The Public Must Exercise the Opportunity to Provide Suggestions and Objections –
You Have Been Invited by the Lieutenant Governor
Do Not Miss This Opportunity
The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has given it’s Preliminary Approval to Draft MPD-2041. Its vision is making Delhi Safe for its Citizens, Enjoyable & Vibrant to live and Sustainable for Long Term. The mantra is housing for all.
The draft has been given preliminary approval by the Lieutenant Governor (LG) Hon’ble Shri. Anil Baijal. By starting May 2021 it will be put in Public Domain for the Public to give its Suggestions and/ or Objections.
The plan is geared to enhance economic activity, at the same time tackling Air, Water & Noise Pollution. Facilitate pathways for Pedestrians and Cyclists.
An urban design concept like “Eyes On the Street” has been incorporated. Urban security is not simply a matter of policing: it is directly related to the quality of public spaces and their ability to attract people onto the streets. “If you don’t Use it, you Lose it” – so if a park is not used by the residents, then slowly anti-social elements take over and then citizens avoid visiting them, thus forming a catch 22 loop. It also means street view shops with upper floors inhabited so that people are looking at the street unconsciously. At the same time to consider Only Shops for the purpose of “eyes on the street”, would make it difficult to have a quiet residential neighbourhood – it is a double edged solution that needs creative design with balance. There lies the difficulty, the government allows certain types of activity, but people bend the rules all the time leading to crime, litigation & “Hafta” Culture.
Green Areas and Domestic Utility Shopping Complexes around Residential Complexes is warranted.
In line with the concept of Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHC) initiative by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs the Plan is suggesting building Non-Ownership Rental Housing near corridors of transportation such as the Metro. This will allow poor and migrant to get affordable housing. Today this need is met by the unorganised sector of Villages in Delhi; where within the Lal Dora facilities are basic and the Municipality is slowly catching up to provide Water, Electricity, Sewage etc. The experience in other cities is of mixed benefits, while affordable tenanted housing is provided in two room flats in multistory buildings, these become centres of crime and the more affluent society avoids them, the value of affluent neighbourhood houses also drops. Social Welfare Government Organisations take over blocks and provide housing to the EWS. They become Ghettos. Bronx in New York and Jane Street in Toronto are examples. Sources say in future such construction will be done by private builders, who will like to optimise returns.
The problem with the previous MPD was that the concept was good, but regulatory mechanisms were weak. Codes were not Strong or Practical or Not Implemented in the Right Spirit. Creating a lot of strict codes to implement a Plan also has its pitfalls. To implement and police the codes, we need Inspectors. Thus bringing back the infamous “Inspector Raj”. This also leads to burden on our Judiciary. The new MPD should have a design that automatically evolves to Public Good and Peoples Habits that automatically jives with its vision. We all have witnessed that when a commercial establishment is allowed in a residential complex the sidewalk and half the street in front is blocked by parked cars of customers; with zero enforcement; the Hafta Culture is born.
The failure of Projects is attributed only 30% to Planning and 70% to implementation. Given this statistics even if the MPD 2041 is world class, it may fail in implementation, like in the past. There lies the crux of the problem, the Plan Design should require minimum use of enforcement machinery of the State.
Once made public, it is for the Public to read, understand and comment. The Government is asking.
[Author: Lt. Col. Atul Chaudhary (V) I.A. has grown with the City. Born in the Walled City he then moved to South Delhi, having a full spectrum of experience spanning seven decades]
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Lt. Col. Atul Chaudhary (V) I.A. |
