Reviewing, Revising, and Redefining Master Plans and Development
Plans to Make Them Better Master Plans/Development Plans
*Jit Kumar Gupta
**jit.kumar1944@gmail.com
Master Plans/Development Plans have been frequently/ invariably/universally used by the Physical Planner/Town Planners, as the most important planning tool to regulate the growth and development of the city. Master Plans/Development also remains the most important weapon in the armory of the Physical Planner/Town Planners for defining the future growth and development of the cities and towns. Preparing Master Plans/Development Plans remains a cost-intensive and time-intensive exercise involving large manpower and time span besides considerable cost and effort on the part of private and public agencies involved in the preparation of such plans. Preparing and finalizing such plans have genesis in the law under which these plans are prepared. A large number of such plans have been prepared and made operational during the last many years. The First Master Plan of Delhi was prepared in the year 1961, whereas Master Plan 2041 is now in an advanced stage of preparation. Looking at its efficacy and efficiency, it can be seen and observed that Master Plans/ Development Plans have done more damage than good for the planned growth and development of the cities to which they have been made applicable. These plans have been violated with impunity both by the people, communities, cities, and parastatal agencies; for the betterment/welfare for which these plans were prepared. These plans have been visualized as controllers of development rather than promoters of development. Instead of planned development, these plans have been usherers of unplanned development. These plans are known to be responsible for promoting large number of slums besides making the quality of life poor for the majority of the urban inhabitants. Cities under Master Plans are also known to promote exclusion rather than inclusion. Master Plans/Development Plans are known to promote prosperity for few and marginalize the large proportions of the local community by making them poor. Instead of catering to urban dynamism, Master Plans/Development Plans try to freeze the city, for the next two decades, to which it is made to serve. Despite all odds, Master Plans/Development Plans remain valuable documents in the parlance of urban planning, development and management. In the absence of such plans. Cities may have been worse and poor in growth and development. Looking at dualities and contradictions; positivities and negativities; Master Plans/Development Plans must be made more focused, rational and responsive to the rational/planned growth and development of cities. In order to make these documents effective, efficient, productive and promoters of planned development; the intent, contents , scope and methodology of preparing such plans must be objectively reviewed; professionally revised and redefined. Planners need to understand and appreciate, that cities remain most vibrant and dynamic entities, always evolving , always devolving never static, and never finite; then how a static documents like Master Plan/Development Plans, based purely on land use planning can cater to urban dynamism. With ever changing physical, social, economic needs of the local communities and ever changing soft and hard technologies, cities remain difficult to define and can never be put into water tight compartment and frozen for next two decades. For making Master Plans/Development Plans, rational and realistic document; working as promoters of planned development, Planners must come out with a new agenda to enable these plans to service and promote the welfare of the community and city. If Planners, as human mortals, cannot define their own future then surely, they have no right to freeze the future of the city and thousands/millions of people making cities their preferred place for living and working. If cities are to be made better places to live and work; Planners must come out with an innovative agenda, based on ground realities, to make Master Plans/Development Plans better Master Plans/Development Plans. Opting for better Master Plans/Development Plans could involve and include; Making cities compact; planning for people and not for vehicles; promoting accessibility rather than mobility; valuing nature , culture and local communities; using and embedding nature and natural resources as integral part of planning; accepting right to shelter but never accepting right to own the shelter; promoting co-operative cities; creating space for poor to live and work; accepting universal right to skill, healthcare, education and employment as the basic rights of communities; providing framework for basic amenities and services; ensuring universal access to open spaces; planning for safety and security of communities; promoting planning based on circular economy; Rationalising land market and eliminating speculation; optimizing land resource; using urban land 24x7x365; optimizing water; making cities self-sustaining/self-reliant and defining precisely the measurable indicators of city growth and development. For achieving and promoting the urban dynamism; each development project, submitted for approval at the local level, whether government/ private, must be critical studied and objectively evaluated by a group of professional experts having knowledge, skill, understanding and expertise in urban planning/development/management, within the framework of the pre-defined guidelines/ norms and standards and considering the usability of the project for the city/communities; based on larger public interest rather than personal interest. Planners, hold adequate skill, expertise capacity and capability to redefine the agenda of preparing better Master Plans/Development Plans; Lack of will and commitment to redefine the Master Plans/Development Plans, will adversely impact, dilute, mute and marginalize the planners and planning profession besides efficacy , efficiency and credibility of such plans, as promoters of planned growth and developmental in the urban context..