Ayodhya: A Study of Urban Governance and Heritage-Inclusive Development

According to UNESCO, urban governance is the process that leads and takes into account the various links between stakeholders, local authorities, and citizens. It includes written and unwritten policies, procedures, and decision-making by units that control resource allocation within and among institutions. Heritage-inclusive development (HID) polices represents the integration of urban governance and heritage properties that oversees sacred places, which can be an integral part of greater ensembles, such as historic cities, cultural landscapes, and natural sites. The sacred and religious heritage city of Ayodhya plays an important role in the formation of religious nationalism and corporate identity of religious heritage through cultural performances and religious festivities. The main institutional and administrative bodies of Ayodhya, viz. Municipality, City Development Authority, Ayodhya Research Institute, Indian National Trust for Art, Culture and Heritage, Tornos and some others—fulfil the three dimensions of urban governance, i.e., political, economic, and institutional, and together they play important role in creating heritage-inclusive development policies and programmes. Ayodhya Research Institute and Tornos focus and promote the tangible and intangible heritages of Ayodhya using heritage attributes as resources. This chapter critically narrates various components of urban governance and observes their role in heritage planning through heritage-inclusive development polices in addition to the implications of the recent heritage-based national programmes. Qualitative approach, participatory observations together with field studies, and interfacing interviews are the main framework of this chapter.