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Cities Infrastructure

Rethinking India’s Urbanization

India’s urbanization over the last two decades has been unprecedented in history. At no time have cities grown at such alarming rates. And the lack of initiative and policy early on is now catching up with alarming results.

Even after adding two additional lines (increasing capacity by 50%)on the suburban network, there is no difference. Trains are still jampacked with people and the metro wont be available for a few years. The solutions are many but they are stop gap, ill conceived, short sighted and half baked.

All the good that India Shining brings will be undone if infrastructure does not play catch up. And infrastructure is only one element of the entire urbanization phenomenon.

At a recent conference on Urban habitats…

Philipp Rode, Executive Director, Urban Age; Associate, Cities Programme, London School of Economics & Political Science spoke on “Shaping Cities of Our Future”. He revealed the findings of the Urban Age India Conference held in Mumbai last year and released the Urban Age India Report. “India’s urban agenda is clearly a global issue given that India is the second most populous country in the world. Indian cities are faced with issues of social equity, of overloaded infrastructure and environmental sustainability. The way these cities will deal with these problems and how the upcoming cities will be planned can have a decisive impact on the world at large.” said Mr.Rode

Anupam Yog Founder & Managing Director of Mirabilis Advisory who anchored the discussion concluded that building successful cities which drive economic growth while reducing poverty will be critical to the future of India.

Historically India has been averse to the phenomenon of urbanization. The current response towards urbanization is also marked by short-term and quick-fix solutions. But, there is a critical need to develop innovative ideas for future cities with a long term view. The symposium attempted to better understand the opportunities and challenges that existed in shaping that vision and implementing it.

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