The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs, Government of India has come out with a National Urban Policy Framework (NUPF)-2018 which outlines an integrated and coherent approach towards the future of urban planning in India. The NUPF is structured along two lines. Firstly, at the NUPF’s core lie ten sutras or philosophical principles, which include:
(i) Cities are Clusters of Human Capital;
(ii) Cities require a ‘Sense of Place’ (i.e. Indianness);
(iii) Not static Master Plans but evolving Ecosystems;
(iv) Build for Density;
(v) Public Spaces that encourage Social Interaction;
(vi) Multi-modal Public Transport Backbone;
(vii) Environmental Sustainability;
(viii) Financially Self-Reliant;
(ix) Cities require Clear, Unified Leadership; and
(x) Cities as Engines of Regional Growth.
Secondly, the ten sutras are applied to ten functional areas or pillars of urban space and management as demonstrated in Figure 1. These ten pillars are: Urban Economy; Physical Infrastructure; Social Infrastructure; Housing and Affordability; Transportation and Mobility; Urban Planning and Design; Urban Finance; Urban Governance; Urbanization and Information System; and Environmental Sustainability. Within each functional area, the status quo and its challenges are analyzed, key priorities are formulated, and specific possible actions points suggested. The vision underpinning NUPF 2018 is to see cities as complex and changing agglomerations of people who are constantly interacting with each other, with socio-economic institutions and with the built environment. The NUPF recognizes that the urban evolution takes place slowly but, once embedded, its impact can remain in place for decades or even centuries. Therefore, this Policy framework would go a long way for sustainable urbanisation in the country.
