Ecology - Question of Cities

Why Mumbai should look beyond Chitale Committee report

In the aftermath of the July 2005 flood, the fact-finding committee submitted its report within nine months. The Madhav Chitale Committee report was widely hailed on two counts – for showing Mumbai’s grave deficiencies in flood management and suggesting a…

Reimagining Mumbai: From flood-prone to sponge city

Over the years, reckless development has destroyed the city’s ecology, increasing the risk of floods. Mumbai’s lakes, marshes, and salt pans used to absorb monsoon rains and mitigate floods but they have been built upon or covered with concrete. As…

Rain anxiety trumps the ‘spirit of Mumbai’ for millions

For many in Mumbai who lived through or know of the devastating flood on July 26-27, 2005, every monsoon brings back the nightmare. Those living in informal settlements, the homeless, the millions of commuters, show great anxiety about a possible…

Why Mumbai has failed to become flood-ready

The city of dreams is wading through a flood of problems. The rain photos are the same every year — people negotiating knee-deep water, traffic jams, stationary trains in submerged waters. The rainfall has intensified over the years, increasing the…

Climate disasters are connected to the way our cities are planned

Cities have completely ignored their natural areas. If mapped and made available on a public database, people can be empowered with the knowledge about them and can decide to protect them. Mapping a city’s ecology can radically change the way…

Guwahati’s green cover is declining but is key to its climate resilient future

The rising temperatures in Guwahati underscore the need for trees and green areas to combat climate impacts, but the city does not have dedicated projects to preserve or enhance them. There has been an 87.8 percent reduction in dense and…

Ladakh: The meltdown in the cold desert as people fast for nature

The 21-day fast by engineer, educator and activist Sonam Wangchuk in March drew attention to the fragile ecology of Leh-Ladakh and the rights of local people over nature as development projects made a beeline after Article 370 was read down…

For better cities, map and integrate all open spaces into urban planning

Gardens, promenades, boardwalks, wetlands, salt pans, beaches, promenades, green connectors amid a city’s concrete, are vital open spaces which make it more liveable. The most iconic open spaces combine a multitude of urban functions: ecological, social, public health, public safety,…

Mahalaxmi Racecourse: A public open expanse, threatened by a theme park

One of Mumbai’s largest and most recognisable open spaces, the Mahalaxmi Racecourse, attracts hundreds of joggers, walkers, sportspersons, and yoga enthusiasts among others. The theme park planned here will likely shrink the precious open space, replace the green with some…

How open spaces impact the ecological health of cities

When urban development, largely understood to mean construction, gathers pace to accommodate more people and commerce, one of the first casualties is open spaces. It is easy to “let go” of open spaces in the name of ‘development’ but this…