child, every individual has an opportunity to learn and be empowered. The only way forward is for India is to become what I call an EduNation. Our diversity and multi-culturality is our greatest strength and we can fulfil the potential of our great civilisation by committing to this path. Moreover, this education should not be seen as mere material empowerment. Rather, it should work holistically as sociological, cultural and political empowerment. This is not a task for the governments alone, private initiatives will play a crucial part and will share a large portion of this national responsibility.
The disciplines of Architecture and Urban Planning will have to play pivotal roles in nation building. Six decades after independence, we should hope that these disciplines have acquired enough capital to find their footings and chart directions that are appropriate to serve our complex nation. Our cities need a shot in the arm to improve housing and infrastructure. This calls for a new vision and a sensitive approach in planning so that they become more liveable. Architects shape not just our physical environments but more importantly the cultural landscapes that sustain our lives. I come from a background of literature. My immediate references are from the worlds of the wordsmiths who conjure up many mental universes. Being deeply inuenced by William Wordsworth’s poetry extolling romanticism and a link between nature, art and human emotions arising out of subjective experiences, I came to view architecture in the same romantic light. Perhaps because of this, I was always fascinated by the beautiful buildings of the Fort area of Mumbai where I studied. In them, I discerned a harmony between nature and architecture which lent itself a quiet dignity for human existence. More than four decades ago, when we, a young group of teachers were setting up our rst schools in Mumbai, we dreamt of taking education to a higher level. Setting up a college of architecture along a verdant riverbank of Panvel has been to me bringing Wordsworth’s poetry and art together. Here, I could closely observe the ways of the architects and the students of architecture; their creative energy and enthusiasm and their ability to transform spaces into beautiful places. Our cities and their urban environments can hugely improve if these energies are purposefully channelised.
At Mahatma Education Society and its Pillai Group of Institutes, it has been our continuous endeavour to nurture a dialogue among academics, researchers and professionals. We have been publishing research journals in Education, Management and Technology. The publication of Tekton is yet another addition in line with these objectives. We are very happy and proud to present this high quality international journal to the fraternity of architecture and planning. We thank the distinguished editorial board for providing their support and compliment the editor of Tekton and her team for bringing out this wonderful maiden issue which has set a high benchmark at the very beginning. We earnestly hope that this journal will continue to foster good writing and enrich its readers. I will be personally very interested in reading stimulating ideas and discussions within its pages.
Dr. K.M. Vasudevan Pillai
Chairman and CEO, Mahatma Education Society, Mumbai