Urban Update Dec 2015

All India Institute of Local Self-Government

RNI No DELENG/2014/57384

UrbanUpdate Setting The Agenda For Tomorrow’s Cities

Volume II - Issue VIII

December 2015

Municipalities have to rescue our cities The performance of the municipal bodies can be felt and seen but is not subject to scrutiny by the people. We need to have all municipalities rated on service performance

Are Indian

cities liveable?

Beyond all fancy jargon for new-age cities lies the fundamental question of how governments, corporations, urban planners, and individuals can help shape the cities that will determine collective quality of life in our cities fitting a holistic ‘liveability’ criterion

Rs 100

ISSN 2349-6266

Union Ministry of Urban Development has empanelled AIILSG on the list of consultants qualified to work for Smart City Mission.

AIILSG has been selected to work for Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, Chandigarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.

Community Based Interventions

Professional Empowerment Project Management

Advisory Services Customised Training

Knowledge Management Capacity Building Information, Education and Communication (IEC)

Policy Research

All India Institute of Local Self-Government No. 6, F-Block, Bandra Kurla Complex, TPS Road-12, Bandra-East, Mumbai-400051, Maharashtra Tel.No.: +91-22-26571713, 26571714, 26571715, Fax: +91-22-26572286, Email: contact@aiilsg.org

Inside | Volume II, Issue VIII

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Inside Cover story

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Are Indian cities liveable?

Beyond all fancy jargon for new-age cities lies the fundamental question of how governments, corporations, urban planners, and individuals can help shape the cities that will determine collective quality of life in our cities fitting a holistic ‘liveability’ criterion

26 Engaging citizens for better cities

Municipal corporations must encourage and engage community groups to

play a pro-active role in city development for gaining a greater understanding of local aspirations

Articles

28 Making our cities safer

The issue of safety is quite complex in India cities. In urban matters like planning

a city, the planners do not much consider safety issues and thus seldom involve police officials in the process

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Failing of a city system

The recent floods in Chennai tell the story of the ability of urban infrastructure systems in Indian cities to handle natural calamities

Column

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Municipalities have to rescue our cities The performance of the municipal bodies can be felt and seen but is not subject to scrutiny by the people. We need to have all municipalities rated on service performance

Events

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Smart cities to move people not cars: Naidu Ministry of Urban Development and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) organised three-day Urban Mobility conference to discuss mobility related issues and best practices

45 LSE Cities celebrates 10th anniversary of Urban Age

LSE Cities and Deutsche Bank’s Alfred Herrhausen Society conducted a series of

debates on a range of subjects concerning cities to celebrate ten years of the Urban Age programme

RegularS

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December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

Newscan City Images

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Pin Point Urban Agenda

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City Brand

EDITORIAL

Ranjit Chavan President-AIILSG Ramanath Jha Editor-In-Chief Director General-AIILSG, dg@aiilsg.org Ashok Wankhade Managing Editor, bhau@urbanupdate.in Abhishek Pandey Editor, abhishek@urbanupdate.in Ravi Ranjan Guru Executive Editor, raavi.guru@gmail.com Lojy Thomas Associate Editor, lojy@urbanupdate.in Meenakshi Rajput Graphic Designer, meenakshi@urbanupdate.in Nitin Rajput Circulation Executive, info@urbanupdate.in Volume II - Issue VIII For Feedback & Information Write at info@urbanupdate.in Printed and published by Ranjit Chavan on behalf of All India Institute of Local Self Government. Printed at Cirrus Graphics Pvt Ltd B-61, Sector-67, Noida – 201301 Uttar Pradesh. Published at Sardar Patel Bhavan, 22-23, Institutional Area, D Block Pankha Road, Janakpuri, Delhi-58 Phone No. 011-2852 1783 / 5473 Despite careful selection of sources, no responsibility can be taken for accuracy of the contents. The magazine assumes no liability or responsibility of any kind in connection with the information thereof. The views expressed in the articles are the personal opinions of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the All India Institute of Local SelfGovernment. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part is strictly prohibited without written permission from the publisher.

Reimagining Cities

M

elbourne has been ranked the most liveable city in the world, yet again. In two successive surveys by the Economist Intelligence Unit, latest in the August 2015, Melbourne made it to the top of a list of 140 cities across the globe. Australian cities have in fact swept the charts with 4 of them-Adelaide, Sydney and Perth, in addition to Melbourne-figuring in the top ten. Canada has done well too, with three cities-Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary-making it to the coveted list. The survey measured the performance of cities on 30 parameters in five broad categories, viz, Safety, Healthcare, Educational Resources, Infrastructure and Environment.

That leads us to the question-what makes a city liveable? A common thread across the top ten is that these cities are mid-sized and with low population densities. While these cities are among the more wealthy ones too, wealth itself does not seem to count for much, because wealthier ones like London, New York and Tokyo do not figure in the list.

Good housing, sanitation, transport, safety, open spaces, recreation, education, healthcare, power, water, clean air, all go towards enhancing or compromising the livability of a city. Almost all of them are in the purview of local governance institutions. It is quite evident then, that urban local bodies all over the world are struggling with the burden of growing cities, bulging populations, ageing infrastructure, and the resultant strain on provision of public services.Larger, concentrated populations are becoming increasingly difficult to serve, in any case to serve to the satisfaction of its citizens.The Economist Intelligence Unit Survey found that average livability across the world actually fell 1% compared to the 2010 score.

Looking at our own cities, the challenges appear gargantuan. Mumbai City, with a land area less than one tenth and a population threetimes that of Melbourne is struggling in terms of livability. However, there is now a conscious effort to accommodate the urban migration in our cities in a sustainable manner.

The Smart Cities Mission and AMRUT are some initiatives in this direction.

The Smart Cities Mission visualizes the use of technology to make significant breakthroughs in improving the lot of urban dwellers. Extensive and innovative use of ICT will deliver meaningful benefits in several areas, such as improved efficiency in delivery of urban services to citizens, bring down costs for the service providers (for example, electricity and manpower bills) and inject loads of transparency, accountability and citizen contribution towards making urban spaces more liveable.

While such national initiatives will certainly stem the rot in our cities and bring a smile on the faces of citizens, they may not be a comprehensive answer for the challenges ahead. Governments need to look at other centres to absorb the inevitable population shifts. Newer and more cities is one option. As per Census 2011 India had a total of 4041 Statutory Towns. Upgrading towns and cities with the potential to grow into liveable urban spaces with larger populations is another.

Such centres will make provision of civic amenities more worthwhile, better roads can improve their connectivity and access to larger towns and cities. Better provision of education and health services along with physical infrastructure like power and roads in such centres can itself build population there and put in place a virtuous cycle of development, employment and prosperity. While there can be no single prescription for managing the urban deluge, the focus on existing large cities is clearly not enough. Developing newer cities and emerging cities can help shift the strain from existing urban centres and create many smaller, more liveable spaces. Someday then, we can expect to see a Tumakuru or a Ghaziabad competing for a place in the most liveable cities list.

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

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Naidu calls for changing North-East narratives by harnessing region’s potential UD Minister asserted that the region known as ‘black hole of business and investments’ could be converted into one of ‘hope and gateway to prosperity’ by fully taking advantage of the pro-active ‘Look East Policy’ Guwahati: Minister of Urban Development M Venkaiah Naidu called for concerted efforts to fully harness the potential of North-East Region by changing the narratives attributed to the region. He referred to the challenges and opportunities for development of the region during a conclave ‘Unveiling of North-East India for India’s Rise’.

Naidu said that “the narratives of remoteness and poor connectivity adversely impacting the region, a

Sikkim CM takes up development issues with UD Minister Chief Minister of Sikkim Pawan Chamling recently met Union Minister of Urban Development and Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation M Venkaiah Naidu and discussed issues pertaining to urban projects under erstwhile JnNURM in the state and the projects under new urban missions launched by the Government of India.

CM brought to the notice of the Urban Development Minister that the finances under 10 per cent lump sum provision scheme for the Development of North Eastern Region including Sikkim, the state has not received any sanction for last two years. He urged the Minister to look into the two proposals namely, Urban infrastructure development with allied facilities at Dentam in West Sikkim & Construction of Multilevel Car Parking at Pakyong in East Sikkim which were vetted by Central Public Works Department and were pending

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at the MoUD level. CM said that the state will require the assistance of the Central Ministry in order to complete the JnNURM bus funding scheme for Sikkim (Gangtok-Namchi cluster).

He has also asked for further assistance of the UD Ministry for creation of urban infrastructure.

Naidu told the CM that he will get all the proposals of the State Government examined and will expedite the sanctions from his Ministry wherever possible. As far as the JnNURM projects are concerned, he said that the cabinet decision of the earlier government stipulates that the cost of all the JnNURM projects which were not completed by 31st March 2014 should be borne by the respective State governments and the Centre will not fund those projects. The cabinet of the present government took a decision to continue supporting those projects with minimum 50 per cent completion rate by 31st March 2014.

vicious cycle of underdevelopmentinsurgency-underdevelopment hampering growth, the region being a low equilibrium of poverty, nondevelopment, civil conflicts and lack of faith in political leadership,etc should be turned on their heads to realise the potential of the region”.

He said that while the N-E Region is being touted as a ‘paradise unexplored’ the correct way of looking at the region is ‘prosperity to be explored’. Naidu asserted that the region known as ‘black hole of business and investments’ could be converted into one of ‘hope and gateway to prosperity’ by fully taking advantage of the pro-active ‘Look East Policy’. Naidu noted that with diverse resource base, high literacy rates, huge hydel power potential, vast potential for promoting horticulture, floriculture, organic crops, cross border trade, North-East could be enabled to rise to its potential through necessary reforms and by promoting private investments.

Stating that to be socially and economically sustainable, India’s growth story should be inclusive, Naidu said that N-E Region should be made a participant and beneficiary of India’s economic transformation.

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PIN POINT If you think we have stopped taking steps towards clean Ganga, it is not so. Our destination is October 2018 when we will show it to the world that Ganga is one of the cleanest rivers in the world Uma Bharti Union Water Resources Minister

If the top 50 emitting cities were a single country, it would rank third in emissions behind China and the U.S.A. Prof. Karen Seto Dean of Research and Professor Yale School of Environment

There is a similarity between both India and China in terms of the huge population in major cities. The use of ICT in Chinese cities has brought down crime rates in a major way. The Indian smart cities could also use ICT for similar use

Urban greed has destroyed our drainage systems. Anyone who has studied history knows that the people of the Indus Valley civilisation built cities and towns with excellent drainage and sewage systems. Five thousand years later, have we in India moved forward or backward?

Markandey Katju Former Judge, Supreme Court of India

Joe So Chief Technology Officer, Huawei

BUZZ

Chennai India’s fourth largest city drowning in what is a result of successful political apathy & lack of discipline and urbandevelopment Krishna Iyer Social Activist @Krsnaaiyer

Cities aren’t waiting for someone else to act. They are taking action right now

Mike Bloomberg Mayor, New York City @MikeBloomberg

We need more competitive rankings across states, cities, metros. such healthy competition and benchmarking is good!

Amit Paranjape Technology Entrepreneur @aparanjape

When it comes to cities, no matter what the question is, better design is at least part of the answer Brent Toderian President, CanUrbanism @BrentToderian

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DMRC to make all stations self-sustaining DMRC plans to make every station self-sustaining with the help of solar energy. The immediate target is to have an installed solar roof-top power capacity of 50 MW across Delhi Metro’s network of stations in and around the National Capital Region, said an official. The peak power demand of the DMRC is around 150 MW, which is expected to increase to 250 MW once Phase-III is operational.

Haryana asks Centre for third ‘Smart City’ The Haryana government has moved the Centre, asking it to develop Gurgaon as the third smart city in the state. Gurgaon recently lost out to Karnal and Faridabad in the race for the ‘Smart Cities’ project of the Centre.

The state government has decided that if the Union government cannot consider developing Gurgaon as the third ‘Smart City’, Haryana will pay for the Centre‘s share from the Municipal Corporation Gurgaon (MCG) funds.

First ever GIS study shows 3,293 slum clusters in Mumbai Mumbai now officially has 3,293 slum clusters.

The Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) has, for the first time, carried out a Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping of slums across the city, which shows that slum clusters are spread over 9,008 acres or 36.45 sq km.

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81 cities to invest over Rs 5,700 crore in water, sewerage systems NEW DELHI: Eighty-one cities in Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha and Mizoram will invest over Rs 5,700 crore to enhance basic infrastructure including water supply and sewerage connections.

The investments will be made under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) action plans for the current year. An inter-ministerial apex committee headed by Urban Development Secretary Madhusudan Prasad has approved state annual action plans (SAAP) of these five states which account for 81 mission cities to undertake investment of Rs 5,748 cr for improving drinking water supply and sewerage systems. Central assistance will be provided to an extent of Rs 2,440 cr while the rest would be contributed by state governments and urban local bodies, said a senior UD Ministry official.

With about half of the urban households in these 81 cities not having water supply and sewerage connections, Rs 4,290 cr of the total approved outlay would go

into providing household water supply connections and enhancing water supply in 53 cities. While Rs 1,133 cr would be spent on providing sewerage connections in 41 cities, Rs 92 cr would be invested in storm water drainage projects in 14 cities, Rs 80 cr for promoting non-motorised public transport in 22 and Rs 113 cr for providing parks and green spaces in 76 mission cities.

National Academy of Urban Development to come up soon New Delhi: Ministry of Urban Development is planning to set up a National Academy for Urban Development which will act as its own academic think tank for urban infrastructural issues.

The academy will provide specialisation in urban planning, governance, management and urban marketing. It is also likely to be a nodal agency for all institutions in the country that have been working on urban issues.

“Currently, what we have is a piecemeal approach. Various institutes are working on various subjects. Some of their works get to see the light of the day while others get shelved. Through this academy, we

hope to bring together all these research work, help in knowledge sharing, provide domestic and international assistance as and when required,” said a committee member. A committee headed by a joint secretary of the ministry that also has representatives from the School of Planning and Architecture has started developing a concept paper to set up this academy.

The academy that is expected to come up in a 100-acre area, will seek support from the World Bank and IMF to set up its infrastructure. In countries such as the US, Australia, UAE, Japan and Singapore such planning institutes have a major role in developing city plans.

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UD to give Rs 3,250 cr to decongest Delhi Funds will be used by Delhi Government, Delhi Development Authority, Public Works Department (PWD) and municipal corporations in Delhi to construct new roads and flyovers to lessen the burden on existing road network NEW DELHI: Urban Development Ministry has decided to give a total of Rs 3,250 crore to Delhi government, DDA and North Corporation to decongest the city and carry out several development projects, its minister M Venkaiah Naidu said.

The Union Minister made the announcement during the launch of ‘Swachh Delhi Abhiyan’ that was held from November 22-30 to clear the Capital of garbage and construction waste.

“From the Urban Development Fund in my ministry, Rs 3,250 core will be provided for decongestion and development works in the capital city, which would be distributed to the Delhi government, North Delhi Municipal Corporation and Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for implementing various projects” Naidu said.

“Out of the total amount Rs 1,500 crore would be given to Delhi government for decongestion of roads by addressing different choking points through improvement of road geometry, construction of underpasses and flyovers. The projects would be prioritised in consultation with Delhi Police, municipal bodies and PWD,” he said.

NDMC would be given Rs 85 crore to complete balance work of construction of Grade Separator at Rani Jhansi Road (flyover from St Stephen’s Hospital to Filmistan). This will reduce travel time from Karol Bagh to North Delhi from the present one hour to just 10 minutes, he added.

DDA will be given Rs 1,665 crore

to execute four projects that would help in significant reduction of traffic congestion in the city.

“A sum of Rs 615 crore for construction of rail-under-bridge (RUB) at Holambi of 1 km and railover-bridge (ROB) of 1.4 km at Mundka on Urban Eastern Road-II. Rs 400 crore for construction of ROB of 860 m at Narela on Urban Eastern Road-I for decongesting Outer Ring Road.

Rs 300 crore for making a tunnel near Bhagya Vihar and Rs 350 crore for Dwarka Expressway from Urban Eastern Road-II to Northern Peripheral Road for decongesting Outer Ring Road and NH-8 respectively,” he said.

Out of the over Rs 96 crore fund for sanitation, the break-up of distribution among different agencies is -- North

Corporation or NDMC (Rs 34.53 crore), SDMC or South Corporation (Rs 23.64 crore), EDMC or East Corporation (Rs 24.56 crore), New Delhi Municipal Council (Rs 76 lakh), Delhi Cantonment Board (Rs 3.32 crore) and Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board or DUSIB (Rs 4.89 crore), a senior Delhi government official said.

“Besides, a task force has also been set up to reconcile the claims between MCD and DDA. And, till that is done, DDA will make a payment of Rs 18.70 crore to the three civic bodies towards property tax/service charges.

This includes a payment of Rs 8.70 crore to NDMC, Rs 6.80 crore to SDMC and Rs 3.20 crore to EDMC,” he added.

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Use satellite tracking to monitor illegal structures: HC The Bombay High Court recently suggested that satellite tracking could be used to monitor illegal constructions. Hearing a PIL filed by the LonavalaKhandala Citizens’ Forum for better infrastructure in the twin hill stations, a division bench of Justice Naresh Patil and Justice S B Shukre asked the civic body to implement a comprehensive plan to provide good roads free of encroachments, proper waste disposal facilities and public utilities.

NCF launches Urban Innovators Initiative New Cities Foundation launched Global Urban Innovators initiative recently. It is calling for applications to find the 15 most innovative startups and social enterprises that use technology to tackle the biggest urban challenges. This program is specially designed to identify pioneering urban innovations and to help scale their project globally.

Govt to replace LPG with PNG in smart cities Under its ambitious Smart City scheme, government has set the target to launch a plan to replace LPG connections with piped natural gas (PNG) in the identified areas which will be developed as modern localities. To make these urban areas greener and better, rooftop solar power will also be a major component of the scheme.

There will also be more use of LED lights in such areas.

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Cities seek to address water logging problem under AMRUT

New Delhi: With water logging in cities following rains being a recurrent problem, States and Urban Local Bodies have begun to address this issue under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT).

Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Odisha and Mizoram have taken the lead in this regard proposing to invest Rs 242 cr on construction of storm water drains for discharging flood waters in 25 cities in these states under AMRUT action plans for 2015-16. These five states account for 82 Atal Mission cities. Other mission cities would be covered in subsequent years.

Kerala government, in the State Annual Action Plan for 2015-16 under AMRUT submitted to the Ministry of Urban Development has proposed to spend Rs 105 cr (18 per cent of the total outlay of Rs 588 cr) on storm water drains in all the nine mission cities. Rs 24 cr will be spent in this regard in Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram-Rs 18 cr, ThrissurRs 15 cr, Guruvayoor-Rs 13 cr, Kannur-Rs 11 cr, Palakkad-Rs 9 cr, Kozhikode-Rs 7 cr, Alappuzha-Rs 6 cr and Kollam-Rs 2 cr.

Under the SAAP of Madhya Pradesh for 2015-16 approved by the Ministry of Urban Development, construction of storm water drains will begin in 12 cities at a cost of Rs 36 cr. These being in Hoshangabad at a cost of Rs 6 cr, Ratlam –Rs 5 cr, Damoh (ranked at the bottom in the last Swachh Bharat Survey of 476 cities)-Rs 5 cr, Dewas-Rs 4 cr, Satna-Rs 4

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Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Gujarat and Odisha take lead in constructing storm water drains Five States to invest Rs 242 cr under Atal Mission action plans for 2015-16

cr, Bhopal, Indore, Ujjain and Rewa-Rs 2 cr each, Shivpuri-Rs 1.73 cr, BurhanpurRs 1.67 cr and Chhindwara-Rs 0.40 cr.

In Gujarat, storm water drain projects in Bhuj and Vadodara have been approved at a cost of Rs 39 cr. Similar works will be taken up in Puri, Odisha at an approved cost of Rs 15 cr during the current financial year.

In Mizoram, Rs 47 cr (64 per cent of total approved SAAP outlay of Rs 73 cr for 2015-16) will be spent on construction of storm water drains. Under Atal Mission, construction of storm water drains has been prioritized after provision of basic infrastructure relating to water supply and sewerage connections. Central assistance to the extent of 50 per cent of project costs will be extended to cities with a population of below 10 lakhs each and one-third of project cost if the population is above ten lakhs.

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City Brand

Cities scaling heights From New York to Dubai to Mumbai, every global city sports a distinctive skyline. Almost anyone can easily recognise a city through its skyline

Abhishek Pandey, Editor, abhishek@urbanupdate.in

W

hether you are in Delhi, London, New York, or Mumbai, the most visible

aspect that strikes you is the city’s skyline. When moviemakers decide to set a story in a particular city, they start with a shot of the city’s skyline.

Skyscrapers are an integral part of every city’s skyline that also represents prosperity and influence of a city. For example, the most noticeable feature of New York City’s skyline is the Empire State Building. It was constructed in 1930 and had 102 storeys. It was the tallest building in the world until 1972.

At present, Dubai, among all cities, has the maximum number of completed skyscrapers higher than 820 feet. The crown in Dubai’s towering reputation is the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. It is 1,918 feet tall with 163 floors, though the tip of its spire reaches 2,722 feet.

Another city that houses numerous tall buildings is Hong Kong. The city has the maximum number of tall buildings (above 500 ft) in the world.

In addition, Hong Kong’s skyline has other feathers in its cap. Skyscrapers surrounded by mountains alongside Victoria Harbour add a unique charm to its skyline when every night a number of skyscrapers on both sides of the Victoria Harbour light up in a coordinated manner. It is called A Symphony of Lights. Guinness Book of World Records has termed it as the largest permanent light and sound festival in the world.

With swift increase in urban prosperity, cities around the world are going vertical. It is true for Indian cities too. The trend is changing the skylines of world cities. In India, Mumbai has the maximum super tall buildings. Until World Trade Centre (Mumbai) came up in 1970, Rajabai Clock Tower (279 feet) was the tallest manmade structure in India.

Out of the 25 tallest buildings in India, 24 are in Mumbai. Today, the tallest Indian building is Imperial Towers in Mumbai. It is 833 feet tall and has 61 floors. World One, an under construction building in Mumbai, is expected to replace Imperial Towers from the top position of the tallest Indian building in 2016. According to reports, the building would be the tallest apartment tower in the world.

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AMC launches app to monitor sanitary work Agra Municipal Corporation (AMC) launched a mobile application for its sanitary officers, workers and other department officials to track the progress of their daily duties. Known as ‘Waste Collection and Monitoring System’, the app will keep real-time tab on garbage collection, sanitary inspection and other activities. The app has a special feature of ‘geo tagging’ that sends photo in real time and location along with the list of workers.

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High-level Central Team to make on-the-spot assessment of flood situation in Tamil Nadu

RMC to help build 6,000 toilets in Ranchi To promote hygienic habits among the denizens of the city, Ranchi Municipal Corporation will help in building 6,000 individual toilets under the Swachh Bharat Mission. First installment of the financial aid to be provided by the urban local body has already been transferred to the bank accounts of 3,000 beneficiaries. Cleanliness and sanitation are key factors regarding this initiative and we need toilets for this, stated Mayor Asha Lakra.

SDMC to hire 900 new gardeners by December Over 900 new gardeners would be employed by South Delhi Municipal Corporation over the next month, doubling their existing strength. SDMC has over 6,400 small to large-sized parks under its jurisdiction, and the move is likely to give a boost to the civic body’s bid in maintaining its horticultural facilities.

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New Delhi: A high-level InterMinisterial Central Team led by TVSN Prasad, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs has been deputed for an on-the-spot assessment of the situation in the wake of the recent floods following heavy rains in Tamil Nadu.

The team will include representatives of the Ministries of Agriculture, Finance, Rural Development, Drinking Water and Power from Delhi, representatives of Ministries of Road Transport and

Highways and Health from Chennai and Central Water Commission, Ministry of Water Resources from Bengaluru.

The team has been deputed following a request from the State Government to the Prime Minister.

Earlier, the Prime Minister had instructed the release of financial assistance worth Rs 939.63 crore immediately to Tamil Nadu to assist it in dealing with the situation arising from the floods.

Govt to impose 0.5% Swachh Bharat cess on services Delhi: Government of India imposed a 0.5 per cent cess on all taxable services including air travel, telephony, eating out and banking with effect from November 15 to fund the Swachh Bharat programme.

The additional cess would be over and above the 14 per cent Service Tax rate, which is already being levied and may yield the government an additional about Rs 400 crore during the remainder of the current fiscal.

“The government has decided to impose, with effect from November 15, 2015, a Swachh Bharat Cess at the rate of 0.5 per cent on all services, which are presently liable to service tax,” a Finance Ministry statement said.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had in Budget 2015-16 proposed to levy a Swachh Bharat cess of up to 2 per cent “on all or certain services, if need arises”.

The decision to impose 0.5 per cent cess will translate into a tax of 50 paise only on every Rs 100 worth of taxable services. “Swachh Bharat cess is not another tax but a step towards involving each and every citizen in making contribution to Swachh Bharat. The proceeds from this cess will be exclusively used for Swachh Bharat initiatives,” the statement added.

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GHMC to launch ‘Parichayam’ programme Hyderabad: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation plans to improve the delivery of municipal services with special focus on sanitation and solid waste management with community participation.

It will conduct Parichayam (Know Your Worker), a programme to build a relationship and accountability between community and municipality for better service delivery, GHMC special officer B.Janardhan Reddy said. ‘Parichayam’ will ensure quicker resolution of complaints and establishment of better community-based accountability and service delivery. Municipal field-level sanitary staff (under SWM, water supply, drain clearing, road/street sweeping services, etc) will hold localitylevel meetings with the residents.

GHMC will orient the community on the routine jobs assigned to the designated worker of the area or locality, display of information on timings, duties, names and contact info of the municipal workers of the respective locality with the photographs and mobile phone numbers of the supervisor and sanitary inspector.

The GHMC will collect regular feedback from the community through regular field visits.

Details such as the name of the staff will be entered in an issue register to collect feedback from residents. Municipal workers, after completing their assigned work will obtain the signature or initials of any adult member of the household serviced by him/ her on that particular day as per the schedule fixed.

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Governing mega-cities to become more challenging: Richard Verma

Mumbai: Governing the world’s mega-cities will only become more challenging in the coming decades, US Ambassador to India Richard Verma said recently at the Megacity Security Conference organised by the Atlantic Council, the India Foundation in Mumbai. “Governments, including civilian leadership, law enforcement, and the military, must work together not only within their own borders, but also with those cities facing similar issues and challenges,”Verma said.

“The best chance we have for governing in such a complex environment is to develop domestic and international networks that enable local governments and communities to share best practices and lessons learned. Only through collective thought and partnership can we harness the concentration of skills and technical resources in the world’s cities that will increase wealth and improve the quality of life,” the US Ambassador said. “What are the trends for India?

The UN has estimated India’s urban population will increase by nearly 250 million people over the next 20 years.

China and India account for 30 per cent of the world’s urban population, and their share is going to increase in the coming decades,” he said.

Current projections estimate India’s urban population will grow more rapidly than in China, South America or the West, the US envoy said.

“In addition to India’s three

current mega-cities, it is expected there will be four more by 2030: Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Ahmedabad. New Delhi is projected to become the world’s second-largest city by 2030 with a population of 36 million,” he said.

“We also see mass migrations due to conflict as endangered populations look for safer places to work and raise their families,” he said.

In 1950, there were only two megacities: New York and Tokyo. In 1975, Mexico City became the world’s third mega-city. Today, there are approximately 30 mega-cities - cities with more than 10 million people, he said. “In India alone, there already are three: Mumbai, New Delhi, and Kolkata. By 2030, it is estimated an additional dozen cities will be added to the list, creating more than 40 megacities around the world,” he said.

“The ongoing shift in population from rural to urban areas is unprecedented in human history. A 100 years ago, just 2 out of 10 people lived in cities.

Today, more than half of the world’s population lives in cities,” Verma said.

“In the early 1800s, London and Beijing were the only two cities in the world with 1 million people. Now, there are at least 450. Beyond the growing list of mega-cities, more than 40 ‘large’ cities have populations between 5 to 10 million people. Worldwide, approximately 2,00,000 people per day are migrating from rural to urban areas.

This is uncharted territory,” he said.

Outside of law enforcement and security cooperation, the US is partnering to make India’s cities more livable, Verma said. “For example, we are lead partners in developing three of India’s smart cities: Ajmer, Visakhapatnam, and Allahabad. Our US Agency for International Development, through the Urban India Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Alliance, is supporting India’s urban development and Clean India initiatives,” he added.

NEWSCAN

BRIEFS

City Images

In solidarity with Paris Many cities world over illuminated their landmarks with the colours of the French flag. Sydney Opera House, Oriental Pearl Tower in Shanghai, City Hall Tel-Aviv (in picture), Wembley Arch in London

and World Trade Centre in New York, for example. It was a gesture to show solidarity with the people of Paris after a terrorist attack in the city in which more than 120 people were killed. Paris Mayor Anne

Hidalgo said on Facebook, “The cities of the whole world continue to express their support to the people of Paris. Once again, a big thank you from the bottom of my heart. We are united.�

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

15

BRIEFS

RMC to offer free Wi-Fi across Ranchi Ranchi Municipal Corporation(RMC) has come up with a Wi-Fi policy to make free Wi-Fi available to the citizens.

Municipal Commissioner Prashant Kumar said, “Under this policy, all poles and lamps under the RMC area will be made available to telecom service providers for setting up Wi-Fi ports.

Soon after issuing the letter, we will come out with an Expression of Interest (EOI) for the telecom companies interested in providing Wi-Fi services.”

Nashik civic body launches smart city awareness drive Nashik Municipal Corporation has launched a special smart city awareness drive which involves inviting people’s suggestions and organising various programmes.”The eight-day drive is aimed at covering six divisions. It aims at seeking people’s suggestions and solutions on improving water supply, cleanliness, garbage disposal and overall administration,” municipal commissioner Praveen Gedam said.

TMC to place bins for e-waste Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) will be placing special bins at 100 different locations across Thane where people can dump electronic wastes like non-functional radios, mobiles, etc. According to the TMC, Thane city generates approximately 10 kg of e-waste on a daily basis.

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December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

NEWSCAN

Smart Anandababu becomes the icon of smart city project Kolkata: Smart Anandababu would be the icon for smart city projects in Kolkata. The New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA) is now planning to follow the ‘Buladi’ way to reach out to residents of New Town.

The icon would be used by NKDA to increase interactivity between the residents and the authority.

Smart Anandababu would be planted as a help that will always be around to listen out to grievances and help people sorting their grievances.

While portals, apps and all other social media platforms have been put together by authorities at different levels, officials at NKDA said that the

interaction between the authority and the residents needed to have a human face, a person people can relate to and hence the ‘Anandababu’ idea has been conceptualised.

For putting in more interactivity, there would also be a control room that will provide time bound results on the actions being taken after a complaint has been lodged with Anandababu.

This would be implemented by sending out feedback text messages to the complainant on his or her mobile phone.

The authorities are also holding ‘Smart Fridays’ where interactions are taking place with citizens of the township to discuss on the smart city initiatives.

Hyderabad leads in office space absorption among top eight cities Bengaluru: Hyderabad recorded the highest office space absorption among the top eight cities in the country in the third quarter of 2015, according to property consultant Cushman & Wakefield, as political stability in the region saw more corporates sign property deals. Net absorption of office space in the city was recorded at 24 lakh sq ft, while commitments were at 3.85 lakh sq ft, the highest office space net absorption witnessed after the formation of Telangana and the highest since 2008.

“The rental value at which quality office space is available in the city has added to the attractiveness of the location,” said Sanjay Dutt, executive managing director, India, Cushman & Wakefield.

“We expect demand for office space to remain robust as corporates continue to relocate, expand and adopt workplace transformation strategies.”

Bigger cities like Mumbai and Delhi saw lower net absorption of office space due to lack of quality space, according to Cushman & Wakefield. While Mumbai recorded 4 lakh sq ft, Bengaluru saw 6

lakh sq ft absorption. The national capital and Chennai saw net absorption of 11.6 lakh sqft and 4.9 lakh sq ft, respectively.

Uncertainty over demerger of Andhra Pradesh had delayed office space plans of several companies. With the formation of the new state and with new policies being rolled out by the new government, unease among corporates has eased and they have started picking office space.

NEWSCAN

UD Ministry to reconcile DDA properties Delhi: Union Urban Development Ministry has constituted a task force comprising senior officials of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and the three municipal corporations to reconcile properties under custody of the DDA. The DDA has agreed to furnish information regarding leased and rented properties to the respective corporations. A senior official said a meeting was held between the DDA and the corporations after both claimed the other owed it dues.

During the meeting, the official said, both came to an agreement that there were no issues regarding the levying of tax on DDA staff quarters. During the meeting chaired by the UD department’s additional secretary, Durga Shanker Mishra, sources said disputes relating to property tax between DDA and the three corporations were discussed at length. The meeting was attended by the DDA vice-chairman, commissioners of North, South and East municipal corporations and other concerned senior officials.

After discussing broad principles of levying tax on community halls, sports complexes and vacant lands that are under custody of the DDA, both sides have decided to meet soon and come to a final conclusion in this regard.

World’s top architects shortlisted for AP capital Amaravati Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who wants to build Amaravati as a worldclass capital, has zeroed in on three of the world’s leading architects to conceptualise the ‘government complex’ - which will be the first structure that will come up in the new capital. The three architects are Norman Foster, Rem Koolhaas and Richard Rogers, who will ‘compete’ to clinch the deal under the Swiss Challenge method. Some of the world’s finest landmarks have been designed by these leading architects from Europe.

Naidu is keen to utilise their services for the grand government complex that will be the seat of power. The winner of the Swiss Challenge bidding process will conceptualize and design the mega

structure. “The building will come up in the proposed Government Core area of the seed capital. The state government is keen to complete the complex by 2018.

The 42-floor complex will have 1.32 crore sq feet of built-up space,” said a senior official privy to the development.

Norman Foster has won the Pritzker Architecture Prize, which is regarded as the Nobel Prize of architecture. He has designed and built the new German Parliament, the Hearst Tower in New York City, City Hall and Millennium Bridge in London and is regarded by many as the greatest living architect. Richard Roger has designed the Lloyd’s Building and Peternoster Square in London. Rem Koolhas had conceptualised the Seattle Central library and Shenzhen Stock Exchange.

CG govt to give awards to urban bodies Raipur: Chhattisgarh’s urban bodies will be rewarded with additional funds from the State government for better performance in executing development works. Urban administration and development minister Amar Agrawal made an announcement in this regard during a state- level programme of representatives of civic bodies from across the state. “Urban bodies will be awarded with the additional funds for their better performance in carrying out development works,” Agrawal said. While municipal corporations will be allocated a whopping additional fund of Rs 10 crore, municipalities and nagar panchayats will be provided Rs 5 crore and Rs 2 crore respectively, he added.

BRIEFS

GMC to take action against 252 buildings for flouting rules Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) has decided to take strong action against those violating building norms in the city.

It has prepared a list of 252 buildings that have violated or deviated from the norms.

To carry out its crackdown, the GMC has formed nine teams comprising executive engineers and other officials across the city.

BMC allows consultants to approve realty proposal plans Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has come out with a circular to ease building proposal approvals by giving more power to architects.

According to a new circular, as part of a manual of procedure for building proposal approvals, 15 sets of approvals can now be given by consultants hired by developers rather than by the BMC itself.

LMC lays out real estate venture plan Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) has finalised tenders for building a huge commercial complex in Kamta, near the new high court building, and three residential projects.

All these ventures are set to begin in December. LMC has got huge land pools in five distinct pockets of city.

Under residential projects, it would be constructing more than 100 residential towers (G+3 and G+8) with more than 1,500 flats.

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

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NEWSCAN

BRIEFS

NEWSCAN

Centre asks smart cities to provide for PNG supply and CNG stations New Delhi: Ministry of Urban Development asked the States and Urban Local Bodies to provide for Piped Natural Gas (PNG) supply and CNG stations in the cities selected for development as Smart Cities.

They were also asked to ensure convergence of various schemes of the Central Government aimed at enhancing energy supply and related infrastructure in the Smart City Plans under preparation.

Dr Sameer Sharma, Additional Secretary (Urban Development) and Mission Director, Smart City Mission informed the States and ULBs that Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a recent meeting of the NITI Ayog desired PNG supply and convergence of energy related and Digital India related schemes in Smart Cities being developed. Dr Sharma made it clear to States and Urban Local Bodies that all claims regarding initiatives so far taken and proposed to be taken for smart city development should be substantiated by necessary evidence and the deadline for submission of Smart City Plans by December 15 will not be extended.

Ashutosh Jindal, Joint Secretary (Petroleum and Natural Gas), said that supply of gas is not a constraint for enabling PNG supply in Smart Cities and urged the urban local bodies to ensure speedy approvals for laying City Gas Distribution (CGD) Pipelines in smart cities. He informed that currently, 30 lakh PNG connections have been provided in 67 cities including 35 smart cities and the remaining Smart Cities need to be covered by piped gas supply.

Informing that about 25 lakh vehicles are now running on CNG, Shri Jindal urged planning for CNG stations in smart city plans.

AK Verma, Joint Secretary (Power) urged the states and ULBs of smart cities to take advantage of Integrated Power

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December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

♦♦

♦♦

Convergence of energy supply and infrastructure schemes in Smart City Plans called for Evidence based smart city strategic plans key for selection in second stage of competition, says UD Ministry

Development Scheme (IPDS) meant for strengthening Sub-transmission and distribution networks, metering of distribution transformers and feeders, IT enablement of distribution sector, IT enabled energy accounting and auditing in urban areas. He suggested installation of SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems in smart cities for effective monitoring

of power supply and use.

Ministry also asked Smart Cities to ensure Roof Top based solar power generation as a part of measures to ensure that 10 per cent of energy demand is met from solar power.

He asserted that the cost of solar power comes to Rs 7.59 per unit and with subsidy being provided by the Ministry, it comes to Rs 5.50 per unit as against the rate of around Rs 8 to Rs 10 per unit being paid by most of commercial, industrial and government establishments.

Stating that Digital India initiative is aimed at using digital information as a utility (like Aadhaar card), delivering government services on demand and digital empowerment of citizens, Rajiv Kumar, Joint Secretary, Department of Electronics and IT urged the smart cities to make use of infrastructure being provided for enabling smart solutions for video-monitoring of crimes, effective management of water, power, traffic, solid waste, etc.

NEWSCAN

Buying cars to become costlier in Delhi

BRIEFS

Udaipur launches logo designing contest Udaipur Municipal Corporation has invited all its residents to participate in the Logo-design competition for “Udaipur Smart City”.

The Logo should reflect the long term vision of the city, highlighting its rich cultural and heritage background keeping in mind the current assets/resources of the city.

Agra to have hi-tech traffic mgmt system New Delhi: To decongest the capital and construct more parking facilities, the North Delhi municipal corporation (NDMC) has revised the one time (night) parking charges for private and commercial four wheelers to be parked under its zone. Now, private vehicles will have to pay Rs 8,000 as a onetime parking fee as opposed to the earlier Rs 2,000 for cars costing up to Rs 4 lakh. For vehicles costing upwards of Rs 4 lakh, the onetime fee would be much higher.

The move comes after Supreme Court ordered city authorities to impose an environmental tax on commercial vehicles entering the capital to reduce pollution. Four wheelers costing more than Rs 4 lakh, will have to pay 4 per cent parking fee which goes up to 6-15 per cent for more expensive vehicles, as per the current proposal. Earlier the

MCD North deliberated a proposal to levy these charges on auto rickshaws, e-rickshaws and taxis, but soon scrapped the decision. However, under the directions of Delhi government e-rickshaws have also been notified as commercial vehicles and should come under the purview of registration.

Leader of the opposition Mukesh Goel has condemned the proposal. “This is not a long term solution to pollution and congestion in Delhi, it will only make buying cars in Delhi expensive.”

According to the agreement, 95 per cent of the tax collected will be distributed in MCD. The parking charges are being levied as all vehicles are to be parked on the municipal corporation land. Further, people can always buy cars from areas outside the NCT of Delhi, as state cannot stop its entry or exit.

Ludhiana to become cycling-friendly city Ludhiana: The municipal corporation (MC) is mulling to develop Ludhiana into a cycling-friendly city. The matter is in discussion under the pan city proposal which is to be implemented under the smart city project. Additional Commissioner Ghanshyam Thori said the matter was discussed in the meeting on Friday between MC officials and consultants of AECOM-IBM company. Thori said the consultants apprised the officials about proposals that they have prepared after incorporating suggestions from residents. Further he said that the consultants said that the cycling industry in the city has gained a name for itself in the world and they should work to develop the city as cycling-friendly one. Thori said that the proposal is yet to be finalized as there are many other proposals under the pan city proposal, but if the proposal is accepted then besides constructing cycle tracks, they will also work to make roads safer for cyclists.

The Agra traffic police department is in the process of setting up a modern control room (MCR) to roll out the proposed integrated traffic management system (ITMS) and smart city surveillance system (SCSS) for monitoring traffic better and to catch offenders of traffic rules.

The system will have 20 smart sensors-enabled traffic signals and high resolution CCTV (closed-circuit television) cameras to enable surveillance of 75 critical public places and make vehicular movement safe for commuters.

RITES submits DPR for Kanpur Metro Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES) submitted the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of Kanpur Metro Rail Project to Uttar Pradesh government.

The DPR has envisaged two corridors for the project.

The first corridor begins from IIT Kanpur spanning up to Naubasta Chauraha and covers 23.785 kms. The second corridor of 8.6 km stretches from Agriculture University to Barra-8.

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

19

COVER STORY | Liveable Cities

COVER STORY | Liveable Cities

Are Indian cities liveable?

20 November December 2015 2015 || www.urbanupdate.in www.urbanupdate.in

C

ities are not mere engines of growth. They are inhabited by people and people develop emotional attachment towards cities.

Individuals love or hate a place, feel comfortable or settled in some spaces but not in others. In simple terms, the cities where people long to stay or visit often can be called liveable cities. There is no single clear definition of a liveable city. However, there are many agencies like the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) that have created a set of parameters which enable evaluate and rank a city for liveability. Some of the parameters being considered while rating cities include aesthetic appeal of a city, environment, citizen safety, influence of a city, hub of activities, cultural significance, state of civic amenities and economic conditions.

Asian scenario

The rapid economic growth in Asian cities is attracting more than 120,000 new urbanites daily. According to an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report, around 65% of all Asians will reside in cities by 2050. This fastpaced urbanisation demands better amenities in cities for increasing urban populations. Cities need to provide them a conducive environment in the form of a liveable city where they can live, work, and undertake leisure time activity with ease. The prosperity, stability and long-term productivity of cities will depend on how they

respond to the aspirations and requirements of new urbanites. It is a global urban challenge to make cities liveable while maintaining the urban economic growth.

A new World Bank report ‘Leveraging Urbanization in South Asia: Managing Spatial Transformation for Prosperity and Livability’ states that South Asian countries have struggled to make the most of the opportunity urbanization provides them to transform their economies to join the ranks of richer nations in both prosperity and liveability. It further says that difficulty in dealing with the pressures urban populations put on infrastructure, basic services, land, housing and the environment lie at the heart of the relative lack of liveability of the region’s cities.

Most of India’s cities have become congested, polluted and sprawling with unfair distribution of civic amenities.

The rate of growth of population in cities is rapidly increasing. As per the Census 2011, for the first time since independence, the absolute increase in population over the 2001 figure in urban areas (9.1 million) is greater than the increase in the rural areas (9 million). While the growth rate of urban population was 31.8% over 2001, the growth in the rural population was just 12.2%. Further the growth rate of urban population has gathered more pace compared to the previous decade (31.5%), while the growth rate of rural population has slowed down (18.1% in

the previous decade).

Such fast-paced urbanisation is resulting in more slums, environmental degradation, and poor civic amenities lowering living standards in urban areas. There is a crying need for local governments to plan cities in a way that accommodates growing population and provides them with required amenities without having a negative impact on the urban ecosystem. In these conditions, building liveable cities is quite a challenge. The government has taken a slew of measures to strengthen cities to become liveable and handle the increasing burden on their infrastructure and services. At the local level, the focus of cities needs to be shifted from implementing centralised policy decisions for urban development towards reflecting local aspirations into the planning process.

Community aspirations

With growing economic prosperity in Indian cities, the expectations of the urban dweller from city governments have gone up. The aspirations of people and the operational mechanism of cities have changed over a period of time.

What citizens need is not only a good road or a functional building anymore; it’s also about communication infrastructure and state-of-the-art service delivery systems. Their demands are not limited to adequate water supply, electricity, cleanliness, and health care.

Urban dwellers are demanding more. They want instant information

Beyond all fancy jargon for new-age cities lies the fundamental question of how governments, corporations, urban planners, and individuals can help shape the cities that will determine collective quality of life in our cities fitting a holistic ‘liveability’ criterion. But, what is the definition of liveability and who is it for? The process of building a liveable city will need to consider whose demands are met or who are sidelined Abhishek Pandey Editor, abhishek@urbanupdate.in

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

21

COVER STORY | Liveable Cities

on civic services, quick grievance redressal systems, fast internet connectivity, open spaces, pedestrian paths, parking facilities, comfortable public transport, and pollution free environment. All these requirements of new age urbanites, if fulfilled, will develop a sense of ownership of cities among citizens.

Most of these areas need immediate attention in Indian cities. For example, most of the cities perform poorly on walkability index. There is a need to shift priority away from cars and towards bicycles and walking to create a liveable city. No one likes to walk between car bonnets and noisy hawkers.

People want pathways to walk freely, without fear of getting hit by a speeding vehicle. A liveable city needs to provide walking spaces to its population. It has to have efficient parking management systems that ensure vehicles are not parked haphazardly causing problems for pedestrians. The famous Danish urban planner Jan Gehl says in his book ‘Cities for People’, “People need to be able to comfortably traverse a city on foot.” He also quotes Danish philosopher Kierkegaardon the physical and metaphysical importance of walking, “the true measure of a city’s health is actually not how much people walk, but how long they want to linger.”

Melbourne tops the

Pollution in cities

Australian city Melbourne has been ranked the most liveable city by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), part of the Economist Group in its latest Global Liveability Index.

EIU ranks cities on a varied range of indicators like cities’ infrastructure, stability, culture, education and health care.

According to the research firm, the top ranking cities have “relatively few challenges to living standards,” and enjoy a good infrastructure, healthcare system and a low murder rate. The EIU ranking, which provides scores for lifestyle challenges in 140 cities worldwide, shows that since 2010 average liveability across the world has fallen by 1%, led by

Everyone knows that cities are polluted. Air, water and noise pollution have become the urban reality. It is so entrenched in cities that citizens have become unconcerned and do not even give much heed to it as the situation is beyond their control. A recent study by the World Bank ranked Delhi the most polluted city in the world. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal recently tweeted images of two lungs; one was of a 55 year old man living in Himachal Pradesh and another one was of a 52 year old residing in Delhi. The lung of the Delhi man was visibly dark. Doctors say that sustained exposure to particulate matter causes asthma and lung ailments. To clean the air of the national capital, the Delhi government

22 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

a 2.2% fall in the score for stability and safety. “While this may seem marginal, it highlights that 57 of the cities surveyed have seen declines in liveability over the last five years,” the report stated. Predictably, Damascus remains the least liveable city, with Syria suffering a civil war.

New Delhi was ranked 110 out of 140 cities, highest of the six South Asian cities in the Index. Mumbai was ranked 115.

The average ranking for all developing country cities outside of South Asia was 103. The report published by the Economist earlier this year said that liveability has fallen in cities across Europe, thanks to terror attacks and economic instability. It says that the

e liveability chart

threat to personal safety, whether in the form of crime, unrest or conflict, has knock-on implications for other aspects of liveability. Last year, the conflict in Ukraine, the terror attack in Paris and austerity in Athens formed a sobering backdrop to regional liveability.

Melbourne is home to four million people and known for its cultural diversity. A recent study showed that almost half its residents were born overseas. Despite strict rules and regulations enforced by the Australian federal government to check illegal immigration, the city remains safe and welcoming, while celebrating diversity. The city also has an easily navigable grid system of roads, great

public transport links and no less than four world-class sporting venues within the embrace of the inner city.

The city also provides ample open green spaces to city dwellers, with over 480 hectares of parks spread across the city.

In terms of healthcare, Australia has an efficient state-subsidised healthcare system ‘Medicare’. The system has reciprocal arrangement with the National Health Service in the UK and other European healthcare providers so natives of those nations can easily access some services during their stay in Australia.

All these civic amenities make living in Melbourne easy, convenient and enjoyable for its citizens.

has tossed a formula ‘Odd-Even’ for reducing vehicular traffic and to bring down air pollution levels in the city after the government conducted a survey in 39 strategic locations to monitor air quality in the city. Under the rule that is proposed to come into effect from January 1, personal cars will be allowed on alternate days based on the last digit of their registration numbers.

No one would like to live in a city where the health of their children is at risk. An intensive drive to clean the air and the water bodies is the need of the hour. Many global cities like Beijing have begun the exercise of cleaning their ecosystems to ensure healthy environment for future generations.

Shrinking of open green spaces and continued growth of vehicular population has made the situation worse in cities. People have been demanding more open space area in cities and even, the city planning authorities have been proposing the same but the implementation of these plans is not satisfactory. Open spaces marked in the city plans have been used for other purposes. Mumbai city has only 5.6% per cent of its developed area for open spaces, while the situation in a few cities like Delhi, Chandigarh, Bengaluru and Gandhinagar is better.

Per capita green space in Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Surat, Jaipur, Gandhinagar, and Chandigarh is respectively 5.5, 17.79, 2.01, 0.5, 3.9, 1.03, 2.7, 20, 147.6 and 54.45 sq. m.

Citizens in most cities are vying for open green spaces. The question that arises here is how much open space is required for a given unit of urban population. According to WHO norms, every city shall provide a minimum of 9 sq. m/capita of open green space to its citizens for ensuring a healthy environment. Most of the abovementioned cities, except Chandigarh, Jaipur, Bengaluru and Gandhinagar, fall short of the required green space. Such places not only improve the ecosystem but also act as social hub for the community and hence tend to become epicenters of the vicinities.

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

23

Numerographs

Road to

‘liveable’ cities Urban areas are expected to

1.4

gain billion people between 2011 and 2030

13

out of world’s top 20 polluted cities are in India

One can adjudge the merits of a city through the first-hand inputs from its actual residents who really should decide what makes their city liveable or un-liveable. Indian cities do not perform well on liveability index released by international organisations because infrastructure, service delivery, aesthetic appeal, state of transport in Indian cities are not up to the mark. And, the situation cannot be transformed overnight. However, it can be amended. It is the responsibility of local governments to engage communities in urban planning to understand their requirements and make city plans in sync with their aspirations. People can decide whether they want open spaces, metro trains, schools, industries or culture spaces in their cities. This could be the easiest and quickest way to make a city liveable.

24 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

15 of the World’s 30 Megacities are in Asia

32.7%

Only of waste is treated in Indian cities

54% of the urban

population in India does not have drinking water source at home

World Health Organization recommends at least

15% of a city’s total area should be open space

Liveablity Index

Most Polluted Cities

Most Improved Cities on Liveability Index

Green Space

An estimated

180,000

people move into cities each day. Out of which 120,000 come to Asian cities

1

Over billion people live in slums. Out of which 505 million are in Asia

Source: World Bank, World Health Organisation, Economic Intelligence Unit, Asian Development Bank, Centre for Science and Environment, Forest Survey of India (2011), Census 2011

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

25

Leaderspeak | Citizen Engagement

Ranjit S Chavan President, AIILSG

Engaging citizens for better cities Municipal corporations and city leaders must encourage and engage community groups, non-profit organizations, students, business communities and other stakeholders to play a pro-active role in city development process for gaining a greater understanding of local aspirations for development and service delivery

C

ommunity engagement is an essential thread that can help weave the texture of a liveable city. Including citizens into decision making and making its operations transparent and accountable could be the first step in this regard for local bodies.

As there could be many definitions of a liveable city, it is city dwellers who decide what should be the criteria of livability in their city. The idea of liveable city envisaged in Barcelona cannot be implemented in Barabanki.

Governments have been traditionally planning and executing programs without consultation with public. This has to change. Even after the 74th Constitutional Amendment (CAA), not much has changed in most of our cities because the amendment was not implemented across the country in

26 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

letter and spirit. Local governments do not wield authority in many sectors concerning city development. However, poor progress in initiatives for community engagement cannot be blamed on inadequate implementation of decentralization of power as envisaged in 74th CAA. It is entirely up to local governments how they engage citizens in decision making process. There is no hurdle in the way to begin such initiatives in the areas where municipal corporations have decision making authority.

If local governments continue to impose programs that impact people’s daily lives, it can dampen participation and hinder progress. Corporations cannot decide to install street lights in an area where people need potable water first. The efficient mechanism of community engagement calls for a range of reforms in the manner municipal bodies

conduct themselves. To achieve healthy community engagement, municipal corporations have to adopt advanced technology for communicating with residents of their cities regularly. The mechanism should enable citizens to access information easily; monitor the functioning of corporations’ works and freedom to share their grievances for quick redressal. In turn, local government will have pro-active and well informed communities that will definitely help in planning and executing development related works.

There are numerous examples worldwide that community engagement in many cities is building an innovative new generation of engaged community leaders and citizens, that is the basis of a healthy democracy.

Citizen engagement

Technology has brought forward a variety of tools citizens can utilize to express their concerns and demands to local governments. Many corporations worldwide and in India are using websites, social networking sites and mobile apps to engage citizens in the process of city development. Recently, many corporations in the race for smart cities reached out to common people to find out their recommendations for development plans of upcoming smart cities in their respective regions.

The exercise was part of the second phase competition for the Smart Cities Mission. It was a success. Hundreds of thousands of people expressed their views and suggested action plans

to improve the infrastructure and functioning of their cities.

The spread of Internet usage, especially through smart phones, has seen a rapid surge in urban centers.

More people are communicating with their local governments through social media and mobile applications.

It is the right time for local bodies to come up with a system through which they make their data open for public use. There are cities where opening up of public data has helped the urban governments to find innovative solutions to the day-to-day operational problems from local communities.

There are other benefits of community engagement as it improves the quality of decision making, encourages sharing of responsibilities, and creates more inclusive and sustainable communities.

Innovation

In some countries, citizens through civil society organizations are supporting local bodies financially to execute development works. One such initiative is Citizinvestor. It is a crowdfunding and civic engagement platform for local government projects that empowers citizens to invest in their community and create real change.

Any government entity or their official partners can post approved projects on the Citizinvestor website. These are the projects which have support from local bodies, but lack the necessary funds to be completed. Locals can donate to the projects of their choice. It is to be noted that citizens are not charged if the

The efficient mechanism of community engagement calls for a range of reforms in the manner municipal bodies conduct themselves. To achieve healthy community engagement, municipal corporations have to adopt advanced technology for communicating with residents of their cities regularly

projects do not reach 100 per cent of its funding goal. Citizens can continue to monitor the project’s progress as it goes from funding to fruition. There are several such initiatives in many cities across the globe in which people invest in the projects of their interest.

As most of the municipal corporations in India are cash strapped, these initiatives can enable local bodies to deliver services or build required infrastructure with public support.

When citizen engagement programs are implemented effectively, more people are brought into the decision-making process, making local governments more responsive and effective. Such initiatives teach people, especially the young ones, to advocate for their community’s interests and encourage them to be more engaged members of their community.

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

27

article | Urban Safety

Making our cities safer

Abhilash Khandekar National Political Editor, Dainik Bhaskar kabhilash59@gmail.com

28 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

L

ast year when the smart cities development agenda was being talked about in the corridors of power and people had just no idea what it was all about, a group of

senior bureaucrats of the Government of India, most of them unconnected with urban development ministry, was informally talking of this great idea of the Modi government, at a top five-star hotel in the national capital

over a private dinner. The subject veered around to various aspects of the smart city concept and suddenly one bureaucrat who was directly dealing with this scheme, asked a question to all present in the small room. What one thing they would like to see added to their own ‘smart city‘? One by one they replied as per their expertise, interests and priority, but one very senior police officer present there quipped: Safety!

And then all of them became quite serious. Yes, if a city were to be really smart, its citizens’ safety was of utmost importance. But that was nowhere in the agenda then (if it has been now

factored in as a priority area, I have little idea).

It’s unfortunate that the uglier side of rapid and mindboggling urbanisation process is the absolute lack of safety in cities. Indian cities are getting unsafe by the day. What is more worrisome is the fact that even after the infamous Nirbhaya case of 2012 in Delhi, girls and women are far from being safe and secure in Indian cities. Delhi is now known as the rape capital of the world.

What is more shameful than this?

About a decade ago, I had been chosen by the US Government to study their urban patterns of governance.

What we saw firsthand in New York, and that became famous later, the New York Mayor Rudi Giuliani, soon after taking over as Mayor of America’s or the world’s financial capital, made the Megapolis a safer city. That was his top agenda because the city had become notorious for mugging, thefts and rapes.

Yes, in the US cities, the police work under mayors or in close tandem with them and that helps mayors in controlling law and order, unlike in India. In India, an SSP looks up first to the Chief Minister, then DGP, Chief Secretary and Home Secretary in that

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

29

article | Urban Safety

If Indian cities have to be safe for all, mainly women and senior citizens, then the police has to play a significant role, along with courts. Higher conviction rates would hopefully prove to be an effective deterrent

order. A slight variation depends on local situations. In some cases, he also listens more to the politician/minister who has got him the particular posting.

Janata comes much down in his or her list, barring a few exceptions.

Indian scenario

When we say safe city, it apparently means three things: women and kids should be able to commute freely at any point of time, secondly, elderly persons should have much friendlier, safe traffic systems to go from one place to another on their own, and lastly, homes should be safe from burglars and thieves.

There is another perspective to this. Citizens should also be safe from faulty city infrastructure round the year which is the municipal body’s responsibility. Uneven roads, big pot holes which prove to be a nightmare for two-wheelers, stray dogs, encroached footpaths, unsafe cycling tracks, lack of electricity on roads, unruly traffic, water logging on roads during the rainy season and also during nonrainy days, electric wires hanging low in congested streets and so on are also risks to citizens. There are of course no bets on guessing if our cities are well equipped on these fronts or not. We all know how difficult it is for women to move about in a place like Kanpur or Kolkata; Indore or Patna. Unseen social changes, growing joblessness, influence of Bollywood, political meddling and a collective frustration among youth, added with caste factors are posing severe challenges for the police force all over the country in providing security cover to the average Indian. Some people do cite examples of Mumbai and Pune as cities which are so far safer for women returning home from offices or cultural evenings late in the evenings.

30 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

But should that not be the case in other cities as well? While technology in the shape of CCTV cameras, mobile phones and other alarms, and newer apps is coming to the aid, Indian cities are still not as safe as what we see in say, Singapore or Dubai, let alone in the developed western countries.

The issue of safety is quite complex, given the Indian context. In urban matters like planning a city or adding new facilities, the planners, be they engineers or architects, do not much consider safety issues from the beginning and thus seldom involve police officials and experts in the planning process. While putting up street lights, granting slums pattas, planning a flyover or starting a BRT, police do not play a decisive role at the planning level. The decision of the Kejriwal Government to do away with the BRT stretch after many complaints, massive inconvenience and accidents, is a fresh case of Delhi. In Indore, a very ambitious IAS officer on his own introduced BRT as district collector which flopped completely but not before claiming many lives and causing huge inconvenience to citizens. This raises an old basic question as to who should design a city and what should be an ideal process? Should IAS officials be the city planners and managers? Can we afford to leave it entirely to them, rather than involve domain experts?

I am of the firm opinion that if Indian cities have to be safe for all, mainly women and senior citizens, then the police has to play a significant role, along with courts. Higher conviction rates would hopefully prove to be an effective deterrent.

Let me quote one instance here. It was sometime in 2012. I was posted in Maharashtra where I read a small news item about car-borne youths dragging a traffic police constable in Indore for more than 25 feet, holding his arm and driving their car with fun and with speed in broad day light. I was very disturbed not just because of my love for my city of Indore, but as a lawabiding Indian citizen. I felt an attack on an individual police official on duty was like challenging the entire official

system which works to protect society from crimes. Indore, incidentally is one city where, thanks to a big ruling party politician, goondaism has been steadily rising for the past decade with Chief Minister Shivraj Singh appearing to be a mute spectator. This could be the case of many other cities too. Well, what was the ‘crime’ of the hapless but duty-bound police constable? He had only stopped them from entering a one way street. When I called up the lady IGP Anuradha Shankar of Indore upon reading the news the next day and tried to plead with her to take the sternest action, she said they had already been booked and taken into custody for their bizarre crime. They were not habitual criminals but neo-rich agriculture family’s youth from an adjoining small district of Indore. That she was a very tough, no-nonsense officer was a solace for me and for most of Indoreans. What I mean to say is that if police swing into action swiftly and take the criminals to task with maximum punishment, only then will crime be controlled. It is easier said than done but there is no other way out. Rule of law seems the only working option as socio-economic conditions of the country continue to worsen. The sense of fear of punishment needs to be instilled into the minds of criminals. The Economic Times recently wrote that it’s a crying shame that the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems ( CCTNS) which was launched in 2009 to link up the country’s police stations for electronic collection, storage and sharing of vital information is gasping for breath. The project was allocated an initial sum of Rs 2000 crore to be given to state governments to develop their own systems. In our system, introduction of new technologies, an honest set of police officials, non interfering political bosses, efficient justice delivery system and responsible NGOs can jointly make cities safer, the way we want them to be. Is that asking for a little too much?

Well we have no options.

In an emerging economy like India, cities have to be safer and provide dignity to its citizens using multiple solutions.

Chennai Floods | Article

Failing of A City System Incessant rains over a couple of weeks inundated one of the major cities of India-Chennai.

The disaster tells the story of the ability of urban infrastructure systems in Indian cities to handle natural calamities. The situation would not have been very different in any other city in a similar situation since the state of infrastructure and modus operandi of municipal corporations are not very different. Indian cities need to mull over their priorities and augment the pace of building an efficient city system that takes into consideration natural disasters, especially in these times when the threat of climate change induced calamities is looming large Abhishek Pandey Editor, abhishek@urbanupdate.in

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Article | Chennai Floods

R

elentless torrents in Tamil Nadu swelled rivers and waterbodies; water breached banks and flooded roads and houses. Chennai was the worst affected city during the torrential rains in South India recently. Over 300 people died and millions of people were affected.

Schools and offices remained closed for weeks; trains and flights were cancelled; thousands of people had to sleep in make-shift settlements; examinations were cancelled and people had to depend on government supplied relief material for food. It seems to have become a normal sight in Indian cities after a spell of heavy rainfall.

Many cities in India have had quite an efficient drainage system built during the British period. But it was not improved upon. Over the years, with more people moving to cities, construction of buildings, industrial towns and human settlements within the cities went up but the drainage and sewage systems were not strengthened proportionately. Similar disasters have unfolded in many cities of India, like Mumbai, Srinagar, and some cities of Uttarakhand, after heavy rainfall. In all these cases, the reason found was the blatant disregard of basic norms while carrying out infrastructure development.

Chennai has witnessed similar spells of rainfall in the past too but what went wrong this time that it resulted in a disaster in the metropolitan city, is a question that needs to be answered. Urban planners, politicians, bureaucrats and climate change experts have their explanations.

According to climate experts, as reported in Business Standard, the floods resulted from heavy rainfall during the annual northeast monsoon.

It affected the Coromandel Coast region of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, and the union territory of Puducherry, with Tamil Nadu and the city of Chennai particularly hard-hit.

This flooding is attributed to the El Niño phenomenon during the El Niño year of 2015.

32 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

Many reports in newspapers and news channels say that unrestrained construction on riverbeds, floodplains and lakebeds in Chennai resulted in the disaster. They compared the current satellite images of certain pockets of the city with the images taken a decade ago. These reports suggest that many townships, industrial hubs, and government buildings came up on the floodplains of the River Adyar, flood-prone areas near Koyambedu, the Pallikaranai marshlands, on waterbodies, wetlands and on important drainage courses and catchments. Even the Chennai International Airport is constructed on the basin of the Adyar River. The original terrain of the city had adequate catchment and wetlands areas to absorb the excess water during floodlike situations but the uncontrolled construction on the wetlands left no place for water to go and resulted in flooding of the city roads.

The problem was aggravated further because, in the course of time, the storm water drainage system of the city was not strengthened to adequately pump out the water from human settlements. During the floods, most of the storm water drains were clogged or proved insufficient.

It will take time to assess the socioeconomic repercussions but there are already estimates that the cost of the damage caused by the floods is in billions. Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Jayalalithaa said, “Losses are unavoidable when there’s very heavy rain. Swift rescue and relief alone are indicators of a good government.”

This cannot be a justification for the disaster brought about by rains in a city like Chennai that has seen more rainfall than this in the past. It is the responsibility of the government to properly manage the ecosystem of its cities and build a system that is capable of handling situations like this.

Chennai Floods | Article

Highlights ♦♦ Over 300 people died and more than a million people had to leave their homes. ♦♦ According to various estimates, the flood cost damages are in the region of Rs. 20,000 cr. ♦♦ All the Indian states, corporates, film stars and sports personalities came forward to help the people of Tamil Nadu in their time of crisis. ♦♦ Social media sites played a vital role in reaching out to the needy.

Google, Facebook, Yahoo and other sites helped the people in need by publishing emergency numbers, the details of relief centres, etc. ♦♦ Experts blame the poor sewage network, unrestrained construction on river and lake beds, and unpreparedness of the city government to handle floods as reasons for the disaster.

Former Chief Justice of Madras High Court, Markandey Katju, says in one of his articles, “Urban greed has destroyed our drainage systems. Anyone who has studied history knows that the people of the Indus Valley civilisation built cities and towns with excellent drainage and sewage systems. Five thousand years later, have we in India moved forward or backward?” He states that in various decisions of the Supreme Court, it has been held that the right to life guaranteed by Article 21 of the Supreme Court means a life of dignity, and not just an animal life.

Thus, in Chameli Singh vs. State of U.P., the Supreme Court observed: “In any organised society, the right to live as a human being is not ensured by meeting only the animal needs of men. Right to live implies the right to a decent environment, medical care, food and shelter… These are the basic human rights known to any civilized society. The civil, political,

social and cultural rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Human Rights Convention and the Constitution of India cannot be exercised without these basic human rights.”

He suggests that a PIL should be filed immediately in the Madras High Court, and the court should appoint a committee consisting not only of officials but also some technical persons and some responsible citizens of Chennai and other affected cities of Tamil Nadu, empowering the committee to take suitable action to deal with the flood and waterlogging situation on a war footing.

In the future one can see what the Municipal Corporation of Chennai, or for that matter other corporations in India learn from the recent floods in Tamil Nadu. It is an alarming signal for cities to address unplanned urbanisation and take corrective steps to protect urban ecosystems.

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

33

Column | Urban Governance

Municipalities have to rescue our cities The performance of the municipal bodies can be felt and seen but is not subject to scrutiny by the people. We need to have all municipalities rated on service performance

T

Raj Liberhan Former Director, India Habitat Centre liberhan@gmail.com

34 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

he story of empowering our local governments has remained incomplete in many respects. What started as a hopeful beginning, particularly, with the promulgation of the 74th amendment to the Constitution, has not realized its full potential till this day. Why did we lose our way?

Is it lack of capability or lack of determination to guide the pace of urbanization or lack of faith in the need to govern our cities efficiently?

It was a farsighted policy architecture with a definite enthusiasm to transform the prime institution of governance for urban development and city management. As always, with everything else in our country, politics of local competition overtook the policy framework and the confrontations with the state capital political ambitions inhibited the empowerment of the municipal bodies.

The deficits and the weaknesses of the municipal structures are well known.

Precious little resources, both human

and financial, no means to acquire expertise and constant dependence on the goodwill of the Chief Minister, have made them decrepit and functionally in a state of paralysis. There is no esteem in the municipal services cadres and even the apparently resourced corporations of metropolitan cities have average performance capability.

The consequences are there for everyone to see everyday.

Our cities are in near ruins and have become un-livable. There is no city where one can get a quality healthy life, secure for children, differently abled citizens or the elder citizenry or women. This is so not because we do not want a good city with all the economic and social opportunities for the residents, it is because there is no urban management body to anchor the city’s needs and drive its urban dreams.

What is the option? Are there any solutions possible in the foreseeable future? Is it that we do not know, what is to be done or how it is to be done?

The first part of the answer lies in the fact that we have to do the needful now. There is no more time to be lost.

It has to be now. Politics can wait.

The municipal authority has to be resurrected in every which way. There has to be a municipal services cadre which will have the responsibility to manage cities. The career aspirations will move in tandem with the city growth.

The finances of the local body need special care and attention. The Constitutional amendment mandated a State Finance body to allocate the shares of the local governments. The capacity to raise revenues though taxes and recover charges for services provided has to be in the unfettered domain of the local body and governed by economic costs and prices. We have for very long been enticed by free

The municipal authority has to be resurrected in every which way. There has to be a municipal services cadre which will have the responsibility to manage cities.

The career aspirations will move in tandem with the city growth

services of civic amenities. This has led to deterioration of the quality of the service, often leading to its nonavailability. A promise of a free service is the thin end of the wedge. Its cut is felt later when our populations have to do without water, without street cleaning or without street lights. The political leadership should refrain from making such election promises.

At present, the performance of the municipal body can be felt and seen but is not subject to scrutiny by the people.

We need to have all municipalities rated on service performance. The rating will be reviewed on an annual basis and placed in the public domain.

Indeed, it is better if the rating is on the basis of the state of locality. Unless we install the rating system, we will never be able to hold to account the official and the political class. This system will help the citizen to decide his political preference for the candidate who assures performance and the rise or drop in the rating will evidence this fact.

Clearly, it is not possible to transform the capacity and capability of the

municipal body overnight. A system of contract appointments needs to be introduced and this initiative has to be assisted by the state government.

The best available expertise needs to be inducted to navigate the systemic re-organization with IT engineered solutions. This will establish the framework for robust governance and create the much needed ability to enforce compliance. We must not underestimate the magnitude of the task as a micro detailed attention will have to be given to each and every municipal body. It will take at least 5-10 years to upgrade to a well coordinated functional and responsive governance system.

A total perspective on urban issues is the need of the hour. A touch and paint job will not yield results. The law of operational efficiency demands that fundamental flaws be addressed only at the fundamental level. We need an emergency rescue of our urban life and this can only be done if the municipal agency is rescued. Only then, will the story of municipal governance have a happy ending.

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

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Urban Mobility india

Smart cities to move people not cars: Naidu Team UrbanUpdate

New Delhi: Stating that mobility in urban areas of the country has come to be a harrowing experience, Minister of Urban Development M Venkaiah Naidu has called for radical changes in urban planning to ensure reliable, efficient and affordable public transport in urban areas. Inaugurating the four-day Urban Mobility India Conference at the Manekshaw Centre in Delhi, Naidu expressed concern over lack of equity in the use of public spaces like roads in urban areas of the country, with car owning class using them more at the expense of the common man.

The Conference was jointly organized by the Ministry of Urban Development and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to bring Mayors, Municipal Commissioners, state government officials, experts from India and abroad and technology and service providers to discuss mobility related issues and acquaint them with best practices. The theme of the conference was Transforming Mobility for Liveability.

During the inaugural session of the conference, UD Minister M Venkaiah Naidu released five publications of Institute of Urban Transport and Sustainable Urban Transport Project (SUTP): Appraisal Criteria of Urban Transport Projects, City Wide Multi modal Integrated Transport Plan, Specification for National Mobility Card, ITS in Public Transport & BRTS, Freight Management Toolkit.

In his address, the Minister said: “Mobility in urban areas is the key determinant of quality of urban life. For

36 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

many, life in urban areas is a nightmare.

People move out of homes, mostly to make a living and this is turning out to be harrowing experience.�

Naidu elaborated that the objective of developing smart cities is not to encourage use of private cars but to see that even car owners take to public transport. Atal Mission seeks to promote non-motorised transport like walking and cycling to work. Stating that lack of first and last mile connectivity is affecting use of public transport, Naidu said that New Delhi Municipal Council has been asked to conduct a study for providing such connectivity to metro services in NDMC area. Venkaiah Naidu noted that infrastructure deficit

Over 1,200 transport experts including 70 international delegates and several city leaders attended the conference.

A host of technology and solution providers in urban mobility sector exhibited their products and services in the exhibition organized alongside the conference

in urban areas of the country is due to lack of adequate advance planning for future as the country is more used to plan for meeting shortages of yesterday. ‘’Smart City Mission and Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) have been launched by the Prime Minister to reverse this trend so that cities can begin to prepare for future� he asserted.

Expressing concern over rising motor vehicle population and its consequences like congestion lowering GDP by about 3.5 per cent, rising accidents and air pollution, Naidu suggested proper integration of land use and transport planning, traffic demand management by increasing the cost of using private

vehicles, promotion of efficient public transport and environment protection.

To address these issues, Naidu suggested policy interventions like imposing deterrent congestion charges, tax measures to restrain owning and using personal vehicles, promoting vertical construction for dense living, effective parking policies, etc. Naidu also suggested that the conference should be organized in other parts of the country so the local bodies and state governments in those parts can also get benefits of such an initiative. He proposed to organize the conference in Ahmadabad next year and in Hyderabad the following year.

Shashi Verma, Director, Transport

for London (TfL) said that city mobility plans should be in sync with city development plans. There are many global cities like London where mayoral elections are won or lost on account of what a candidate has to offer to improve transport facility in the city. Verma said that Indian cities need to rethink their mobility priorities and find new avenues to support projects financially.

He highlighted the financial and operational efficiency of the transport system in London which could be imbibed in planning and operation of public transport system in Indian cities.

Earlier in his welcome address, Durga Shankar Mishra, Additional Secretary, MoUD highlighted the significance

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

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Urban Mobility india

Gurgaon Police and Bhopal Traffic Police get Best Road Safety Initiative Award

Gurgaon Police and Bhopal Traffic Police have jointly won the Ministry of Urban Development’s Urban Mobility India Award for the year 2015 for ‘Best Initiative for Improved Road Safety’.

Gurgaon Police was awarded for their ‘Let’s Talk About Road Safety’ campaign while Bhopal Traffic Police’s ‘Behtar Traffic-Behtar Bhopal’ has won them the laurels.

Babul Supriyo, Minister of State for Urban Development gave away various Urban Mobility Awards on the concluding day of the conference.

‘Best City Bus Services’ Award was jointly presented to Chhattisgarh State Urban Development Authority

38 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

and Raipur Municipal Commissioner and Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation. Municipal Commissioner, Raipur received the Award for ‘Cluster Based City Bus Project of Chhattisgarh’.

Sikkim Transport Department got ‘Commendable Initiative’ recognition for city bus services. Similar recognition was conferred on Jaipur Metro Rail Corporation for Metro Project (Phase 1 A), Indore for cycle sharing project, NOIDA for introducing Highway Traffic Management System for NOIDA-Greater NOIDA Gautam Buddha Expressway and Coimbatore Municipal Corporation for its Car Free Sundays initiative.

In Brief ♦♦ Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation was honoured for organizing city bus services in small and medium towns in the state. ♦♦ Rajkot Municipal Corporation’s Bi-cycle Sharing Project has won the Best Non-Motorised Transport System Award. ♦♦ ‘Best Intelligent Transport System Project’ Award was presented to ‘Computerised Duty Schedules’ of BEST, Mumbai

of Urban Mobility India conference.

He said the importance of this year’s theme ‘Transforming Mobility for Livability’ assumes greater importance in the context of the recently launched mission on Smart Cities and AMRUT. Babul Supriyo, Union Minister of State for Urban Development, said that urban transport is one of the key elements of the cities’ infrastructure.

We need to plan for holistic transport systems including an enabling environment for non-motorised modes of transport such as cycling and walking. This conference has been providing an opportunity to planners, officials, decision makers and experts to come together and discuss various options for resolving the problems, share the best practices and showcase the latest innovations in the domain of urban transport.

A total of three Plenary Sessions, one Panel Discussion, 15 Technical Sessions, six Round Table Discussions,

six Research Symposiums and one Leaders’ Forum were organized during the three-day conference. A quiz competition for school students and delegates was also organized in which they participated actively and tested their general knowledge on various aspects of transport planning.

In a session on improving public transport systems in the cities, transport experts said that there is need for radical shift in the policy and perception for promoting buses in cities. The application of ITS in operation of city bus services has to be used extensively. They suggested that mini buses as well as car pooling can be used as last mile connectivity modes to the transit nodes.

They added that focus should not be limited to rail network and its operation but it should cover a wider area and go beyond the station including parking for all modes and IPT & NMT facilities for last mile connectivity. To

improve the operational efficiency of traffic management in cities, experts suggested that traffic operations should be GPS enabled and real time data with the help of ITS technology should be used for smooth operation of traffic/ trip planning and route rationalisation.

On inclusive usage of road space, transport experts said that instead of focusing on adding road spaces, the effort should be on managing the existing infrastructure effectively to utilize the capacity optimally. Experts said that climate resilient urban transport should be the focus in cities and for which electric mobility vehicles should be introduced in phases and efforts should be made for advances in vehicle and battery technologies. City governments should also build charging infrastructure for such vehicles.

Participants pitched for making urban transport inclusive for People With Disabilities (PWDs). Experts said that several modes of transport are not inclusive. Though metro trains and stations are PWD friendly, the area outside the station and feeder bus service are required to be inclusive.

The objective of the conference was to bring the best practices across the globe to the knowledge of all stakeholders. Such an event also facilitates states and urban local bodies to forge Agreements of Cooperation for Technology Support with concerned agencies and organisations.

The deliberations in the Conference focused on Multimodal integration, Traffic Engineering and Safety, Real time traffic modelling, Climate Change in transportation, Pedestrians and Mode choice in Transport, Land Use Planning, Inclusive uses of road space, Strategies for low carbon transport, Shaping the future cities, etc.

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

39

events | UCLG ASPAC Culture Workshop

Raipur Mayor Elected Co-President of UCLG Culture Committee Team Urban Update

Jeju (Korea): The culture committee of the United Cities and Local Governments Asia Pacific (UCLGASPAC) organised a culture workshop on November 21-22 in Jeju, Korea.

Raipur Mayor Pramod Dubey was elected as the Co-President of UCLGASPAC Culture Committee during the event. While Won Hee-ryong, Governor of Jeju, was elected the President of the Committee. Another city of Chhattisgarh, Bilaspur also became the member of the culture committee.

Kishore Rai, Mayor of Bilaspur, Ravi Ranjan Guru, Executive Director, AIILSG along with representatives from various Asian countries attended.

Won Hee-ryong, President of UCLGASPAC Culture Committee said that there is so much to learn from each other. This is the reason why we need to be proud of being part of the most

40 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

diverse region in the world. He added that this cultural diversity can be an asset for its sustainable development, by adapting to modernization with the ability of preserving its cultural diversity.

Hee-ryong said that cities are facing serious problems such as rapid urbanisation and increased population density, increasing social inequality, disappearing public space, environment degradation, and more. Cities and local governments are making great efforts to solve these problems and culture can accordingly contribute to these efforts.

Recognising the importance of culture for sustainable urban development, UCLG world has set up the Culture Committee to promote various information-sharing projects and to play a key role in seeking systematic cooperation between cities and local governments across the world. The

Agenda 21 for culture, promoted by the UCLG Committee on Culture, is the first document at a world level to set out the principles and commitments of cities and local governments for sustainable cultural development: culture, diversity, creativity.

At present, more than 500 cities, territories and organisations all over the world are engaged in the Agenda 21 for culture and in the promotion of culture as the 4th pillar of sustainable development, unanimously approved at the UCLG World Congress held in Mexico in 2010, thereby advocating for an integrated approach to development that pays attention and balances economic feasibility, social equity, environmental responsibility and cultural vitality.

Pramod Dubey, Mayor of Raipur, said that the municipal corporation

of Raipur would inculcate cultural component into planning. Dubey said that the city would share its experience with member partners. He said that the city foresees itself to be a clean, connected, culturally cohesive and credible city. Bernadia Irawati, Secretary General, UCLG-ASPAC, said that our goal is to promote culture in Asia Pacific cities and local governments through policy formulation, exchanging cultural policies and exemplary practices, and establishing a culture network in the region. The creation of UCLG-ASPAC culture committee is aimed at providing cities in the Asia Pacific a platform to discuss various topics relating to the role of culture in sustainable development. The first UCLG Culture Summit was organised in Bilbao in March this year in which all key actors, activists and stakeholders played a pro-active role in promoting the relationship between culture, cities, development and citizens. Municipal and local government representatives from across the world, adopted “Culture 21: Actions” which are the following:

Culture, Rights and Citizenship

♦♦ Culture is made up of the values, beliefs, languages, knowledge, art and wisdom, with which a person or people, individually or collectively, express both their humanity and the meaning they give to their life and its course. ♦♦ Culture is a common good that broadens everyone’s capacity to shape his or her own future. All individuals are vehicles of culture, as well as participants in its development. ♦♦ Cultural rights are an integral part of human rights. No-one can appeal to cultural diversity to infringe upon, nor limit in scope, human rights guaranteed by international law. ♦♦ Cultural rights guarantee that everyone can access the resources they need to freely pursue their process of cultural identification throughout their life, as well as to actively participate in, and reshape, existing cultures.

♦♦ Cultural democracy is an essential element of active citizenship, promoting participation and dialogue.

Cultural Factors of Sustainable Development

♦♦ Sustainable development, or sustainability, requires the combination of a set of interconnected factors (cultural, environmental, social, and economic). ♦♦ Cultural diversity is the main heritage of humanity. Diversity should not be just about ‘the other’; it has multiple dimensions and forms part of the unique identity of every individual ♦♦ Cultural heritage, in all its multiple forms, from memories to landscapes, is a testament to human creativity, and is a resource for the construction of the identities of people and communities. ♦♦ Cultural conceptions of place are essential for the quality of life of their inhabitants. ♦♦ Cultural goods and services are different from other goods and services, because they are bearers of meaning and identity. The reduction of culture to its economic value may reduce or eliminate its contributions to the common good and, its transformative potential. ♦♦ The appropriation of information, and its transformation into shared knowledge, is a cultural act that is interdependent with the lifelong right to education and cultural participation. ♦♦ Access to cultural services and active participation in cultural processes are essential to enable people who are marginalized, impoverished, or in otherwise disadvantaged situations to overcome their difficulties and actively participate in their own inclusion in society. ♦♦ Quality online participation is essential for sustainable development. ♦♦ Cultural development is based on the interaction and cooperation of the wide variety of actors who make

up the cultural ecosystem. ♦♦ Cultural practices do not only take place in physical spaces, but also in virtual ones, which also form part of the public space. The public nature, and the opportunities offered by both, must be guaranteed.

Specific Responsibilities of Local Governments

♦♦ Local democracy is an essential basic condition of the participation of citizens in public decisionmaking. Local governments can also promote dialogue between citizens and their national governments and international institutions. ♦♦ Local governments are applying multi-actor governance frameworks (governing in dialogue with civil society and the private sector), developing cross-cutting or horizontal forms of governance (that integrate the cultural dimension into public policy) and demanding multi-level or vertical governance frameworks. ♦♦ Local governments should promote the participation of everyone in the creation, implementation, and evaluation of public policies. ♦♦ Local governments have the responsibility of guaranteeing spatial equity, both between the centers and peripheries of cities, and between cities and rural areas, paying special attention to indigenous communities. ♦♦ Local governments are essential actors in international processes, ensuring that the voices of citizens are heard on the world stage.

Local governments promote local diplomacy and participate in international cooperation in the area of culture, as an indispensable tool for creating human solidarity and exchange. ♦♦ Local governments encourage democratic citizenship and a culture of peace by promoting non-violence and the peaceful resolution of their cities’ internal and external conflicts.

Local governments are laboratories for testing effective and appropriate, solutions to global problems.

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

41

Events

Urban Age

LSE Cities celebrates 10th anniversary of Urban Age Team UrbanUpdate

LSE Cities and Deutsche Bank’s Alfred Herrhausen Society conducted a series of debates on a range of subjects concerning cities to celebrate ten years of the Urban Age programme London: LSE Cities and Deutsche Bank’s Alfred Herrhausen Society organised a total of five discussions as part of the Urban Age 2015 in the Sheikh Zayed Lecture Theatre at the London School of Economics. Urban Age conference that started its journey ten years ago in New York has been organizing seminars and debates on urban development to discuss future of cities. Urban Age 2014 was organised in New Delhi.

The debates this year discussed five core themes: Controlling Climate Change, Steering Urban Growth, The Politics of Equity, Designing Urban Infrastructure and Narratives of Inclusion. These areas have been the focus of research and debate at the Urban Age since 2005. Speakers included leading environmental and urban experts, mayors and policymakers, architects, writers, sociologists and urban thinkers who offered a global perspective on the social and spatial dynamics of 21st century urbanisation.

During a discussion organised on Controlling Climate Change, experts participated expressed their concern over increasing GHG emissions in cities. Experts participated in the discussion were Nicholas Stern, Chairman of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, Karen C. Seto,

42 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

Co-Chair of the Urbanization and Global Environmental Change Project (UGEC), Tessa Jowell, Secretary of State (UK Government), Bruce Katz, Founding Director of the Metropolitan Policy Program. In the run-up to the Paris Climate Conference (COP21), this debate highlighted the fundamental role that cities can play in reducing global energy demand and limiting carbon emissions. It challenged national and international decisionmakers and institutions to recognise that action at the metropolitan level can have a direct impact on the health and environmental stability of the planet, as well as promoting green jobs and social equity.

Another discussion on Steering Urban Growth focused on ‘Can urban growth drive wealth creation through productivity?’ Alejandro Aravena, Executive Director of ELEMENTAL, Joan Clos, Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), Rick Berndett, Director of LSE Cities, and Beatrice Galilee, Associate Curator of Architecture and Design at The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) spoke during the discussion.

Rick Berndett, Director of LSE Cities, said, “Historically, urbanisation has always been closely linked to economic development. While growth in the

mature cities of Europe and North America accelerated in the 19th century, most reached their peak by mid-20th century. Other regions of the world saw their cities grow most significantly since the 1950s. Tokyo grew by more than half a million inhabitants each year between 1950 and 1990, Mexico City and Sao Paulo by more than 300,000, and Mumbai by around 240,000.”

Experts said that more urban areas would be constructed during first three decades of this century than all of

history, placing enormous pressure on politicians, planners and architects. The reality of the urban condition, instead, reveals that in many parts of the world urbanisation has become more spatially

“

Urbanisation is not a passive outcome of development, but a creator of value. The quality of urbanisation is a major driver of cities’ value and productive capacity John Clos Executive Director UN-Habitat

fragmented, less environmentally responsive and more socially divisive.

The head of UN Habitat Joan Clos, who is coordinating the world’s most influential urban policy convention Habitat III in 2016, exchanged global experiences with practicing architects and researchers to identify whether the design and planning professions are up to the task of designing a new generation of cities that contribute to wealth creation and social equity. He said that urbanisation is not a passive outcome of development, but a creator of value. The quality of urbanisation is a major driver of cities’ value and productive capacity.

In a discussion organized on Politics of Equity, experts discussed ‘who owns the cities’. According to the experts, since 2006, over 134 million hectares of African land – roughly the size of France, Spain and Germany – has been bought by foreign investors, the region where urban growth is most expected in the next 20 years. At the same time large swathes of global cities like London, New York and Paris are owned or being developed by foreign sovereign wealth funds and international corporate investors.

Leading urban sociologist Saskia Sassen – who identified the global cities dynamic – argued that these new and tacit patterns of ownership

are having a negative impact on the ‘cityness’, vibrancy and accessibility of urban systems by cutting off parts of the city from public use. Could this form of investment and speculation in cities and buildings be causing de-urbanisation? These issues were debated with policymakers and leaders who have been involved in reshaping the structure of urban ownership and investment.

The OECD estimates that around US$ 53 trillion is required for investment in transport, energy efficiency, telecommunications, and water and waste infrastructure over the next 15 years. Yet, as the world rapidly urbanises, investment in urban infrastructure is lagging behind. Lack of vision, loss of nerve, absence of public funds and low levels of interest from investors all exacerbate this.

Nonetheless some cities across the globe are demonstrating resilience and capacity for innovation. While there is a consensus that investment in physical and social infrastructure can increase productivity, facilitate connection and promote social good, there are severe challenges and barriers to investment.

Architect Norman Foster, who has been at the forefront of urban change in cities across the world, focused on the role that design can play in tackling social, economic and environmental futures, providing the context for the examination of the broader challenges of using infrastructure to help improve quality of life and the environment in cities. Discussing the Narratives of Inclusion, eminent urban sociologist Richard Sennett and Indian author Suketu Mehta raised questions of identity, grounding and belonging in the contemporary city.

By exploring the urban experiences and narratives of migrant communities and their inextricably linked connections with both their new and their home environment, this debate considered one of the greatest challenges for any city builder today: how do we form a community within these enormous, historically unprecedented, and continuously mobile agglomerations of people?

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

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Events

Resurgent Rajasthan Partnership Summit 2015

Rajasthan organises Global Partnership Summit Team UrbanUpdate

Jaipur: Government of Rajasthan in association with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) organized the Resurgent Rajasthan Partnership Summit 2015, the two-day global investment meet,in Jaipur recently.

Union Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley; the Governor of Rajasthan, Kalyan Singh; Union Ministers Ananth Kumar, UD Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu, Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, State Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje; along with many business leaders, diplomats and government representatives from across the globe attended the event.

The summit brought together leading investors from across the world to interact with the political leadership, government officials and local business leaders to discuss investment opportunities in Rajasthan.

Japan, Singapore, Italy and South Australia were international partners in the Summit. Chief Minister announced that the commitments of investments stood at Rs. 3,30,000 crore generating 2.5 lakh jobs.

Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje said, “Under the able stewardship of the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, the Centre is nurturing an ecosystem of strong, empowered States.”Asserting that the Summit was not a one-off event, she added,“We do not live in an economy but in a society. And that is why the Rajasthan Model of Development rests on the triad of ‘Social Justice’, ‘Effective Governance’ and ‘Job Creation’.”

Chief Guest Arun Jaitley commended the Vasundhara Raje Government’s

44 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

successful efforts over the last two years to rescue Rajasthan from a precarious state of public finance and noted with satisfaction that the Resurgent Rajasthan Partnership Summit was a movement that marked a steady flow of investment into the State.

M.Venkaiah Naidu, Minister of Urban Development and Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation, said that Rajasthan was the first State to achieve total convergence in the implementation of the country’s new urban initiatives. It was also the first state to sign MoUs for promoting affordable housing projects with private and public sector companies.

The proposed investment expected from these 27 MoUs is Rs.12,478 crore and total direct employment benefit expected is 38,950 jobs in housing, health and medicare and education and institutional sectors.

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu revealed that the State Government would enter into a joint venture with the Railways to develop rail infrastructure in the State. He said 24 railway stations will be developed in the State.

Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizer, Ananth Kumar committed to set up projects worth Rs.10,000 crore.

These include a new campus of the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research in Jhalawar, upgradation of the Central Institute of Plastic Engineering and Technology at Jaipur, and setting up a Rs 5,500-crore project in Kota, marking the first investment in urea production in 20

“

We recognise the role that businesses can play in assisting the State to move to a higher growth trajectory. It is our firm belief that forging partnerships and deepening our engagement with the private sector will allow us to harness the demographic dividend and create a habitat for employment and economic growth Vasundhara Raje Chief Minister, Rajasthan

Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje and Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari launching the RR Mobile App during the Resurgent Rajasthan Summit 2015

years. He also promised to set up a plastic park in Bhiwadi and a medical devices park in the state subject to the availability of land.

Eminent Indian industrialists such as Adi Godrej, Cyrus Mistry, Anand Mahindra, Uday Kotak, Anil Ambani, Anil Agarwal, Pawan Munjal and Kumar Mangalam Birla hailed the State Government’s implementation of its reforms agenda and promotion of ease of doing business. They spoke of their presence in Rajasthan and reaffirmed their commitment to the State.

Anil Agarwal of Vedanta, which has interests in zinc and crude in the State, said the state had the potential of being “another Australia and another Canada”.Anil Ambani of ADAG Group said that his conglomerate had decided to make Rajasthan its solar growth centre. Singapore Home Minister K. Shanmugam declared that Rajasthan

was one of only two states in India that his country had decided to partner in wide-ranging initiatives. Shanmugam also revealed that Scoot, a group company of Singapore Airlines, would soon commence direct flights between Jaipur and Singapore.

Complementing the Rajasthan Government for an overwhelming response to the Resurgent Rajasthan Summit, Sumit Mazumder, President, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) & Chairman & Managing Director, TIL Limited said that the industry body expected unprecedented investments to flow into Rajasthan in the next one year, courtesy the State’s proindustry initiatives, fiscal and nonfiscal incentives and fast paced reforms aimed at enhancing transparency, ease of doing business, streamlining the regulatory environment, and ensuring time bound clearances.

(From L to R) Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitely and CM Vasundhara Raje ligting the ceremonial lamp to inaugurate the Resurgent Rajasthan Summit 2015

Opportunities abound

In all, the Strategic Partnership Summit attracted investment commitments to the tune of Rs 3,21,199 crore from business announcements, business document exchanges, expressions of interest and investment proposals that were received at the Resurgent Rajasthan Partnership Summit 2015.

Vasundhara Raje, in her valedictory address, said, “The Government alone cannot do what we dream for Rajasthan.

Our partners need to be on our side at every small step, at very large strides.

The response and excitement here during the summit was palpable and it is indeed a beacon of hope and boost in confidence that we are on the correct path and we have friends in whom we can trust.”

Talking about the way forward, Raje said, “The easy part is over now. The next steps shall involve us burning the midnight oil in implementing these investments and creating jobs for our people.”

Job Creation is one the three pillars of the Rajasthan Model of Development, the other two being Social Justice and Effective Governance.Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Chief Guest at the Valedictory Session, said there was revival of industries in Rajasthan and acknowledged the efforts of the State government in strengthening MSMEs. Going forward she hopes to see Rajasthan in the Top 3 in the Ease of Doing Business ranking.

Announcing the launch of a new National Institute of Design (NID) campus in Rajasthan, Sitharaman said, “This institute will help address the technology design needs that arise from increased industrialization and the growth of technology-intensive industries in the state.”

www.urbanupdate.in | December 2015

45

URBAN AGENDA | Liveable Cities

A right choice

“L

iveable, vibrant cities are absolutely critical to our prosperity. (They are) where the bulk of our economic growth can be found … (and they are) economic assets. Making sure that Australia is a wonderful place to live in, that our cities and indeed our regional centers which are wonderful places to live, is an absolutely key priority of every level of government. Because the most valuable capital in the world today is not financial capital … it’s human capital,” said Malcolm Turnbull, the Prime Minister of Australia.

What is underlined in this statement is the importance given to the Human Capital. In this 21st century everything is planned keeping human at the center.

The concept of liveable settlements is not a new concept for India. If we go back to our ancient civilization the townships and villages then were very much liveable. They were well planned with good connectivity, ample water supply, clean environment, good health and education facilities, well planned markets, the agriculture and cottage industries created employment opportunities making the settlement self sustained.

However, after the rapid industrialization the cities grew in haphazard manner and the increasing migration from rural to urban has hit both cities and villages, making them unliveable.

When we talk of liveable cities one can not apply a single formula to all the cities world over. Every city has a brand personality and identity of its own.

Preserving its cultural heritage and its identity the planners will have to plan things according to the people living

46 December 2015 | www.urbanupdate.in

there in and their needs and demands.

In the 18th century, one of London’s pioneer police magistrates, Henry Fielding, opened the drive to keep the streets of London clear of crime and vice to make it liveable for the citizens. But in the course of his work Fielding also went out of his way to help prostitutes and petty criminals.

He understood that the city was made up of all sorts of people with different values and cultures. And every one has to be taken care off.

Even after three centuries the problems of cities have not changes so the foundation laid Fielding is taken as base when planners plan for cities to make it liveable.

When we plan for smart cities, liveable cities and sustainable development the big question remains unanswered. That is the economical viability of these developments. Will it make change for poorest of the poor leaving there in.

Girijashankar one of senior most journalist who worked on Chhattisgarh tribal once said “ the tribal in Bastar in Chhattisgarh don’t want roads to their villages as increasing traffic on the roads make their village unliveable.”

This shows what standards we set for livability may not suit the people living there in. When we talk of increasing intolerance among the human beings, it is directly related to the concept of livability. The unliveable conditions have pushed the frustrations of every individual to a level where he overreacts on small issues creating an atmosphere of intolerance in the society.

Hence lot will have to be done but not alone by the planners and government the people living there in will have to take lead to make it their own place liveable.

Ashok Wankhade Managing Editor bhau@urbanupdate.in

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