Even after concerted efforts made by central and state governments, housing shortage has assumed frightening proportions. It is estimated that there is a housing shortage of nearly 25 million dwelling units affecting 67 million households. Most of this housing shortage pertains to low income families.
Urbanization is occurring at an unprecedented rate, particularly in developing countries, with high migration of population from rural to urban areas. As a consequence of urbanization and associated environmental impacts, the issue of providing water to growing urban population is becoming critical. Water management in the context of urban area has two components i.e.
Multiplicity of imagining cities is the core concern of this paper. Multiple images and arenas have shaped Indian cities. It is argued that the present city is being influenced by the global styles of architecture, urban design and technologies.
By taking a case study from Chennai, this paper qualitatively assess pedestrian environment in an institutional zone. Techniques for assessing pedestrian facilities are discussed before undertaking evaluation of the pedestrian environment. Through this evaluation of pedestrian amenities and the quality of the pedestrian environment, the authors reveal serious shortcomings.
Level of urbanization has been increasing in India since the last five decades. This trend is likely to continue in the near future. More people will become city residents, increased number of people will have to necessarily live on a limited amount of developed land. In this context, people will demand more housing and everything else associated with urban living including modern physical and social infrastructure. These facilities will be provided with intense use of technology. This urban condition could have devastating climatic and sustainability consequences.
Metropolitan growth is emerging fast across urban India while the country's municipal institutions have neither the mandate nor the vision or the capacities for metropolitan governance. Reforms were initiated with the landmark 74th Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA) in 1992 to provide political, functional and financial empowerment to urban local bodies. Simultaneously, this Act provided for formation of "metropolitan planning committees" (MPCs) for individual metropolitan areas.
