Lack Of Trained Urban Planners Impedes Sustained Growth Of Cities

All three scenarios have in common, a lack of infrastructure, haphazard planning, flouting of construction norms and congestion. Add to it the anti-people public transport such as the jampacked Mumbai locals and people hanging off buses in Chennai, the mix is how every city resident in India gets by every day. 

Despite efforts over the years to ensure urbanisation was uniform, the liveability in cities across the country has not improved and residents continue to grin and bear the trauma of life in the city.

India has experienced rapid urbanisation coupled with population growth in recent decades and has one of the largest urban areas in the world. Currently, 11 per cent of the global urban population lives in Indian cities, and by 2030, projections say 40 per cent of the country's population will be in the cities.

Half of the country's population will be considered "urban" in the coming decades. This unprecedented growth is expected to contribute to 73 per cent of the total population increase by 2036.

The use of master plans for city development, which began with Delhi in 1962, has been implemented in several Indian cities. However, the development of comprehensive master plans has lagged, posing a significant concern as they are vital for city planning. With urban planning not getting the attention it deserves, state and city administrations have been, at best, reactive in their approach to urban issues and, as a result, left grappling with basic demands.

“India is undertaking the largest planned urbanisation program in the world,” Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said in November 2023. Puri had reason to be proud owing to how the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) had initiated the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) and the City Investments to Innovate, Integrate and Sustain 2.0 (CITIIS 2.0) towards that end.

CITIIS 2.0 is in partnership with the French Development Agency, Kreditanstaltfür Wiederaufbau, the European Union, and the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA). 

What ails cities in India? The Secretariat zeroes in on the causes behind the decline in liveability and explores solutions to address the problems plaguing cities. 

Lack Of Domain Specialists

A study by the Town and Country Planning Organisation (TCPO) and NIUA for the NITI Aayog reveals a shortage of over 12,000 town planner positions in state, town, and country planning departments. Currently, there are less than 4,000 town planner positions, and half are vacant.

This personnel shortage, the absence of multidisciplinary teams and the non-requirement of a town planning degree qualification for specialist roles have led to cities in India developing the way they have. Further, the lack of a strong professional identity in urban planning worsens the issue.

Improper Utilisation Of Urban Land

In India, 3.1 per cent of the land is categorised as urban, with a mix of highly utilised and underutilised areas. Various public sector organisations, such as ports and railways, own land within their jurisdictions. To guarantee the organic development of cities, a comprehensive spatial strategy is required that promotes inclusive utilisation of urban spaces. This calls for interventions in urban land governance and digitisation of records. Given that land is a finite resource, prioritising densification over sprawl is crucial.

Lack of urban planning has resulted in soaring real estate prices, chaotic city growth, and increased pollution.

Similarly, urban planning should prioritise short commute distances for residents to avoid losses. Transit-oriented development (TOD) integrates land use and transport planning to create sustainable urban growth centres with walkable communities and mixed land-use. By concentrating development near transit, TOD maximises public capital and minimises infrastructure costs. 

Despite the availability of a large metro rail network, many Indian cities, including Delhi, have struggled to effectively implement TOD. Delhi's Metro corridors suffer from poor planning, low density, and insufficient last-mile connectivity to stations. The Ministry of Urban Development's TOD Policy, implemented in 2017, allows for increasing density along transit corridors by increasing the floor area ratio.

Fragmented Institutions

The government has been focusing on developing smaller cities in order to provide more employment opportunities and improve infrastructure, which can help alleviate the strain on larger cities due to migration from rural areas. The Smart Cities Mission involves policymakers, architectural firms, and urban planners working to enhance 100 cities and bring this vision to life. Let's explore the current stakeholders responsible for city planning.

Urban planning in India has long been disconnected from local democracy, dating back to colonial times. Development authorities have failed to decentralise power to local governments or dismantle entrenched power structures, despite gaining more authority. Moreover, despite the 74th Amendment, legislations regulating urban planning and development authorities remains unchanged, which has neglected the democratic planning procedures.

Cities around the world have adopted more dynamic planning processes, while India continues to rely on the Master Plan model to regulate development. However, the focus on spatial frameworks neglects transportation and environmental factors.

Even when these aspects are considered, they lack legal enforceability, diminishing the effectiveness of Master Plans. As a result, cities in India are usually divided into separate zones for residential, commercial, and industrial purposes.

Foresight Thinking For Future Cities

Participatory stakeholder-based foresight methods can develop city visions, transforming cities for a sustainable future.

A single window clearance authority, such as Maharashtra's three-month clearance system for housing societies, can improve transparency and speed up development in cities. Nodal agencies should oversee financing, and this model should also be applied to city planning.

Implementing mixed land use regulations in expanding cities is crucial for densification and preventing uncontrolled sprawl. TOD plays a vital role in integrating land use and transport for urban planning. By creating homes and businesses near transit stations, TOD meets residents' needs and increases density. 

However, inadequate coordination, weak public transport, and lack of regulations are hindering implementation. To address this, a single clearance authority with mixed land-use planning is necessary. Additionally, the rationalistic master planning system in Indian cities has flaws, causing discrepancies between plans and reality.

Cooperation between agencies and the formation of a statutory body, such as the National Council of Town and Country Planners, can help formalise urban planning and bridge the gap between plans and implementation.

Therefore, a policy that has foresight and action together becomes crucial to save urban spaces from collapsing due to infrastructural and natural shortcomings. 

(The author is a public policy and urban transportation enthusiast and specialist. Views expressed are personal)