The folks from the centuries past had some audacious predictions for their future cities – sky-highways with flying cars, buildings beyond rudimentary engineering and futuristic homes with a full-time robot-butler. Granted, some of these visions are far from realistic, but improvements in the livability of the ever-growing cities seem equally elusive.
A nation that was grappling with post-colonial existence with a broken economy had little in the way of structured development or financial capabilities to create the infrastructure on par with her western contemporaries. Indian villages and towns that exploded into megacities over the decades since Independence are slow in adapting to basic requirements like affordable housing.
At the helm of the development of about a hundred smart future cities under the Smart City Mission, and subsequent others, eliminating the more common problems of city planning is imperative. In a broader sense, the planners, the administration and the people are essentially three separate entities with unique sets of issues that are discussed below.
Informed Planning | Future Cities
The capabilities of urban planners in designing for the future are a factor of the resources at their disposal. The task of solving the problems that impact millions of people requires dependable data and analysis, the lack of which sets up the process for failure. City planners understand the urban fabric on a physical as well as visceral level. The onus falls upon them to translate this complex subject into a widely understandable dialogue that every section of society can partake in. Furthermore, informed application and adaption of existing bye-laws are significant in adapting to the burgeoning demands of the Tier I cities.
Effective Implementation
The conceptualization of the cities and prescription of retro-active measures is only half the battle. Strict and binding laws govern almost every typology and aspect of construction to ensure quality control and safety. The execution of the public infrastructure design sees the worst of the system, owing to the compartmentalization of the various offices whose portfolios collide in the uphill battle of due process.
Public Participation | Future Cities
If you find yourself being surprised by new lane expansions or flyovers- often in person or through a newspaper headline – chances are that you’re not the only one. The communities that inhabit the parcels of the city are rarely ever involved in shaping the city plans. Upon extrapolating any other type of design service and the significance placed in user experience for the development, it becomes clear that the cities of India are not people-centric. The hegemony of the vehicular networks pushes pedestrians, vendors and elements of the public realm to the periphery. Furthermore, women’s safety, universal accessibility and welfare of children need to be built into the structure of cities and not as optional retrofits.
Visibility of the public in decision-making promotes awareness, in turn giving citizens ownership of their built environment. Policies not in line with the interest or behavioural tendencies of the masses can be checked and instead can be addressed from conception.
Indian cities do not need to adopt the western image of high rises and suburbs to qualify to global standards. Nothing destroys the identity of a place like the blind imitation of distant instances that have neither climate nor culture in common. The inherent sensibilities and unique character of Indian architecture in stride with proactive measures in city planning will ensure that we leave the national infrastructure in a better state than we found it.
