Periodic Reporting for period 1 - OMHI (Omitted from history: How workers on India's building sites mediated twentieth-century modernity)
Période du rapport: 2023-05-01 au 2025-04-30
Uncovering the People Who Built Modern India
When we study India's cities today—the apartment buildings, office complexes, and infrastructure that define urban life—we often focus on the policies that formed them or the planners and architects that designed them. The construction workers, contractors, and engineers whose hands shaped India's modern landscape have largely been forgotten by history.
The Omitted from History (OMHI) project is changing that. This research project is dedicated to uncovering the untold stories of the people who physically constructed India's cities during a pivotal time in the country's development—from 1910 to 1992, spanning the final years of British rule through India's emergence as a modern nation. It argues that the building site, as a place where muscle power and machines, and diverse social strata interact, offers a fruitful microcosm for understanding the, at times unexpected, effects of twentieth-century modernity on Indian society.
Why Construction Workers Matter to India's Story
Focusing primarily on Pune, a major city in western India, OMHI researches the everyday experiences of construction workers and the complex reality of construction work. Who did what jobs? How were workers hired, managed, and paid? What happened when new technologies like concrete replaced traditional building methods? What do experiences of success—such as timely project completion, socio-economic mobility, and technological innovation—and instances of failure, such as structural collapses, desertion, scarcity, corruption, disputes, and cost overruns, reveal about the socio-material dynamics of the worksite? Ultimately, OMHI aims to demonstrate how construction sites constituted a "field of possibilities" that shaped the urban built environment, while also becoming spaces where broader social, economic, and political changes and struggles played out in very localised ways.
Bringing History to Life Through Photographs and Oral History
Instead of relying solely on official documents and records, the project uses historical construction photographs as a starting point for conversations with workers and their families. The research unfolds in two phases:
Phase 1: Creating a digital archive of historical photographs showing construction sites in and around Pune—images that capture workers in action, building techniques, and the differences in construction practices over time.
Phase 2: Using these photographs to spark memories and stories. Engagement with construction workers, contractors, engineers, and their descendants both in person, in focus group discussions, and through social media, encouraging them to share their experiences and knowledge.
Innovation is expected in two key areas:
* Historiographically, OMHI illuminates how local traditions, as well as (neo)colonial influences, shaped working lives and built environments in India, and how these factors intersected with broader societal, economic, and political transformations during India’s period of high modernity.
* Methodologically, OMHI advances the field of construction historiography by experimenting with innovative participatory techniques for data collection and interpretation. These techniques include both digital methods (social media engagement) and analog methods (photo-elicitation interviews and workshops), offering new avenues for the exploration and understanding of construction history.
Why This Matters Today
Understanding the history of construction work in India isn't just about the past—it helps us better comprehend how cities develop, how diverse socio-economic communities navigate change, and how the built environment reflects broader social transformations. By giving voice to the workers who have been "omitted from history," OMHI aims to tell a 'bottom-up' history of India's urban development.
See more on: www.buildingpune.com
When we study India's cities today—the apartment buildings, office complexes, and infrastructure that define urban life—we often focus on the policies that formed them or the planners and architects that designed them. The construction workers, contractors, and engineers whose hands shaped India's modern landscape have largely been forgotten by history.
The Omitted from History (OMHI) project is changing that. This research project is dedicated to uncovering the untold stories of the people who physically constructed India's cities during a pivotal time in the country's development—from 1910 to 1992, spanning the final years of British rule through India's emergence as a modern nation. It argues that the building site, as a place where muscle power and machines, and diverse social strata interact, offers a fruitful microcosm for understanding the, at times unexpected, effects of twentieth-century modernity on Indian society.
Why Construction Workers Matter to India's Story
Focusing primarily on Pune, a major city in western India, OMHI researches the everyday experiences of construction workers and the complex reality of construction work. Who did what jobs? How were workers hired, managed, and paid? What happened when new technologies like concrete replaced traditional building methods? What do experiences of success—such as timely project completion, socio-economic mobility, and technological innovation—and instances of failure, such as structural collapses, desertion, scarcity, corruption, disputes, and cost overruns, reveal about the socio-material dynamics of the worksite? Ultimately, OMHI aims to demonstrate how construction sites constituted a "field of possibilities" that shaped the urban built environment, while also becoming spaces where broader social, economic, and political changes and struggles played out in very localised ways.
Bringing History to Life Through Photographs and Oral History
Instead of relying solely on official documents and records, the project uses historical construction photographs as a starting point for conversations with workers and their families. The research unfolds in two phases:
Phase 1: Creating a digital archive of historical photographs showing construction sites in and around Pune—images that capture workers in action, building techniques, and the differences in construction practices over time.
Phase 2: Using these photographs to spark memories and stories. Engagement with construction workers, contractors, engineers, and their descendants both in person, in focus group discussions, and through social media, encouraging them to share their experiences and knowledge.
Innovation is expected in two key areas:
* Historiographically, OMHI illuminates how local traditions, as well as (neo)colonial influences, shaped working lives and built environments in India, and how these factors intersected with broader societal, economic, and political transformations during India’s period of high modernity.
* Methodologically, OMHI advances the field of construction historiography by experimenting with innovative participatory techniques for data collection and interpretation. These techniques include both digital methods (social media engagement) and analog methods (photo-elicitation interviews and workshops), offering new avenues for the exploration and understanding of construction history.
Why This Matters Today
Understanding the history of construction work in India isn't just about the past—it helps us better comprehend how cities develop, how diverse socio-economic communities navigate change, and how the built environment reflects broader social transformations. By giving voice to the workers who have been "omitted from history," OMHI aims to tell a 'bottom-up' history of India's urban development.
See more on: www.buildingpune.com
Initial activities involved the development and implementation of a comprehensive data management plan and informed consent procedure which guided the collection, processing, and analysis of photographs and interviews and resulted in a clear archival plan. A glossary of construction and work related keywords in English and Marathi has been initiated. It will be further mapped onto Getty Art and Architecture Thesaurus and used in attributing metadata while archiving photographs and oral histories in the Didomena data repository to allow FAIR access.
Over 500 photographs from construction sites in the city of Pune taken between 1900 and 1990 were identified from disparate sources, assembled, and digitised. The sources include more than eight previously undisclosed private collections in the possession of (descendants of) architects, contractors, or government agencies such as the Public Works Department and Town Planning and Valuation Department, postcards, and dissertations and books found in local libraries.
These collected photographs were deployed in Pune in 14 one-to-one photo elicitation interviews, in three analogue participatory history-making events, and in engagements with citizens online.
The participatory history-making events included:
- The public exhibition 'People's Buildings' on 23-24/01/2024 during which historical construction photographs from the Public Works Department were publicly displayed and discussed with a group of Public Works Employees. This delivered insights into the specific work conditions and welfare measures of construction and maintenance workers emplyed by the public works department.
- The workshop and open house 'Recollecting Pune's Engineers and Builders' on 31/08/2024, where a focus group of senior engineers and builders (or their descendants) were invited to interpret and interact with the photographic archive. This provided insights into social inequality and corruption on the construction site as well as labour recruitment and unwritten instructions amongst construction workers.
- The workshop and pop-up exhibition 'Remembering Pune's Construction workers: Stories from Wadarwadi from 29/11/2024-1/12/2024, held in an area of the city originally settled by stoneworkers and earthworkers. This provided a much-needed perspective of women construction workers and revealed how originally migratory worker communities settled in the city in the early 20th century and adopted new construction methods. It also somewhat surprisingly revealed a certain nostalgia for the colonial period when stonework was in high demand.
The online citizen engagement involved 42 posts on the OMHI social media channels (Instagram and Facebook) to elicit reactions from the general public. Five posts were specifically designed to provoke audience response and were posted on relevant Facebook groups such as Athevanatil Pune and Memories of Poona.
The interviews and workshop discussions have been transcribed and translated from Marathi to English where applicable.
These interactions led to the decision to pursue the following under-explored lines of further investigation (milestone):
- lived experiences and photographic representation of women construction workers
- the socio-economic relations between Indian contractors and colonial engineers on the one hand, and between Indian contractors and Indian labour on the other hand (questions of caste, education, social mobility)
- the ground realities of the deployment of mechanisation and new materials on the building site (as opposed to technocratic discourse on these developments in colonial reports)
- the ephemeral administrative and managerial technologies that increasingly supported the building site and their effects: markings, paperwork, samples
Over 500 photographs from construction sites in the city of Pune taken between 1900 and 1990 were identified from disparate sources, assembled, and digitised. The sources include more than eight previously undisclosed private collections in the possession of (descendants of) architects, contractors, or government agencies such as the Public Works Department and Town Planning and Valuation Department, postcards, and dissertations and books found in local libraries.
These collected photographs were deployed in Pune in 14 one-to-one photo elicitation interviews, in three analogue participatory history-making events, and in engagements with citizens online.
The participatory history-making events included:
- The public exhibition 'People's Buildings' on 23-24/01/2024 during which historical construction photographs from the Public Works Department were publicly displayed and discussed with a group of Public Works Employees. This delivered insights into the specific work conditions and welfare measures of construction and maintenance workers emplyed by the public works department.
- The workshop and open house 'Recollecting Pune's Engineers and Builders' on 31/08/2024, where a focus group of senior engineers and builders (or their descendants) were invited to interpret and interact with the photographic archive. This provided insights into social inequality and corruption on the construction site as well as labour recruitment and unwritten instructions amongst construction workers.
- The workshop and pop-up exhibition 'Remembering Pune's Construction workers: Stories from Wadarwadi from 29/11/2024-1/12/2024, held in an area of the city originally settled by stoneworkers and earthworkers. This provided a much-needed perspective of women construction workers and revealed how originally migratory worker communities settled in the city in the early 20th century and adopted new construction methods. It also somewhat surprisingly revealed a certain nostalgia for the colonial period when stonework was in high demand.
The online citizen engagement involved 42 posts on the OMHI social media channels (Instagram and Facebook) to elicit reactions from the general public. Five posts were specifically designed to provoke audience response and were posted on relevant Facebook groups such as Athevanatil Pune and Memories of Poona.
The interviews and workshop discussions have been transcribed and translated from Marathi to English where applicable.
These interactions led to the decision to pursue the following under-explored lines of further investigation (milestone):
- lived experiences and photographic representation of women construction workers
- the socio-economic relations between Indian contractors and colonial engineers on the one hand, and between Indian contractors and Indian labour on the other hand (questions of caste, education, social mobility)
- the ground realities of the deployment of mechanisation and new materials on the building site (as opposed to technocratic discourse on these developments in colonial reports)
- the ephemeral administrative and managerial technologies that increasingly supported the building site and their effects: markings, paperwork, samples
As regards the historiographical objective of the project, the preliminary results indicate the following new insights that go beyond the state of the art:
- Gendered task divisions in infrastructure construction–though more dynamic than has often been assumed–have changed little over time. Yet, photographic depictions of women vary considerably as visual tropes evolved.The depiction or absence of women in photographs of construction work is related to gendered labour divisions, building site regimes, the production contexts of the photographs, as well as to evolutions in the medium of photography itself.
- Indian contractors were not only essential in the development of colonial infrastructure because of their ability to 'retain' Indian labour, they also contributed indigenous financial capital and technical know-how to construction projects. The most successful contractors (indigeneous capitalists often of high caste) maintained good relations with both Europeans and Indian foremen and subcontractors who were often of lower castes. They navigated diverse moral economies and developed intimate personal relations across social boundaries still often perceived as rigid.
- Contractors and workers generally had a pragmatic view on the integration of new machines and materials that prioritised thrift rather than mechanisation or technological innovation 'an sich'.
- While managerial technologies such as the clock, muster roll, and quantity surveys were increasingly present on the building site as instruments of surveillance they did not have the effect of eliminating risk of financial overspending, delays, or physical harm. On the contrary, they provided new opportunities for tampering that subverted the rationalising goals.
As regards the methodological objective:
- The preliminary results demonstrate the potential of visual evidence and oral history to decentre and extend construction histories that exclusively draw on textual sources.
- A comparison of analogue and digital means of photo elicitation indicates the limits of the digital format as far as target audience building and reaching is concerned. Building a relevant audience from scratch is costly and time-consuming, while joining pre-defined audiences (existing social media groups) makes results dependent on the approval of posts by third parties which has proven a challenge. Yet the digital communication has proven a fruitful means of identifying interlocutors and informants that could be met in person thereafter.
Potential impact value:
OMHI has helped workers in Pune's building industry retrieve their history and make the enormous contributions of (migrant) construction workers and Indian contractors to the city of Pune more visible in the city's historiography. This has been well received, with several individuals from the industry re-evaluating, valuing, and contributing their private company archives for further research, thus safeguarding rare evidence for future research. OMHI has also lead the way into a multidisciplinary approach to construction history, integrating not only archival work but also ethnographic and visual methods.
- Gendered task divisions in infrastructure construction–though more dynamic than has often been assumed–have changed little over time. Yet, photographic depictions of women vary considerably as visual tropes evolved.The depiction or absence of women in photographs of construction work is related to gendered labour divisions, building site regimes, the production contexts of the photographs, as well as to evolutions in the medium of photography itself.
- Indian contractors were not only essential in the development of colonial infrastructure because of their ability to 'retain' Indian labour, they also contributed indigenous financial capital and technical know-how to construction projects. The most successful contractors (indigeneous capitalists often of high caste) maintained good relations with both Europeans and Indian foremen and subcontractors who were often of lower castes. They navigated diverse moral economies and developed intimate personal relations across social boundaries still often perceived as rigid.
- Contractors and workers generally had a pragmatic view on the integration of new machines and materials that prioritised thrift rather than mechanisation or technological innovation 'an sich'.
- While managerial technologies such as the clock, muster roll, and quantity surveys were increasingly present on the building site as instruments of surveillance they did not have the effect of eliminating risk of financial overspending, delays, or physical harm. On the contrary, they provided new opportunities for tampering that subverted the rationalising goals.
As regards the methodological objective:
- The preliminary results demonstrate the potential of visual evidence and oral history to decentre and extend construction histories that exclusively draw on textual sources.
- A comparison of analogue and digital means of photo elicitation indicates the limits of the digital format as far as target audience building and reaching is concerned. Building a relevant audience from scratch is costly and time-consuming, while joining pre-defined audiences (existing social media groups) makes results dependent on the approval of posts by third parties which has proven a challenge. Yet the digital communication has proven a fruitful means of identifying interlocutors and informants that could be met in person thereafter.
Potential impact value:
OMHI has helped workers in Pune's building industry retrieve their history and make the enormous contributions of (migrant) construction workers and Indian contractors to the city of Pune more visible in the city's historiography. This has been well received, with several individuals from the industry re-evaluating, valuing, and contributing their private company archives for further research, thus safeguarding rare evidence for future research. OMHI has also lead the way into a multidisciplinary approach to construction history, integrating not only archival work but also ethnographic and visual methods.