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Will The Master Plan 2020 Ensure Quality Life?
Posted by Pradeep Sadanapalli | July 22, 2007 | 346 views
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Loading ...With the city turning a new chapter with exciting infrastructure and real estate projects, there is an opportunity to learn from mistakes and make the Master Plan-2020 a success, says M.L.Melly Maitreyi.
Never before a Master Plan was so much in news. With the capital experiencing exponential growth spurred by IT and ITES and its spin-off effect on various sectors, the population influx to city too has been on the rise creating demand for housing, transportation and other amenities.
It has become a challenging task for HUDA to prepare master plan -2020 and ensure that development is not at the cost of quality of life.
In this context, its draft revised master plan- 2020 for sustainable development keeping in mind the projected population growth of 2020 and future requirements generated quite an interest. The million dollar questions seems to be ‘Will it work?”
The gestation period of the new revised draft plan had been long. Once it was notified in 2003 for public suggestions and objections but with Outer Ring Road, Growth Corridor, Sky Scraper and other proposals, it had to be revised again to demarcate the land use for the new proposals.
The re-revised Master Plan -2020 was again notified for public suggestions and objections recently by the Department of Municipal Administration and Urban Development. But a round table on Master Plan organised by ‘Forum for A Better Hyderabad’ only brought out the disillusionment of citizens from various walks of life with the draft plan. Master Plan guidelines and building norms, were more flouted than observed. A number of water bodies, green belts disappeared over the years despite the zonal, land use and building regulations, was the common refrain.
The Master Plan also failed in planning proper road of network and public transportation and the growth only added to traffic congestion. Unorganised layouts mushroomed and even approved layouts had no amenities as per norms. There was no provision for housing for poor paving way for slums. The list of woes seemed endless.
The master and zonal plans failed to ensure a good quality of life to citizens. It is time city planners take views of civil society on any major development activity so that people would be wary of implications and seek to protect their rights for clean and quality environment, said the Forum president Vedakumar.
Some of them preferred to be blunt and said without strict enforcement , Master Plan would not be of much use and violations would continue to happen on the ground.
“When a master plan is notified after an elaborate process, it becomes a legal framework. There should be no political or Government pressure in relaxing norms or changing land use,” said a retired engineer Satyanarayana.
Murali, an environmental engineer and his wife who returned from US to settle down in city are deeply disappointed that even new areas like Hitech city, Madhapur have no basic amenities like underground drainage, piped water supply. Logically basic infrastructure, amenities, road network should be developed first including traffic impact study based on the development planned in the area, before approving layouts. “It is important to value environment and conserve it for future generations. Otherwise short term gains would reduce master plan to a mockery,” they say.
But HUDA sources clarify that while their responsibility is to prepare a master plan making judicious use of land for different purposes and protecting green spaces, water bodies and heritage structures, they have no enforcement powers. Despite HUDA caution, people invest in plots in unauthorised layouts and the plots were also registered. It is a vicious circle, they say.
“We get thousands of applications seeking change of land use . Sadly most of them get granted too at some level,” reveal some sources.
In the new draft master plan, HUDA has allocated more than adequate area, upto 500 sq.km for residential and commercial purpose, and introduced multiple use zone to give more flexibility, yet more of the suggestions were again for increasing residential zones at the cost of green cover, they reveal.
With the capital region turning a new chapter with exciting infrastructure and real estate projects, there is an opportunity to learn from mistakes and make the master plan-2020 a success, by enforcing it that is, to transform Hyderabad into a global city. Can the Government do it this time round ?
SOURCES:
The Hindu
Topics: Reports, Real Estate |
One Response to “Will The Master Plan 2020 Ensure Quality Life?”
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July 23rd, 2007 at 7:28 pm
Yes, quality of life is a good concept to consider in Greater Hyderabad.