The Man from Harvard

Harvard University

At Cambridge in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

The President of Fellows of Harvard College, acting on the recommendation of the Faculty of Design and with the consent of the Honorable and Reverend the Board of Overseers, have conferred on

                                                 Bharat Prasad Sharma

                             The degree of Master in Landscape Architecture

In witness thereof, by authority duly committed to us, we have hereunder placed our names and the University Seal on this fifth day of June in the Year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty and of Harvard College the three hundred and forty fourth.

President                                                                                                 Dean of Faculty

The number of persons in this country who have received a degree from the above mentioned university can be counted on the fingers. Bharat P Sharma is one of them. But that’s not all. He is also one of only two landscape architects in Nepal, the other being Ananda Siddhi Bajracharya. So, certainly, Bharat Sharma is somebody who is in a unique position professionally. And the question does arise as to what this uniquely positioned man has been able to contribute towards a better architectural scene in the country. When faced with this question he becomes a little uncomfortable but at the same time admits readily, “I have tried to make my views known to all who will listen but unfortunately, in this country, there is very little that can be done.” From his demeanor it is not hard to fathom that even a degree from the most prestigious university in the world was not enough to elevate him on such a plateau as would be justified and from where his words would be given due weight. In fact one comes to the conclusion that this country has made pitifully little efforts to utilize Bharat Sharma’s expertise. How true this is can be deduced from the fact that when the dynamic mayor, Keshab Sthapit, went ahead with his ambitious plans to beautify the Capital, it was not one of the only two landscape architects who was asked to advise and implement. Rather, the so called beautification involved but a few traffic islands where a bit of gardening was done by some people who were really not professionals. No doubt, Bharat Sharma must have felt a bit put off then not to have been consulted in his capacity. This example, more than anything else,­ should lay to rest any thoughts that here, expertise and wisdom are not as valued as they should be.

And so, the degree from Harvard hangs but as a fond memory in Bharat Sharma’s room in his house in 178, Char Narayan Marg in Maligaon which he shares with his wife, Kusum, who has been a teacher all her life and teaches at Shivpuri H.S School in Maharajgunj. The son, Vision, a mechanical engineer, and his wife, Nitin, an electrical engineer, live in Toronto while a daughter, Kuntal, along with her husband, Prajwol, have migrated to Sydney with their two daughters. And so, Bharat Sharma has worked for most of his life at the Department of Urban Development and Building Construction, where he was once the Deputy Director General. And so, today he is a free lance Environmental Planner as well as a Professor of Architecture in Nepal Engineering College in Changu Narayan, Bhaktapur. And so, when you ask him about what can be done about the laxity in implementing building laws, he has no answer really. And so, when you ask him about what should be done to ensure safety and safe practices in construction, he has no real answer. Perhaps he has seen and heard it all and the long years in a corrupt and floundering bureaucratic set up has made him into a lifelong cynic.

Which is of course not to say that he is not mindful of what is happening and one cannot say that he is not concerned. For instance he points out the need to discourage large constructions in places where the infrastructure is flimsy. For example, “I think the government should stop putting in so much money in further developing the Dasrath Stadium. It is in a commercial location and right next to a very busy street where even in normal times the traffic is quite chaotic.” Also, “The large business complexes that we see coming up in congested areas will pose grave threat to public safety and will only contribute to more traffic traumas.”

Even the Tundhikhel grounds which he says are the lungs of the city hasn’t made him happy as far its further beautification is concerned. “Just imagine, this large public place is surrounded by a fence that is ten feet high! Where is the consideration to public safety? I call it a jailed environment.” Similarly, Bharat Sharma has a very valid point to make about the real problems with the mass housing developments that seem to be the flavour of the day. “You know, this city lacks most of the basic infrastructural facilities. For instance even if Melamchi were to supply water to Kathmandu, it is certain that scarcity will again be felt ten years down the line. The less said about drainage and sewerage, the better. And what to say about our narrow roads? Under such circumstances, it is difficult to imagine how big apartment complexes will be able to fulfill basic demands to a large number of residents.”

Bharat Sharma seems to be a deep admirer of Malla period architecture, at least in the context of the particular geological and topographical aspects of the valley. This is why he admires them so: “Many of the habitats were built on ‘tars’, meaning ‘uplands’. They appreciated the importance of preserving agricultural land. The communities were compact and since many of the infrastructural facilities like water spouts and squares were shared, they were enough. The ‘guthi’ system was another excellent idea to cater to community needs.”

The landscape architect was born in Janakpur on 15^th January 1945. He did his Diploma in Civil Engineering from Lucknow, received his Architectural Diploma from Kaulalumpur, Malaysia, and B.Arch degree from Baroda, India. In 1980 he passed out from Harvard with a Masters in Landscape Architecture. He has spent about 35 years at the Department of Urban Development and Building Construction where he first started his service in 1964 and from where he retired on July 25, 2001. At the Institute of Engineering, Bharat Sharma has taught M.Sc students of Urban Planning, landscape and environmental planning since the beginning of the course.

The architect seems to prefer a low key life but at the same time he claims, “I have very strong convictions.” Still, it is obvious that the Harvard graduate does not want to go out of his way to rock the boat. However, he does admit that earlier, he was known for his outspokenness and as a man who did not flinch from voicing opinions which men with lesser convictions would have found impossible to. He reveals that he was the first one to go to court in an attempt to preserve Louis Kahn’s design of the Ministry of Health in Thapathali. If asked for, Bharat Sharma, even today, doesn’t mind being forthright and to the point. Therefore, when asked to speak his mind on ways to utilize the remaining open spaces of Kathmandu, he says, “I don’t see why there should be police quarters around Ranipokhari and Kamalpokhari areas. It just doesn’t make sense.  As far as the green belt around the ring road is concerned it should, first and foremost, be safeguarded. As for Tinkune, it should be approached with a total landscape solution where both hard and soft landscaping ought to be implemented and in which, a natural setting will predominate.”

The architect has been a past president of the Society of Nepalese Architects (SONA) as well as of Nepal Environmental Group (NECG) and also General Secretary of the Harvard Club in Nepal. He has been a member of various NGOs and other bodies associated with environmental work and is at present, the president of Centre for Integrated Urban Development (CIUD). He is also an elected member of the Nepal Engineering Council. ­Bharat Sharma believes architecture to be a ‘social art’ which is ‘the ­biggest indicator of human civilization’. But, he says, “In this context we seem to be taking architecture very lightly.”

About his particular specialty he explains, “The basis of all architecture is landscaping.” Explaining further, he adds, “External and internal spaces should blend well. If external space is fluid and dynamic then it will flow into the interior space and vice versa.” The architect has been responsible for the environmental planning and landscaping of the Nagarjun Palace as well as for the landscape design work in the back quadrangle of the Royal Palace. He has also done the landscaping for the Prime Minister’s residence and was involved in the conceptual master plan of a park on the Ring Road in Maharajgunj. He was responsible for the environmental planning of the Canadian Health Project in Dhankuta, and in Biratnagar, for the landscape design for Rastra Bank Complex. In Pokhara, he was assigned the work of conceptual environmental master plan of the Western Region Campus and was the coordinator for the draft master plan of Devghat in Chitwan.

One of his greatest achievements has been as Master Planner to work out the conceptual master plan for the Pashupati Development Trust. Another feat has been this work in the environmental, enhancement and design aspects of Bhrikutimandap garden in context to the SAARC Summit in Kathmandu. Bharat Sharma appears to be passionate about his calling and says, “Landscape is external architecture, which, if done in a creative way, is really exciting.” He adds, “My work focuses around built environments.” He has co-authored a book - Historic City of Asia, Kathmandu - and written a number of articles on architecture, urbanization, environmental planning and ecology. About architectural trends in the country, he believes, “The Malla period architecture is Nepal’s own. After that there was a period in which designs and ideas were imported from abroad. Modern Nepalese architecture started with Gangadhar Bhatta Halbe’s designs.” Bharat Sharma also has the highest regard for professionals like Shanker Nath Rimal (with whose firm he was associated for some time), Bibhuti Man Singh and Deepak Sherchan besides others. Among the younger architects, Bharat Sharma admires works by many of the newer generation, including Arun Dev Pant and Sarosh Pradhan.

According to the landscape architect, “Architects should embrace architecture in its totality and keep in mind factors like the soil where they come from, as well as the prevailing culture, when designing. Besides, good architecture should not only be a prerogative of the rich, but of all classes of society.” About the overhead bridges being constructed all over the city, Sharma says, “Their visual quality is horrible.” He should know. As a man who has aesthetics at the top of his mind when on the job as an environmental planner and landscape architect, Bharat Sharma’s words have to be given due thought.