Urban Planning | Development and design of urban landscapes

India’s missing pavements, thanks to car-centric planning and official apathy

Life happens on pavements or footpaths in cities across India. A mind-boggling number of people walk to work or for leisure every day and the informal economy of hawkers and service providers supports millions. Yet, pavements are either absent on…

Footpaths in India: The dangerous gap between policy and reality

Walking on Indian footpaths is like a hurdle race given the many obstacles present on them. We do not need walkability studies…

Mapping neighbourhoods, one by one, to improve walkability

Except in a few select areas of the city, pavements in Mumbai are a poor apology for walking infrastructure and common space.…

Where pavements hold space for conversations and ideas, besides mobility

Some cities in the world see pavements as insignificant in the urban design, a waste of space on car-centric roads, but other…

Sustainable drainage essential to solve Guwahati’s flood crisis

Assam is highly vulnerable to climate change and its largest city, Guwahati, bears the brunt of it. The change in rainfall pattern…

When celebrations also mean bad air, deafening noise and waste mounds

The glitter and bonhomie of festivals in India bring in unwanted and unhealthy guests in the form of pollution and waste. Every…

How cities subtly changed the flavour of festivals

People in cities celebrate their traditional cultural festivals - with a difference. As city living becomes more demanding and public spaces shrink,…

The neoliberal state and the environmental cost of Neopolis

That Hyderabad’s urban planning trajectory is informed by neoliberal logic is evident in the new sub-city Neopolis. This approach sees the urban environment purely through an economic lens which severely affects the natural infrastructure of the place. Despite the government’s…

New cities, old predicaments: Role of planning in climate mitigation

Urban planning and policies play a crucial role in the relationship between cities and the climate crisis. This is evident in the…

Rethink Guwahati’s building bye-laws for net-zero carbon future

As Assam’s largest city Guwahati urbanises rapidly, emissions have increased. Rising temperatures and extreme rainfall triggered by Climate Change have worsened the…