London to test ‘smart city’ operatingsystem +29

Gujarat tops in projects under JNNURM +O3

Revised draft of National Water Policy 2012 recommends PPP model for services +12

Policy 03 n Focus City 05 n Energy 07 n Green 08 n Water 12 n Special Feature 13 n Waste 17 n Finance 20 n Transport 21 n Real Estate 23 n Housing 25 n Safety 27 n E-Governance 29 n Events 30

` 50 / us $5 June 2012Volume I l Issue 4 www.urbannewsdigest.in

Administrative decentralization seeks to redistribute authority, responsibility and financial resources for providing public services among different levels of governance. It is the transfer of responsibility for the planning, financing and management of public functions from the central government or regional governments and its agencies, to

l o c a l gove r n m e nt s , s e m i-autonomous public authorities or corporations, or area-wide, regional or functional authorities. With the trifurcation of Delhi and the application of rightsizing,

decentralization has been taken to a new level with the application of the principle of rightsizing. ‘Rightsizing’ refers to the process of bringing cities down to a ‘right’ size, meaning a size proportionate to an urban local body’s ability to service the needs of its citizens.

Municipal governance in India has been in existence since 1687 with the formation of Madras

Municipal Corporation by a Royal Charter issued by King James II. In 1882, Lord Ripon, who was the Viceroy at that time, passed a res-olution of local self-government, according to which the enormous

Local Boards were split into smaller units so as to achieve greater efficiency. Thus, Lord Ripon’s con-cept of municipal authorities as units of self government has its rel-evance even after 130 years since he passed his resolution.

In the current scenario with increasing population, the pressure on Urban Local Bodies is escalating with each passing year. Maybe the time has come to revisit Lord Ripon’s policy and split the existing large municipal corporations for better governance. In one of the biggest administrative reforms in the capital, Delhi has trifurcated the world’s second largest civic body after Tokyo, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) into North, East and South Delhi corporations.

On the issue of trifurcation, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had said that since Delhi’s population is dense, it will lead to better area wise management. “Further, de-centralisation and distribution of resources through a statutory body like Delhi Finance Commission to three Corporations for focused local area development with better management of public assets will go a long way in fulfilling the aspirations of people as far as local administration is concerned,” she said.

Explaining on the need of right-sizing of urban local bodies/munic-ipal corporation, urban designer KT Ravindran said that this is a very good move and will bring the local bodies closer to the people and local bodies will become more accountable after this.Contd. on page 2...

Rightsizing for good governanceIn one of the biggest administrative reforms in the capital, the Delhi government trifurcated the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) into North, East and South Delhi corporations. Is it time for other large urban local bodies to follow suit?

“The idea of trifurcation strengthened when we realized that Delhi had

grown too large over the years. Our thought process was supported by the

Virendra Prakash, Balkrishnan and Saigal committee reports that advocated smaller municipal

bodies. We realized it was difficult to control one such big city from one headquarter.”

- sheila DikshitChief Minister, Delhi

2 COVeR sTORY June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

...Contd. from page 1Ravindran says: “In Delhi

almost 95% of the area was under MCD and delivering services to so many people was a Herculean task. With this trifurcation, people have come closer to the local bodies. The idea is good but there are certain other problems. For instance man-agement of infrastructure, partic-ularly, water and electricity which is part of a larger system. There is also the issue of disposal of solid waste. Municipal services pertain-ing to these provisions will become tougher to manage and entire cor-poration co-ordination is required. For instance, if there is a pipeline problem in one area, the other area will also face the problem and this can’t be solved on its own. Provi-sions of social infrastructure pro-vided at lower rung, like, health cen-tres, community centres would be better managed and improve con-siderably in no time because people and corporation would get closer. But for higher end of the provi-sions, it will be difficult to manage and will require a systemic solu-tion. A synergy needs to be devel-oped and somebody needs to take on that role.”

The other issue, which R av i n d r a n o u t l i n e d , w a s regarding governance in terms of participation as certain areas are wealthy and others are not. For instance, East Delhi Corporation has a lot of non formal markets and those sectors are more difficult to be managed by a local body because they often operate outside the tax network. Also, the source of energy and water is not always legal. East Delhi has a huge market too but they are untapped for municipal revenue. So this corporation requires more elaborate management system to formalise these markets in the non formal sectors, bringing unauthorised colonies in the tax bracket sector, and dealing

with physical development of unauthorised colonies. All these are more complex issues and need to be handled by the lower level.

Also there are disparities in resource allocation. The per capita water allocation in central and south Delhi is more compared to east Delhi. There are areas in east, which get only 40 litres a day whereas there are areas in central Delhi which get 240 litres of water a day.

On having three mayors in the same city, the expert said, “Delhi already has a lieutenant governor and the Chief Minister. So there isn’t a need to create one more power centre by appointing one mayor for all the three bodies. Now is the time that we should look at more differentiated government policy and it should get closer to the people. Also, by having three

mayors, there is better political accountability. This is a good thing which has happened. But how well we manage is something to be seen.”

A study conducted by the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission ( JNNURM) directorate, which comes under the Union urban development ministry, and Delhi-based think tank National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) says Mumbai and Kolkata are the slowest growing cities in terms of the infrastructure on offer for their inhabitants. Greater Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, C h e n n a i , B a n g a l o r e a n d Hyderabad are among the 10

largest cities in the country. But the government survey shows that growth has stagnated in these massive urban centres. When asked if such corporations in India should go the Delhi way for better management, Ravindran said, if they are facing similar problems they must go. The pattern in every city is not the same like Delhi. If it is required, it should be locally decided. The decision to decentralise must come from the local bodies, only then will it be more sustainable. If it is imported from outside then it might lead to chaos.

The experience in the first few months of trifurcation has not been encouraging. Repair work of seven of the agency’s swimming pools has been stalled; ‘AA’ rating awarded to MCD by international agency Fitch Ratings has been

withdrawn; BJP, Congress are fighting for space at the civic centre; and fear looming over cash strapped East Delhi Municipal council of losing its headquarter.

“It is diff icult to judge whether specific decentralisation p r o g r a m m e s f a i l e d d u e to weakness in design or implementation. But there are administrative problems and not enough has been done by municipal corporations in our country. There are many loop holes, like inefficient work delivery, and week data base which needs to be worked out. So there is a need for better participation by people,” Ravindran concluded.

There is an ongoing debate among analysts— some say small states won’t be economically viable while others believe small states will fare better, since ordinary people will have better access to their government. Let us study the record of three states carved out of larger ones in 2000 – Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand.

If we ignore data for the first few transitional years and focus on the average growth rate of gross state domestic we will see that all three new states have grown speedily.

Uttarakhand was once considered the poorest and the most backward part of UP. After statehood, it is growing by leaps and bounds. Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh were the most backward parts of Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, but after becoming separate states, they have emerged as industrial hubs. Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh have ample minerals like coal and iron. However, they are not growing fast simply through mining. Research firm Indicus Analytica says:

“Since 2001, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh have moved up into the top 10 (industrial states), displacing Rajasthan and Punjab. The phenomenal growth in these two states has seen the share of manufacturing in their GDP rise dramatically as they have attracted industrial projects. Looking at the share of income that originates in the manufacturing sector, these two states have shown higher levels than Maharashtra, Haryana and Tamil Nadu. Being newer and smaller states, they responded more rapidly than their larger — and in some cases better endowed — neighbours… Raipur in Chhattisgarh has now entered the top 10 districts of India in manufacturing, with two industrial estates at Urla and Siltara”.

The two states account for 68% of all Maoist attacks but they are achieving fast growth inspite of the insurgency. This is a major economic feat and it shows the dynamism created when backward regions become separate states.

economic growth of newly formed states

“Now is the time that we should look at more differentiated government

policy and it should get closer to the people. Also having three mayors,

there is better political accountability. This is a good thing

which has happened. But how well we manage is something to be seen.”

-K T Ravindran, URBAN DESIGNER

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policy

The general body of the state of Goa urban development agency has been reconstituted by the state government. With this step, the agency can now take policy decisions on development proj-ects financed by the state and/or the centre. The newly consti-tuted body will pass resolutions on financial and administrative matters and will also make dif-ferent rules for staff recruitment, travel allowance, smooth func-tioning of the administration of the agency, etc.

The minister for urban

development will head this body. Apart from him there will be a representative of ministry of urban development in New Delhi, the state secretary for urban development, state joint secretary (finance) and the direc-tor for planning, statistics and evaluation among others.

The panel will also include principal chief engineer of the PWD, managing director for the Goa state infrastruc-ture development corporation and the director of municipal administration.

Hoping to be included in the sec-ond phase of JNNURM, the Tiru-chi Corporation has set up a two-three month deadline to draw up a city development plan (CDP). Five major areas to be focused under CDP are - economic and urban development, infrastructure development, environmen-t a l i m p r o v e m e n t , u r b a n

management, and reforms and urban governance.

Requirements of infrastruc-ture and basic amenities in all the 65 wards will be drawn up. Two com-mittees, one for policy making and the other a technical one, would be formed to assess the projects to be taken up. People or organisations are also free to send in their proposals.

Tamil Nadu Minister for Munic-ipal Administration and Rural Development KP Munusamy introduced a Bill to further amend the laws relating to the Municipal Corporations and Municipalities.

This would benefit peo-ple with total disability in one or both hands or legs, spastics, totally dumb or deaf persons or totally blind persons by exempt-ing them from the payment of professional tax.

A Bill on urban vendors has been drafted and sent to the law ministry for vetting and recommendations. The urban vendors will be provided legal safeguard by the first ever Bill, which will prevent harassment they face by civic and police authorities.

Goa state urban development agency reconstituted and empowered

City development plan soon: Tiruchi

Bill to protect urban vendors on track

TN plans to amend Urban Local Bodies Acts

By the end of March 2012, Guja-rat completed almost 50% of the projects sanctioned under

JNNURM while Maharashtra, which got maximum number of projects, struggled to finish only

14 of the 80 sanctioned projects costing Rs 1,16,000 crore. Guja-rat was sanctioned 72 projects costing Rs 5,605 crore. States like Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh too had a better record compared to Maharashtra. While Karnataka completed 21 out of 47 projects, Andhra managed to successfully fin-ish 18 of the 52 projects sanc-tioned. The cost for the entire projects was Rs 3,693 crore and Rs 4,988 crore in the two states respectively.

Major projects undertaken by Gujarat include railway over-bridges (RoBs) and flyovers, water supply schemes and some sewerage schemes. Similarly Karnataka and Andhra under-took similar projects to develop their respective states.

Gujarat tops in projects under JNNURM

Land acquisition has become a politically charged issue in recent times, giving rise to much unrest in the areas where land acqui-sition was undertaken. Thus to make an effective Land Acqui-sition, Rehabilitation and Reset-tlement Bill the parliamentary working committee has recom-mended drastic changes to the Bill, which greatly restrict the conditions under which the state can acquire land from land own-ers. These recommendations have been made by the Stand-ing Committee on Rural Devel-opment comprising of MPs from various political parties.

According to the reworked Bill private players and pub-lic-private partnerships would have to purchase land in the open market if their projects involve any element of profit. It has pro-posed that acquisition of land by the state for the private sector, including public-private part-nership projects, should not be allowed. The Bill also puts the onus of winning the consent of the land-owners on the private companies. Among other rec-ommendations, the panel wants all social sector and infrastruc-ture projects to be channelled through the state governments. The panel has also suggested that

states should decide on the mar-ket value of land acquired, but in all cases of acquisition relief and rehabilitation must be given. The committee also wants all acqui-sition to be carried out after con-sultation with the local Gram Sabha and Panchayat. However, the committee’s recommenda-tions are not binding upon the government.

On the other hand, Union Minister of Rural Development Jairam Ramesh said that most of the recommendations given by the committee related to preserv-ing the federal structure would be accepted, but he emphasised that the government would have to play an important role in land acquisition.

Ramesh also agreed to provide a proper role to local self govern-ments - including tribal areas - in making land acquisition. How-ever, he said it wouldn’t be possi-ble to totally avoid acquisition of land for development purposes. In fact, rural development min-ister Jairam Ramesh has rooted for the inclusion of PPP projects in the Land Acquisition, Rehabil-itation and Resettlement (LARR) Bill, 2011, for ensuring faster eco-nomic growth. But he has also admitted that the issue is ‘con-tentious’ and ‘had to be discussed

further with the states’.Meanwhile, the Confeder-

ation of Indian Industry (CII) President Adi Godrej said, “The Standing Committee report on land will adversely affect the manufacturing sector as it doesn’t factor in industry needs. The industry has been left to fend for itself. The land acquisition process will become more com-plex and a ban on acquisition of land for public-private partner-ship projects is detrimental.”

Important recommendationsof the panel on the existingLARR Bill :

• Limit land acquisition by state to infrastructure and social sectors.

• For-profit ventures acquisitions must be done through the open market and at market prices.

• Permission of the Gram Sabha or all the residents of a village eligible to vote for the Panchayat, is a pre-requisite for land acquisition.

• State legislations to set their own ceilings for relief and rehabilitation packages in instances of people being displaced.

4 pOLICY June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

Land AcquisitionRehabilitation andResettlement Bill

Policy for recovery of external development charges revised in Haryana

A revised policy for collection of pending external development charges (EDC), interest dues from builders in case of default in payment of scheduled install-ments and relief in terms of approvals or permissions after securing additional bank guar-antee, has been announced by Haryana’s department of Town and Country Planning (DTCP). All licensed colonies, except those falling in the Gurgaon-Manesar Urban Complex for the time being will have to adhere to this new policy.

The new policy says if only all other government dues like the IDC, renewal fee and scrutiny fee are cleared by the licensee, only then any renewal or approval under the pres-ent policy would be consid-ered. In addition, as and when due the licensee will pay the future installments of EDC and enhanced EDC. Reputed build-ers can make EDC payment in regular installments at 15% to 18% interest, whereas new-comers need to pay the entire sum at once.

Hoping to stop migration to metropolitans, the government is planning to focus more on the infrastructure development in smaller cities in the second

phase of Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM).

Union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath admitted in the parliament that such actions could only be prevented once the infrastructure in small towns and cities are improved.

“There is need to constitute state municipal services to improve implementation of the schemes,” the minister added.

Focus on small towns in JNNURM 2nd phase

Kamal nath, Minister for Urban Devel-opment, Government of india

“We want to give attention to smaller cities in the second

phase of JNNURM. Nobody has given attention to towns and

cities with population of 10,000 to 50,000.”- Kamal nath

Minister fOr UrBAn DeVelOPMent GOVernMent Of inDiA

VOICES

Status Report

Delhi: Need for realistic development

focus city

Delhi is growing by leaps and bounds as planners face challenges in key areas — housing, water supply, drinking water installations, sewerage, parking, maintenance of heritage sites and conservation plans, and much more.. Delhi has seen wonderful

transformation and tremendous urban growth. However, more initiatives for development are needed here to balance the need of growing population and to meet other expectations of people.

While the government has highlighted its vision in the Delhi-Master Plan 2021 (MPD), it has a long way to go to implement its objectives. Let’s unearth the key aspects or areas where the government lapsed in identifying problems in its development plans.

Growing population a n d d e f i c i t s i n infrastructure A n e x t r a o r d i n a r y o r rapid growth in urban population of Delhi has been recorded, which has ignited many problems like shortage of housing or basic infrastructure. After analysing a recent census, it has been assumed that by 2021 there would be hardly any open rural space left in the NCT. Ecologically, spatially and socio-economically it is extremely doubtful whether National Capital Territory (NCT) would be able to sustain such a massive urban explosion on its own.

Even though Delhi is one of the first Indian cities to have paid attention to city planning with the first master development plan of 1962, the infrastructure for public utilities is proving to be inadequate, especially under the burden of growing population.

6 fOCus CITY June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

Recent Census shows D e l h i ’ s g r o w i n g population and growing infrastructural problems D at a sh ows t h at D e l h i’s population is stabilising, with the growth rate at its lowest since 1931, at 20.95% in 2011. The maximum population growth, as seen in the latest census, was in south-west Delhi, at 31%. The new sub-city of Dwarka, which has come up in the past 10 years, is a major factor that led to the high growth.

The latest house-listing

data shows total census houses during the decade to 2011 increased 36% to 4.6 million, and the total households rose 31% to 3.34 million. In comparison, population grew 21% during the decade to 16.7 million. Only 6.2% of the households have drinking water installations away from premises while 15.1% have the facility near the premises. The central district has recorded a good f igure with 91.7% households having drinking water installations within their premises.

Only 59.3% of households have piped sewage facility in Delhi . The number of households without latrine facility is down from 22 % in 2001 to 10.5% in 2011. The New Delhi district is the worst off with 22.1% households in urban areas without latrines. The capital tops the list of LPG/CNG connections in households accounting for 89.9% of the dwellings. However, 3.4% of the households still use firewood for cooking while cow dung is used in 0.6% of the houses.

Major shortages in Delhi The statistics by Delhi Jal Board (DJB) confirm that there is insufficient water available for the people of Delhi. The deficit has been increasing over the years. In early 2011, while the water produced by DJB was about 830 million gallons per day (mgd), demand was estimated at 1,080 mgd and the deficit was 250 mgd.

Many city-level indicators pertaining to water supply coverage and distribution – per capita supply, quality, duration of supply, water pressure, groundwater levels, water infrastructure (including reservoirs, treatment and recycling plants, pipelines, meters, etc.) – are lagging behind established norms. The average water supply per day is between two and three hours.

Despite the claims by power sector officials that they are ready to tackle a peak demand of over

5,500 MW - that is nearly 10% more than the staggering record of 5,100 MW last summer, the city failed miserably to meet the demand. There was a shortfall of 700 MW to 900 MW, triggering intermittent outages across neighbourhoods.

The MPD-2021 talks of solving the acute parking problem by utilising open spaces and constructing underground parking facilities. It suggests a provision of two equivalent car spaces (ECS) in plots of size 250-300 sq m on residential plots but clear-cut guidelines for underground parking is absent.

Only about 55% of Delhi’s population is covered under organised sewerage. The Plan has attempted to address this issue. It is projected that by 2021, the total waste produced in Delhi every day would go up to 15,750 tonnes per day. But the three out of four sites in operation are saturated and

only four are currently available for disposal.

Union Minister of Urban Development Kamal Nath said that the Master Plan for Delhi (MPD) 2021 is largely irrelevant. Referring to the massive irregularities on the ground, he stated that the MPD needs significant revision. He has suggested that the plan is irrelevant on the ground, and the usual challenge of technical capacity doesn’t apply.

The document works on the assumption based on a certain amount of land available for a projected population of 23 million. All other calculations are based on that figure. It doesn’t realistically assess the thresholds of environmental sustainability. Issues like water, disposal of sewage, solid waste, ground water conditions, must become thresholds of development, rather than just land.

As Master Plan Delhi-2021 is under review, let’s look at some of the salient features of this ambitious project, which promises an unprecedented transformation in the fabric of the city.InfrastructureThe National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi has been divided into 15 zones; where each zone is enumerated from A to H and zone J to P. Eight of these zones are in urban areas, one in riverbed and the rest are in the rural part of the city. Each zone will be developed according to the categories of land use. Stress is given on public-private partnership (PPP). Traffic and connectivitySuggestions have been made for the construction of tubes, underground roads and the creation of alternative links close to a

dozen congested routes. MPD also proposes the construction of more bridges over Yamuna River near Geeta Colony and Mayur Vihar areas in East Delhi. It considers platoon bridges as a design model. An elevated road corridor has also been planned between Connaught Place and Bundh Road in East Delhi.HousingAt least 50% of the total number of dwelling units will be accounted for poor. The planning will be shifted from plotted housing to group housing. The planners have also proposed to the government for enhancing the ground coverage andrelaxation in Floor Area Ratio (FAR). environmentConservation of ridge, rejuvenation of river Yamuna, refurbishment of trunk sewers, treatment of drains and industrial affluent, recycling of treated effluent are few steps to be taken to curb pollution in the city.

Conservation of heritage sitesIt has been decided to identify heritage zones and archaeological parks under the Master Plan. Special conservation plans for listed building and precincts will be revamped.Civic amenitiesTo meet the requirement of water, sewerage system and power supply, the planning committee has tabled a proposal for an area of about 10,000 hectares for accommodating sanitary landfills, power generation and transmission facilities.

Master Plan Delhi-2021

energy‘Power sector needs Rs 13.72 lakh crore for 12th Five-Year Plan period’

Due to severe coal shortage hurting power, steel and other sectors, the government is planning to set up a fund similar to a sovereign wealth fund so that it can acquire coal assets abroad. Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal has urged public sector companies to be proactive in making decisions on foreign investments.

Ac c o r d i n g t o Ja i sw a l , although Coal India Ltd (CIL) has surplus resources for investing outside, financial support from the government is very important to acquire large

assets abroad.CIL, which accounts for

over 80% of the domestic coal production, has given priority

to nations like Australia, South Africa, Mozambique, USA and Indonesia for acquiring coal mines abroad.

It has been recently revealed by the government that India’s power sector needs Rs 13.72 lakh crore in funding for the 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-17). Minister of State for Power KC

Venugopal while writing to the Rajya Sabha stated, “The Work-ing Group on Power for formu-lation of the 12th Five-Year Plan has estimated total fund require-ment of Rs 13,72,580 crore for

the power sector.” The power generation would need about Rs 6,38,600 crore while the amount for electricity distribu-tion would be near to Rs 3,06,235 crore. Moreover, it has also been estimated that during the 2012-17 period, the capacity addi-tion is expected to be around 76,000 MW. Venugopal said that the government has also taken some measures to gen-erate funds available through credit enhancement schemes and infrastructure debt fund.

Venugopal addressing query said units with 660 MW capac-ity that come under super crit-ical category are likely to con-stitute about 50% of the total coal-fired capacity addition in the 12th Plan.

It’s for the first time in more than four decades that Japan took a break from generation of elec-tricity from nuclear power. This happened after its sole operating power reactor halted for mainte-nance recently.

The Hokkaido Electric Power Co’s Tomari No 3 reactor in northern Japan stopped generat-ing electricity leading the world’s third-biggest economy to forcibly buy and import fuels like coal, oil and gas-fired plants to sup-ply power to factories, offices and

households leading to increase in the cost of electric bills.

According to data from the Federation of Electric Power Comp a n ies, Jap a n b ought record amounts of liquefied natural gas last year to replace nuclear energy and use petro-leum. A report by Industry Ministry reveals that if reactors remain closed then fuel costs at the nine regional utilities with atomic plants may more than double to about US$ 87.7 bn by March 2013.

Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, at a symposium to mark the birth centenary of Maharashtra’s first Chief Minis-ter YB Chavan, commented that although the demand for power is growing day-by-day, each state should generate its own electric-ity. Many states are not able to meet the demand and end up depending on the Centre despite

having power generation units of their own, to make good the shortfall.

“Today, the country generates about two lakh MW of electric-ity. In last one year, we increased the generation by a record 20,500 MW. But I am not satis-fied. Power is on concurrent list (of the Constitution),” the Power Minister added.

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit inaugurated the 33KV sub-station, built at a cost of Rs 11.5 crore at Raisina Road by New Delhi Municipal Coun-cil (NDMC) to further improve quality of power supply in

NDMC areas.This sub-station has been

constructed by engineering major Larsen & Toubro. A full-time rainwater harvesting sys-tem has also been set up within its precincts.

Tomari shutdown leaves Japan without nuclear power

Each state should generate its own electricity: Shinde

NDMC areas get new power sub-station

Fund to buy overseas coal assets

The US solar industry alleged that the recent Indian regulation in solar panels, manufactured in the country is in violation of the WTO rules. Under the National

Solar Mission, India requires that crystalline cells be manufactured in India.

greenThe expert working group of the 12th Five Year Plan headed by K Kasturirangan announced that the fight against climate change will take a calculated jump in the 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-2017). The group said that the government intends to plough in almost Rs 2 lakh crore through the various missions for this purpose. The agriculture mission under the National Action Plan on Climate Change is to spend more than Rs 1 lakh crore over five years to make the primary sector more resilient to expected changes in the climate.

The report pointed out that the government already spends 2.8% of its GDP on programmes adapting benefits to people. It

also warned that the government should not make any further commitments on reducing greenhouse gas emissions without holding the widest possible consultations with the ministries concerned and other

stakeholders. The government h a d e a r l i e r c o m m i t t e d internationally to reduce energy intensity of the country’s economy by 20-25% below 2005 levels by 2020, which the panel said would entail huge costs for India.

India to invest Rs 2 lakh cr in 12th Plan to save climate

JNU professor moots for specialized environment agency under UN

West Bengal: Renewable energy policy in the pipeline

South Korea supports emission trading scheme

India violating WTO rules, says US solar industry

T h e r e a r e a r o u n d 1 6 international specialized agencies working under the United Nations to perform specific tasks but a key area like environment does not have

a specialized agency looking after it.

So, after Jawaharlal Nehru University professor Dr Bharat Desai, who holds the Jawaharlal Nehru Chair in International Environmental L a w , r e t u r n e d f r o m

London after publishing his first finished article, “The Quest for a UN Specialized Agency for the Environment” in The Round Table, an international affairs journal

based in the Capital of the United Kingdom, he said that environment is one area that needs a specialized agency. He had already made a presentation before the UN about two years back and his proposal was still pending.

South Korea is now following a similar timetable to China by planning to start a nationwide carbon-trading programme in 2015. Also its parliament has accepted a long-delayed bill to start trading carbon dioxide emissions in 2015, joining the front line of countries battling climate change. The legislation approved recently means it

will become one of the first Asian countries to implement a nationwide system. The limits will apply to companies that discharge about 1,25,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually.

T h e N e w Yo r k - b a s e d Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) hailed the legislation, which secured near-unanimous approval in parliament. The

E D F s a i d t h e l e g i s l at i o n would cover about 60% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, putting it on track to fulfill its pledge to reduce emissions 30% from projected levels by 2020.

When the whole world is focusing on renewable sources of energy, Mamata Banerjee’s West Bengal government took 10 months to prepare a final draft of its renewable energy policy. This draft was prepared by an expert

committee which included SP Gon Chaudhuri, the former advisor to the state government’s power department.

E a rl i e r, t h e d r a f t wa s submitted and was sent to the state power minister Manish Gupta. Once cleared, the draft will need cabinet approval before finalization. Earlier Bengal suffered a loss of over Rs 500 crore investment as the state did not have any renewable policy in place. The list of companies unable to honour their commitments

include – Astonfield Renewable R e s o u r c e s ( a U S b a s e d company), Videocon, Reliance Power, and a German based company.

“More than Rs 500 crore of investments were lost only because the state did not have any policy on renewable energy and no separate tariff for developing solar energy. At present, one megawatt of solar power plant costs around Rs 8 crore,” said SP Gon Chaudhuri, who is an expert on renewable energy.

Harvesting the tide in Gujarat

In 2008, global marine power specialist, Atlantis Resources Corporation undertook a global study to identify tidal power ‘hotspots’ that could be used to set up tidal power-generating units. On the basis of the results of the study the company

announced its intention to set up tidal power farm with a capacity of 50 MW in Gujarat.

The upcoming tidal power plant project will be jointly owned by Atlantis and Gujarat Power Corporation, of 8-12 years post commissioning. Construction is expected to begin early this year, with the farm designed to expand its capacity to more than 200 MW later. The Gujarat installation is expected to cost Atlantis close to Rs 750 crore, comprising of 50 turbines of 1 MW each.

Electricity Minister Natham R Viswanthan told the State assembly, Tamil Nadu tops all states in generation of wind energy in the country. The state generated 42% of the total wind power in the country. The increase in wind power generation added an advantage as several parts of the state are free from load shedding for the last few days.

The General Secretary of United Nations, Ban Ki-moon has urged companies to step up their commitment to sustainability in the run-up to the Rio+20 Earth summit in Brazil this month.

A R i o + 2 0 C o r p o r a t e Sustainability Forum will be hosted by the UN Global Compact from June 15 to 18 in Rio de Janeiro, just days ahead of the main Rio+20 summit.

Ban Ki-moon proclaimed that, businesses could be a key

player in helping to reduce the effects of climate change and repair declining ecosystems. Ban also said, “We need many more companies to awaken to this agenda. A United Nations Global Compact already has 6,000 companies committed to sustainability and you can join them. The Rio+20 conference is our launch pad for action and collaboration. Together we can deliver the future we want.”

GReen pAGes 9 June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

Achim Steiner, the head of the UN’s Environment Programme said that the organisers of 2012 Olympic Games had shown how sustainability could be delivered for a “mass-scale event.” His visit to the London venue coincided with the publication of a pre-event environmental report by the Games’ organisers.

David Stubbs, head of sus-tainability for the 2012 Games, said: “The complexities of trying to address sustainability in areas that have never been considered before was a constant challenge.”

Jonathon Porritt, chair of the London 2012 Sustainability Ambassadors, called the scale of

ambition... “gob-smacking”.Members of the bid team

acknowledged that it was neces-sary to reduce the impact of the largest peace-time event, and the International Olympic Commit-tee (IOC) wanted to move away from so-called “white elephant” venues, which added little value to a host city after an Olympics was over. Last April, in their first environmental report, organis-ers said that they were on tar-get to cut the carbon footprint by 1,00,000 tonnes of carbon emis-sions in the procurement of mate-rials and venue construction.

The team said their environ-mental vision focused on four areas: low-carbon emissions, waste, biodiversity, and promot-ing environmental awareness. Speaking at the time, organisers said they were on track to deliver the world’s first “truly sustain-able” Olympic Games.

The Supreme Court of India has directed the Centre to allot the entire 36,000 sq ft space available in Delhi’s Faridkot House to the National Green

Tribunal within 15 days and to make it functional by the appointment of a chairman a n d o t h e r m e m b e r s b y September 15.

According to the direction given by the apex court, the Na t i o n a l Hu m a n R i g h t s Commission (NHRC) headed by former Chief Justice of India KG Balakrishnan and Press Council of India (PCI) headed by Justice Markandey Katju will have to vacate the space occupied in Faridkot House.

A bench of the apex court has directed the urban development ministry to allot alternative space to P CI, saying that compared to the media regulator, the green tribunal needed the space more.

Finally, a space for Green Tribunal

TN occupying top position in wind power generation

Ban Ki-moon recommends companies to go green

UN chief backs London Olympic eco efforts

In a bid to address the spatial aspects of urban growth to enable better understanding and responsiveness towards Low Carbon City Development, a two-day workshop on Low Carbon Strategy Options for Cities was organised by the British Deputy High Commission, Mumbai, All India Institute of Local Self Government (AIILSG), Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM-B) and NextGen - The Energy and Environment Company on March 12 & 13, 2012 in Mumbai at the Sydenham Institute of Management Studies and Research and Entrepreneurship Education (SIMSREE), Churchgate.

The conference had the privilege of representation from the British Deputy High Commissioner, Government of Maharashtra, the urban local bodies and senior officials from the states and cities across the country. The other key speakers were from reputed academic institutes like IIM Bangalore, IIT Mumbai, CEPT Ahmedabad and experts from the private sector.

“A high level group of cabinet ministers flew down to India

and had number of talks with the industry about many things, among them alternate energy project. This illustrates the UK government’s commitment to green energy and its partnership with India.”

- peter Beckingham,British DePUtY hiGh COMMissiOner in MUMBAi,

sPeAKinG At wOrKshOP On ‘lOw CArBOn strAteGY OPtiOns fOr Cities’

VOICES

Low Carbon Strategy Options for Cities workshop at Mumbai

24 hydro power projects pending in Karnataka Minister of State for Power KC Venugopal in a reply to the Rajya Sabha stated that for want of environmental and forest clearances, 24 hydro elect r ic projects, hav i ng capacity of above 25 MW have been accorded concurrence by the Central Electricity Authority, are pending. Also the minister in a separate reply mentioned that the Karnataka government has submitted a Detailed Project Report (DPR) of Rs 15,222.82 Shivasamudram

run-of-the-river power project in Cauvery Basin with an installed capacity of 345 MW to the Central Electricity Authority.

John Bradburn, General Motors manager of waste-reduction efforts, has instituted a coffee grounds recycling programme at the Warren Tech Center. The result is saving approximately 3,000 pounds a year of this nitrogen and phosphorous-rich

coffee grounds from being thrown out with the garbage. As a substitute for bedding or organic pest repellent, Bradburn and others within GM’s Real Estate and Facilities group will once-a-week remove two 10-gallon buckets of used coffee grounds from the coffee area and take it home to use in their gardens. Bradburn commented on the initiative that, “This is probably one that is unique and new from a more employee-involvement perspective.”

Growth in renewable power generation capacity

India and Brazil drive increase in global wind energy capacity

General Motors recycles old coffee grounds

Global Solar Council formed

Around 1.15 GW of solar p h o t o v o l t a i c ( P V ) a n d concentrating solar thermal power (CSP) projects have been discovered by Jawaharlal Nehru

National Solar Mission (JNNSM) in various sub-programmes and stages of completion in India. Besides this, grid-interactive power generation capacity of

7111.66 MW from wind power and 940.09 MW from solar power has been added in the country during the last three years. However, geothermal energy has not contributed anything in the capacity addition as it is in the research and development stage.During the 11th plan period, around 14,660.65 MW renewable power generation capacity addition has taken place comprising 10,259.60 MW wind power, 1,418.85 MW small hydro power, 1,996 MW biomass power, 46.20 MW waste to power and 940 MW solar power.

The Global Solar Council with an aim to “expand the global deployment of solar energy in a sustainable and cost-competitive way” has been recently formed by the representatives of international solar photovoltaic (PV) companies. The council will be responsible to connect with policymakers and promote the use of solar energy, and

to lay stress on the vitality of a supportive policy. Newly-appointed executive Director of the Global Solar Council, Roland-Jan Meijer said, “The Council is an important and timely industry initiative. It demonstrates a strong commitment by key players in the sector to work together to continue to make solar energy a global success.”

According to a five-year industry forecast published by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC), the global wind industry will install more than 46 giga watt of new wind energy capacity in 2012. GWEC Secretary General Steve Sawyer mentioned that with significant contributors from new markets in Latin America, Africa and Asia, annual market growth will be driven primarily by India and Brazil.

For the next five years, GWEC projects an average annual market growth rate of about 8% but with a substantial dip in 2013 and

with cumulative market growth averaging beneath 16%, total installation during 2012-2016 is expected to touch 255 GW. By 2015, the annual market in India is expected to reach 5GW since the country has achieved a 3 GW market for the first time in 2011.

10 GReen pAGes June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

The Great Outdoor Gy m Company (TGO) has installed the first outdoor gym in the city of Hull in UK, which converts people power into

useable power. Electricity g e n e r a t e d o n t h e g y m equipment at the new Green Heart gym currently powers LED lighting for the site. The

company, which is working with the National Housing Federation, is now on a look out for a site where a gym could be hooked up to local buildings or feed electricity into the grid.

The current equipment can produce between 50W and 400W of electricity, although the figure is likely to be closer to 100W for those users who are not Olympic rowers. TGO’s Creative Director Georgie D ela ney sa id , “ T here is potential to tap the renewable energy of around 2.5 million p e o p l e , w h i l e h e l p i n g them get fit.”

R a j k o t M u n i c i p a l Corporation (RMC) has

established a 50-kilowatt-peak (kW) solar grid connect

system with an aim to convert Rajkot into a ‘solar city’.

According to an RMC official, “Once the 10-kW solar power grid connecting t h e s y s t e m b e c o m e s operational, RMC will be able to save 40 to 45 units daily. As of now, RMC’s east zone office consumes around 150 to 200 units daily.’’ Rs 46 lakh has been sanctioned by the Union ministry of new and renewable energy to RMC to carry out various solar power projects in the city.

City of Hull to get green gyms

50-kW solar power system at Rajkot

GReen pAGes 11 June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

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water

A recent United Nations sur-v e y r e v e a l s s u s t a i n a b l e water reforms are having a positive impact on countries’ development.

The survey has also revealed that countries which have imple-mented water reforms backed by Member States at the UN Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro,

Brazil, 20 years ago, have had sig-nificant improvements to drinking water access, human health and water efficiency in agriculture.

Achim Steiner, the Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), has pro-claimed that, “The survey shows important successes regard-ing integrated water resources management, where a more sus-tainable approach to water has resulted in tang ible bene-fits for communities and the environment.”

More than 130 nations took part in that survey. The survey focused on progress towards imple-menting internationally-agreed

approaches to the management and use of water, known as Inte-grated Water Resources Man-agement. This was backed by the countries which participated in the summit in Rio.

Ninety per cent of the surveyed countries have reported a posi-tive impact in water management sector, though the survey also showed slow progress in the areas of irrigation, rainwater harvest-ing and investment in freshwater ecosystems. Steiner said that these findings are important to build on water management initiatives at this year’s UN Conference on Sus-tainable Development (Rio+20) in Brazil.

UN survey shows better use of water leading to positive impact on development

Revised draft of National Water Policy 2012 recommends PPP model for services

Looking for clean water, ZIMBA is here

After a series of consultation m e e t i n g s w i t h d i f f e r e n t stakeholders, the Draft National Water Policy (2012) has been finally prepared. The revised draft National Water Policy (2012) inter-alia has recommended that the “Service Provider” role of the State has to be gradually shifted to that of a regulator of services and facilitator for strengthening

the institutions responsible for planning, implementation and management of water resources.

The water related services should be managed with community participation or brought under appropriate “Public Private Partnership” model under close superintendence of the regulatory authorities including the stakeholders.

Scientist Supriyo Das has invented a simple machine, ZIMBA, an auto-mated chlorine dozer that has been installed in arsenic prone areas in Bengal and five slums in Dhaka this year.

Running without any electric-ity connection or moving gears, ZIMBA has been noted for its simplicity.

In recent past, the prob-lem of arsenic in drinking water caught the attention of Das. He then started visiting places to have a direct idea regarding the problem. His dream came into existence in

2011 in form of the purifier, ZIMBA. It works simply. Once installed,

it automatically adds chlorine to water in correct proportions. It can be fitted to a community’s existing water source, such as the hand pump of a well or the tap of a rain-water harvesting cistern.

This device has also fetched international attention. The Inter-national Centre for Diarrhoeal Dis-ease Research of Bangladesh, and a team from Stanford University, is now carrying out research to deter-mine if ZIMBA would help gener-ate bacteria or arsenic-free water.

As Asia, the world’s largest con-tinent, is developing day by day, water scarcity in the region is becoming an acute problem that could worsen in the near future. Paul Reiter, executive director of the International Water Associ-ation, has said that, “Asia’s prob-lems are not original, but the scope and magnitude of them, because of the rate that the region is devel-oping, make it the most important region for us.” The International Water Association, which is based in London, is a global network of water professionals.

A projection by the Asian Development Bank exposed that by 2030, Asia will face a 40% defi-ciency in water for food. The com-bination of rapid urbanisation, industrialisation and population growth will pose threats to Asian countries in their management of water. Reiter added that, “The water crisis is like a slow-mov-ing train that is going to crash. It doesn’t move so fast that it causes people to get into action.”

Development causing scarcity of water in Asia, says expert

Recently, the government of Haryana has directed to install water meters in every household and commercial enterprise mandatorily to check large-scale wastage of water. On April 30, the state government formulated the

Haryana State Urban Water Policy and notified the same for the year 2012.

The municipal administration and urban development

department of Hyderabad has initially sanctioned Rs 350 crore to the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board to execute the first phase of Godavari drinking water supply scheme for the city.

The civic body in the city of Kochi has decided that to take note of the complaints about the quality of drinking water supplied in the city, registration will be mandatory for all the water tankers supplying water in the area.

Pay per drop now

Rs 350 crore sanctioned for drinking water from Godavari

In Kochi, registration must for water tankers

In BRIef

Achim steiner, executive Director, UneP

speCIAL feATuRe

Major energy efficient solutions for citiesAs cities are expanding, so is the gap between demand and supply of energy. Although some increase in energy use is inevitable, both in total and in per capita terms, there is a broad range of future trajectories for India. In order to control energy consumption in cities, it is vital to adopt energy efficiency measures at micro and macro level. There have been interventions by stakeholders including Bureau of Energy Efficiency, but India is far behind in achieving energy efficiency. Urban News Digest presents major energy-efficient solution that could help build future cities.

Building simulation A building’s design often has a significant impact on energy efficiency and internal environment of the building.

Although many buildings have energy efficiency strategies embedded in their conceptual design, it is seldom that these concepts would be fully analysed

at the initial design stage. Environmental performance-

based concerns need to be considered at the planning stage, which can help to deliver valuable information on the viability of a design approach.

In India, simulation of buildings is yet to become a habit. Sameer Divekar, Director, DBHMS said, “Though we are growing significantly, we feel that the awareness among builders about simulation is less. They need to understand that the simulation does not only pin-point the ailing areas of the building architecture but provides great deal of energy as well as cost saving options for the future.”

“Prefabrication helps in centralised resource mobilisation resulting in

macro level changes in energy consumption. The country needs to

adopt it. We are in talks with global players in prefabrication for technology transfer to India.”

- shailesh AgrawalexeCUtiVe DireCtOr, BMtPC

prefabrication India has a greater number houses to be built. Realising housing quickly and affordably is a need of the day. With p r e f ab r i c at i o n , i mp r ove d working conditions would seem to be agreeable to everyone.

T h e p o t e n t i a l f o r prefabrication to be used to create a bland, monotonous landscape is an issue that Indian construction professionals must grapple with. Prefabrication is touted as offering a more sustainable solution to building, but India still relies on vernacular practices for design and construction that require relatively low life cycle energy.

“Prefabrication helps in centralised resource mobilisation resulting in macro level changes in energy consumption. The country needs to adopt it. We are in talks with global players in prefabrication for technology transfer to India,” Shailesh Agrawal, Executive Director, Building Materials and Technology Promotion council (BMTPC) said.

Building Materials Building materials account for about 60% of basic inputs. Of the total costs of a dwelling, cement (18%), bricks (17%), timber (13%) and steel (10%) account for a significant portion, consequently,

operation and maintenance (O & M) expenses over the years add up to more than actual construction cost, thus making it imperative to adopt cost-effective materials and technologies to tide over the shortage of housing in the country.

Agrawal opines that choosing right building materials according to the geo-climatic condition is a need of the day. He said, “Doing so would result in decreased use of resources and add to energy efficient buildings.”

Flyash bricks and blocks are in demand in India. Deepak Agarwal, Head, Sales and Marketing, Biltech (Avantha Group) said, “We have got orders for three years. Now, more and more people are adopting it.”

Reliance Innovative Buildings Solutions (RIBS) uses Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) for the building envelope.

However, while large-scale and inefficient production of building materials, and added costs of transportation, result in higher end costs for the consumer, production and use of appropriate building materials have not received adequate attention and are often discouraged by outdated attitudes and unrealistic building codes and regulations.

14 speCIAL feATuRe June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

Retrofitting Although retrofitting is for the good of the planet, savvy building owners make greening decisions based on a cost-benefit analysis, often choosing retrofit options that cost the least but deliver a hefty cut in utility costs.

Experts say that the choice of retrofit measures depends on the age of the building to determine the most cost-effective and value-enhancing measures.

“Re-lamping” or lighting retrofit is the most cost-effective practice for new buildings (1–5 years old), but for older buildings (more than 15 years old), changing cooling system components (like chillers and pumps) for higher-efficiency models are proven to provide good benefit.

For buildings more than 25-years-old, envelope replacement

(like the use of green light-weight concrete blocks) can be done.

Air-conditioning accounts for 60% of energy use in buildings, while 50% of the cooling load is the result of external factors like building envelopes.

The biggest opportunity in energy cost savings is to improve thermal performance of envelope materials.

Window glass offers a lot of room for improvement. Using low-e glass or window film will help reduce heat gain through the façade of high-rise buildings. Adding roof insulation will also cut a large amount of heat for low-rise buildings.

However, due to technical difficulty of an envelope retrofit when buildings are occupied, most buildings have focused only on lighting retrofit, which has a lower investment cost.

Chilled Beams Technology C h i l l e d b e a m s a r e p r e do m i n a nt ly u s e d f o r c o o l i n g a n d ve n t i l a t i n g spaces, where a good indoor environment and individual s p ac e c o nt r o l i s va lu e d . Chilled beams use water to remove heat from a room and are located in the room space. They are primarily used in locations where the humidity can be controlled.

Chilled beams provide excellent thermal comfort, energy conservation and efficient use of space due to high heat capacity of water used as a heat transfer medium.

Chilled beams are used where the internal humidity l o ad s a r e m o de r at e, t h e primary air is dehumidified and any infiltration through the building is limited and controlled.

LeDs Vs. T5: snapshot S t u d i e s , i n c l u d i n g o n e performed by the Energy and Environment Research center in Lecce, Italy, as well as one performed by the IEEE, demonstrate that after 50,000 - 60,000 hours, high-powered LEDs produce less than 70% of their initial output and consequently, must be replaced.

Although studies have proved that LED lamps may not last as long as their rated 100,000 potential life hours, LEDs currently maintain a longer lifespan than fluorescent

bulbs. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, high powered LED bulbs can have anywhere between 35,000 - 50,000 useful life hours, while linear fluorescent bulbs maintain anywhere between 20,000 - 30,000 useful life hours.

However, when comparing the costs of LED and T5 bulbs, the longer life hours can appear

trivial. Today, LED bulbs cost higher than T5 bulbs. The significant cost differential is due to the high cost associated with the complexity of LED bulb technology, while T5 technology

simply consists of efficient bulbs without integrated electronics. When a 4’ linear T5 bulb burns out, it costs less than US$ 3.00 to replace.

But lighting professionals are of opinion that the LEDs would have great adoptability in the years to come. Gulshan Aghi, CEO, Surya Lighting says, “Looking at the price trends for

the LEDs in the last three years, we can hope the price would go down drastically in 4-5 years.” He said that 50-60% of the current lights would be replaced by LEDs in three to four years.

speCIAL feATuRe 15 June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

smart Metering A d v a n c e d m e t e r i n g infrastructures can make the energy grid more efficient by enabling utilities to implement direct load control and demand response programmes, limit maximum energy consumption during times of peak demand, and detect and reduce meter tampering and energy theft. Adoption of smart metering solutions will improve power delivery while reducing operation costs, and will provide revenue recovery and protection.

With over 100 million meters and significant energy challenges, India represents an exciting opportunity for advanced metering systems. India is in a position to make substantial changes to its infrastructure in the coming years.

smart Grids In India, smart grids can leapfrog development by harnessing distributed energy resources, which nature has bestowed on us.

Smart grids use a combination of digital communication and digital control technology to dispatch power with minimum loss. Power may be generated either centrally in large power

stations operated by utilities or by local, small generators using green and renewable energy resources.

The smart grid technology goes a long way in addressing the technical complexities introduced by green energy resources-based generation as well as in increasing the efficiency of generation and distribution systems.

The energy cost of pumping and treating water imposes a significant strain on municipal water utilities.

Adequate Net Positive Suction Head (NPSH) at the site of installation, availability of basic instruments at pumps like pressure gauges, flow meters, operating pumps near best efficiency point, modifying pumping system and pumps losses to minimise throttling, are some of the measures that can lead to an efficient pumping system. Other measures following:•■Wide load variation with variable speed drives or

sequenced control of multiple units. •■Booster pumps for small loads requiring higher

pressures. •■Increment of fluid temperature differentials to reduce

pumping rates in case of heat exchangers. •■Balance the system to minimise flows and reduce pump

power requirements.

PUMPING SYSTEMS

16 speCIAL feATuRe June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

waste

Metro cities like Delhi, Kolk-ata, Chennai and Mumbai have been suffering from the enor-mous backlog of unfinished

sewerage and drainage proj-ects. The slow pace of prog-ress in building of drainage infrastructure has annoyed a

Standing Committee on Urban Development.

Th e c o m m it t e e r e p o r t reveals that even though 108 sewerage and 71 drainage proj-ects were sanctioned with the allocation of 24,000 crore fund under JNNURM, only 15 sewer-age projects and eight drainage projects have been finished till date after the conclusion of the entire mission period.

The report discloses that 50% of the households in major IT hubs like Bangalore and Hyder-abad do not have basic sewer-age connection. The report also shows that 20% of the urban households don’t have basic toi-let facilities.

Sewerage and drainage backlog plagues standing committee panel

Sharjah conference to boost innovations on waste management

New rules for e-waste disposal come into force

Massive rise of plastic waste in North Pacific Ocean

In a new move to initiate innovations in the field of solid waste management, sewage and waste water treatment, green buildings, air pollution and alternative energy, the Sharjah Environmental company Bee’ah in collaboration with Sharjah Expo Centre will organise the second edition of Green Middle East exhibition and symposium from Oct 15 to 17.

Khaled Al Huraimel, CEO of

Bee’ah said, “Green Middle East offers a platform for top indus-try organisations to exchange their businesses and technol-ogies within the environment sustainability industry. We are proud to host the exhibition for the second year in a row and look forward to announce major milestones in waste man-agement and recycling.”

Sharjah Expo Centre direc-tor Saif Mohammed Al Midfa said, “Large amounts of com-plex wastes are generated daily by individuals, businesses and agriculture. These issues require that waste be handled using environmentally sound and economically sustainable methods”.

In a new move to reduce the detrimental effect of e-waste, manufacturers and users of hazardous electrical and elec-tronic equipments will now be solely responsible for their waste and recycling from May 1, 2012.

The e-waste (Management & Handling) Rules (2011) which came into effect from May 1 pro-claimed that the existence of harmful and poisonous mate-rials in the element of e-waste underlines the necessity of its management, including collec-tion and recycling, in an envi-ronment friendly manner.

The rules also call for strict limitation in use of hazard-ous substances like lead, mer-cury, cadmium, hexavalent

chromium, poly-brominated bi-phenyls or poly-brominated di-phenyl ethers in electrical and electronic equipment.

Plastic waste in the North Pacific Ocean has caused seri-ous concern for US scientists.

In a shocking report it has been revealed that over the last 40 years there has been a 100-fold

increase of micro plastic frag-ments floating in the North Pacific Ocean.

These micro plastics have also added hundreds of millions of hard surfaces to the Pacific Ocean. This change can influ-ence the ecosystem in a signif-icant way. A team of experts from Scripps Institution of Oceanography found this enor-mous rise when they carried out their search operation near the California coast.

Brihanmumbai Municipal C o r p o r a t i o n ( B M C ) i s considering the installation of dog poop boxes in the city to fulfil the demand of the Bandra corporator. The boxes will be installed on roads with dispense

plastic bags that can be used for collecting poop. In 2007, the civic body had announced Rs 500 fine for owners who didn’t clean up their dog’s poop and in 2009 they announced a ban on dogs near Marine drive.

The elected representatives of Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) attended a ‘Capacity Building Program’ in Shimla to explore the scope of emulating numerous good practices of the Shimla

Municipal Corporation (SMC) in Vadodara.

VMC officials emphasised that most important part of the working of SMC was the effective water supply system there.

Five m o r e g a r de n s i n Nagpur will soon get sewage treatment plants (STPs). N a g p u r M u n i c i p a l Corporation(NMC) has 68 gardens in various parts of the city.

The gardens are usually

located in mass residential areas from where huge quantity of sewage is generated. So this move to install STPs in gardens is a practical approach to fulfil the massive requirement of water for the maintenance of plants.

Mumbai to install separate bins to dispose off dog poop

Vadodara to imbibe good civic practices of Shimla

Five more gardens in Nagpur will soon get sewage treatment plants

In BRIef

wAsTe 19 June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

Tamil Nadu, Kerala face-off on dumping waste

Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) has written to its counterpart in Kerala on the issue of illegal dumping of biomedical waste. This happened a day after four lorry loads of medical and municipal wastes brought from Kerala were seized near Pollachi town in Tamil Nadu.

Tamil Nadu Environment

Minister BV Ramanna said, “I instructed the TNPCB Chair-man to write a letter to the Kerala PCB asking them to take proper steps to prevent such instance. We have also asked guards at all check posts in the border to remain vigilant and not to allow vehicles carrying wastes into the State.”

Sewerage and drainage proj-ects of Cuttack a nd Bhu-baneswar desig ned under the Integ rated Sanitat ion Improvement Program are progressing at a snail’s pace even as it is scheduled to be completed in two years’ time.

In a bid to tackle the situa-tion a sub-committee has been formed under the leadership of secretary of Housing and Urban Development Depart-ment, with chief engineers of Railways, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI),

Public Works Department and Water Resources Department as members. The sub-commit-tee will function for clearances in the matters related to rail-way crossings, national high-way, and road crossings in the project areas.

Panel formed to expedite sewerage projects in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar

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ECOWISE PROVIDING ENVIRONMENTALLY SAFE OPTIONS

finance

Fresh guidelines for urban coop-erative banks (UCBs) would be issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in June this year. Informing the Parliament, Min-ister of State for Finance Namo Narain Meena said that a report has been submitted by the YH Malegam Committee consti-tuted for bringing UCBs under the ambit of RBI and had rec-ommended that there should be

entry point norms for UCBs with adequate capital and geograph-ical spreads. For better regu-lation, every new UCB should have a Board of Management with a constitution and RBI should have powers for regula-tion and control as specified.

Also, every UCB should be audited by a chartered accoun-tant appointed from the panel maintained by the RBI.

For a loan amounting to Rs 628.45 crore sanctioned to the five elec-tricity supply companies in Kar-nataka by the Union government of India, the state government has agreed to stand guarantee. This loan has been sanctioned to imple-ment Restructured-Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Programme (R-APDRP) for reduc-tion of AT and C loss. The state government has issued orders for

standing guarantee for the loan in two parts.

While in the first part, Rs 469.03 crore would be spent,

which includes a contribution of Rs 77.90 crore from the power companies. In the second part, Rs 948.99 crore including a contribution of Rs 711.74 crore from the power companies would be used up. Power Finance Corporation Ltd. would be the nodal agency for the implementation of the R-APDRP and the loan amount would be routed through financial institutions.

Ahmedabad Municipal Corpo-ration’s (AMC) scheme of 10% discount on advance payment of property tax has paid well. The corporation has witnessed an increase of 29% in property tax income under advance property

tax payment. Pocketing Rs 121 crore under this scheme, AMC regis-tered a growth of 29% compared to last year. AMC earned Rs 93.43 crore last year.

There has been an increase in the number of taxpayers too who availed this benefit. Last year only 1.94 lakh taxpayers paid their tax in advance, while this year 2.17 lakh have already paid. AMC introduced 10% rebate on advance payment of property tax in 2010-11.

To give a push to the much d e l a y e d D e l h i - M u m b a i Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC) project, the Indian government has agreed to give 26% stake to the Japanese government. This was decided in the second India-Japan ministerial business-government policy dialogue. India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma has already moved a cabinet note

and a decision is expected to be taken soon.

J a p a n h a s a l r e a d y c o m m i t t e d t o i nve s t i n g US$ 4.5 billion in DMICDC projects, where self-sustainable smart cities on either side of the 1,483 km-long western dedicated rail freight corridor between Dadri in Uttar Pradesh and Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in Navi Mumbai would be developed.

Fresh RBI guidelines for UCBs in June

State government will guarantee loans to electricity supply companies

Growth in AMC revenue

Japan to get 26% stake in DMICDC

Over the next three years, India will receive assistance of US$ 6.25 bn from the Asian Develop-ment Bank (ADB) to fund var-ious projects including those in the energy, transport, urban development, agriculture, nat-ural resource management, finance and education sectors.

Robert Dawson, Secretary, ADB, said that the aid would be provided over a span of three years from 2012-14 and sup-port inclusive and environ-mentally sustainable growth. In the past, ADB has disbursed 159 loans worth US$ 24.12 bn to India. Recently India completed 25 years of its partnership with this bank.

India was also the founder member of ADB and its asso-ciation dates back to 1966, but the lending operations com-menced only in 1986. The Manila

headquartered bank also elected Indian Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee as Chairman of the Board of Governors recently.

India will be hosting the 46th annual meeting of the ADB in

New Delhi next year. India is the fifth largest shareholder in this bank while USA and Japan are the largest. The bank has 67 members, of which 48 are from Asia.

India to receive US$ 6.25 bn assistance from ADB

transportFeasibility study for high speed train services in Rohtak-Hisar corridor

Aimed at easing trafficking on three key roads, three flyovers — at the Agara Junction, Iblur Junction and 14th Main Road Junction on HSR Layout— were inaugurated by the Chief Minister DV Sadananda Gowda in Bangalore recently. Gowda also laid the foundation stone for an upcoming housing project for the urban poor near Mahadevpura. He a l s o p u t f o r w a r d h i s government’s development agenda for Bangalore. Gowda said, the three flyovers will cost Rs 450 crore.

The construction of three major bridges in the proposed Moolampilly-Chathanad four-lane 4.5-km long road in Kochi city has finally been taken up by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).

The proposed project is expected to cost Rs 97.20 crore. The new road planned would provide an alternative link from

the city to Paravur. The project is expected to be ready in three years. The three major bridges proposed in the stretch are the Moolampilly-Pizhala bridge, Pizhala-Valiakadamakudy bridge and Valiakadamakudy-Chathanad bridge. District Collector PI Sheikh Pareed said that the road would link the city with NH 17 at Paravur.

In a b i d t o e n su r e go o d connectivity in the national capi-tal region, the Union Urban Devel-opment Ministry has decided to carry out a feasibility study for high speed train services on

Delhi-Rohtak-Hisar corridor under the regional rapid transit system (RRTS). The decision was taken on the special demand raised by the Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda in Lok Sabha during

discussion for grant on demands. The plan prepared by NCR plan-ning body for generating transport system last year suggested eight RRTS corridors to connect diverse towns/areas of NCR, out of which the centre gave priority to three corridors for execution after talk-ing with the state governments.

Delhi-Rohtak-Hisar would be the fourth corridor under the RRTS. Not happy with the pre-vious Faridabad metro proj-ect in which Haryana Govern-ment was made to bear 80% cost, Hooda said that the norms of 50:50 costs sharing between cen-tre and state should be followed for upcoming projects.

Japanese Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Senior Vice Minister Me Ken Okuda, along with delegates, called on Minister of State for Road Trans-port & Highways Jitin Prasada where Okuda accepted that the Japan government is interested in sharing and exchanging technology, especially for the

high-speed corridors of express-ways. Okuda stated, “The opera-tionalisation of cooperation and undertaking cooperation activities is possible once the two countries sign the cooperation agreement at the earliest.” Prasada guaran-teed the Japanese delegation that signing of the agreement will be speeded up.

DLF, with maximum number of its property in Gurgaon, will now construct 8.3 km-long road in a joint project with the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA). This 16-lane will con-nect DLF’s Gateway Tower in

Cyber City to the Golf Course Road, offering some relief from fragmented infrastructure in Del-hi’s suburb. DLF and HUDA are expected to spend Rs 400-600 crore on the project which is slated to be functional by mid-2013 and

will comprise eight underpasses along with a long flyover making it possible for commuters to reach the Golf Course Road from the Gurgaon toll plaza within seven minutes which currently takes 30 minutes. Nearly 1.5 million resi-dents and commuters who come to work in Gurgaon have been complaining about terrifying infrastructure for years. Execu-tive Director at DLF, Rajeev Tal-war said, “The objective is to pro-vide optimum solution for traffic movements in the area based on present and projected traffic demand in future.”

Indian Expressways: Japan interested in transferring technology

New 16-lane corridor project in Gurgaon

rohtak MP Deepender singh hooda

Ken Okuda(l) meets Jitin Prasada(r)

CM inaugurates three flyovers in Bangalore DMRC to construct three

bridges in Kochi

Seamless transport to drive greener growth

Secretary General of Organisa-tion for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Angel Gurría launched the Transport Outlook 2012, which is an annual report on mobility trends, dur-ing the Annual Summit of Trans-port Ministers from the 53 member countries held in Leipzig, Germany. The Outlook entitled as “Seamless Transport for Green growth” says that the transport sector could play an important role in building a sus-tainable world economy.

During the presentation of Transport Outlook 2012, Angel Gurría commented that the trans-port and technology form the main structure of global trade connecting places and people, creating opportunities for new markets and better connections, which eventually increases the productivity.

Gurría added, “Going green in transport does not mean giving up mobility: it implies mobility with a smaller environmental footprint.”

A three day annual summit on Inter-national Transport Forum on “Seam-less Transport: Making Connections” - was conducted in Leipzig, Germany and was attended by 53 transport ministers from all over the world. Transport Min-isters showed resolve to improve global connectivity by attending the summit. The Annual Summit included a Min-isterial convention, panel deliberations with leaders from business, research and civil society as well as bilateral and informal meetings.

In their common declaration, the Ministers also emphasised that sustain-able transport systems are imperative

for economic progress, environmental safety, well-being and security of society.

“The International Transport Forum once again underlined that it is the worldwide, leading platform to discuss transport issues,” said Michael Kloth, Acting Secretary-General of the Inter-national Transport Forum.

Professor José Manuel Viegas from Portugal was chosen as the new Secre-tary General and will replace Michael Kloth in the near future. Headlined “Funding Transport”, the next Summit of the International Transport Forum is scheduled to take place between May 22-24, 2013 in Leipzig.

The work on the proposed high-speed bullet train ser-vice between Bangalore and Mysore may commence by December 2012 under the PPP model to improve con-n e c t iv i t y w i t h My s o r e,

Mangalore, Hubli-Dharwad, Belgaum and Gulbarga, and urge industrial growth in the region.

The Ministry of Urban Development has asked for three months to submit the

action plan to Chief Minis-ter DV Sadananda Gowda. The Chief Minister said that Union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath made this assurance to him during his recent visit to Delhi.

High-speed bullet train between Bangalore and Mysore may be reality soon

Ministers discuss sustainable transport at International Transport Forum 2012

22 TRAnspORT June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

Angel Gurría launches the transport Outlook 2012

real estate

The Rs 18,000 crore special eco-nomic zone and mixed use proj-ect planned at Yelahanka in Ban-galore will jointly be developed by the Gulf Oil Corporation Ltd and Hinduja Realty Ventures Ltd. They are responsible for all architectural scheme design, project funding, development and eventual main-tenance of the project when com-pleted. Gulf Oil has no additional

burden as the land is owned by the company. Also, it is entitled to 30% of the entire developed area as part of the scheme.

The project is being developed on a 39.67-acre site in a phased manner and is expected to generate revenues from the fourth quarter of 2013-14. It is expected to take up to five-and-a-half years for completion.

Greater Noida has become a fast developing area with a number of upcoming residential and commercial properties. The chairman and managing director of Supertech Group, RK Arora finds the place attractive for both commercial and residential activities.

He says, “As the city is close to central Delhi and Noida, it provides a good residential solution to working people. Besides, as a number of corporate houses have chalked out plans to start offices here, it will provide good employment opportunities to residents.”

An attractive feature of the area is its world-class golf course spread over 400 acres. Builders like Supertech, Antriksh, Amrapali, Ajnara, Logix, Ansal,

Unitech, Omaxe, Parsvnath Developers, Earth Infrastructure, ATS Infrastructure, Assotech and Paramount are developing several high-quality projects in the city. New sectors are also being developed by the Greater

Noida authority. To meet the growing power demands, GNIDA is planning to set up its own power plant. Apart from educational and software development, Greater Noida is also being developed as an industrial hub.

Greater Noida’s development spree

Mumbai: High-rises may be ‘redefined’

Non-eligible people clearing building plans

Bangalore SEZ to be co-developed by Gulf Oil, Hinduja Ventures

A proposal to levy 1% tax deduction at source on real estate transactions has been scrapped by the government. The move was announced in the budget this year to discourage extensive flow of black money in the sector. In the budget speech Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had said that the seller of any property valued at Rs 50 lakh in urban areas and Rs 25 lakh in rural parts had to deduct 1% TDS from the buyer. Without the TDS, the property could not proceed for registration in the buyer’s name. The move

was taken after the government faced several criticisms from the state governments and real estate firms.

Na r e n d r a Mo d i , c h i e f minister of Gujarat, called the proposal anti-federal and wrote on a couple of occasions to PM Dr Manmohan Singh. “It’s good that the government has abolished it as it was becoming another burdensome proposal, adding to red-tape,” said Ravi Ahuja, executive director at property consultant Cushman & Wakefield.

In a proposal sent to the M a h a r a s h t r a ’ s U r b a n

Development Department (UDD), the Brihanmumbai Municipal

Corporation (BMC) has asked to raise the scrutiny of high-rise buildings from 70 metres to 120 metres. If approved, only projects which are 120 metres or above will be sent for approval to the High Rise Committee(HRC). This would help in speedy approval of projects. However, an official from the CM’s office said that it is just an advisory which BMC have proposed for their consideration.

The Andhra Pradesh Chapter of Indian Institute of Architects (IIA) has raised concerns that officials other than architects are clearing building plans in Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and Hyde r ab ad Me t r o p o l it a n D e v e l o p m e n t Au t h o r i t y (HMDA) civic bodies.

Officials from backgrounds like geography, economics, statistics and civil engineering are clearing building plans of multi-storied structures and multiplexes. IIA’s AP chapter chairman, DT Vinod Kumar said, “Our objection is that all planners,

irrespective of their expertise, are designated by corporations and urban development authorities to scrutinise architectural designs of buildings, which

shouldn’t be the case.” Earlier, IIA had submitted a letter to the concerned department. Now IIA has even threatened to move court on the issue.

Government withdraws 1% TDS proposal on real estate transactions

24 ReAL esTATe June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

A Real Estate Transparency Survey 2011-12 conducted in 20 leading Indian states by the Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (CREDAI) has ranked Tamil Nadu second only behind Andhra Pradesh on various parameters while determining transparency.

Tamil Nadu is followed by Maharashtra, Gujarat, NCR-Delhi and Karnataka.

Tamil Nadu holds the same position as far as availability of market information and reforms in urban local bodies are concerned. However, most of the states are ahead compared to Tamil Nadu when it comes to protection of property rights and in arriving at a model of development, which is both inclusive and sustainable.

To take up beautif ication work in four township areas- Rajarhat New Town, Salt Lake, Sector V and Kalyani, Kolkata State Urban Development department is inviting private

players including corporate houses, banks, f inancial institutions, chambers of commerce and other groups. The bodies will be responsible for the beautif ication and m a i nt e n a n c e o f t r a f f i c islands, parks, water bodies, ponds, median dividers and pavements in these areas.

Recently, Bidhannagar M u n i c i p a l i t y , w h i c h maintains over 50 big and small parks, handed over the maintenance work for Salt Lake’s traffic islands to advertising agencies that use them commercially. While Nab ad ig a nt a I ndu st r i a l Township Authority (NDITA) is drawing up beautification plans for Sector V with the involvement of private players, Bidhannagar Municipality and Hidco are doing the same for Salt Lake and Rajarhat New Town respectively.

According to the residential index figures released by the Reserve Bank of India’s Nat i o n a l Ho u s i n g B a n k, areas of Ahmedabad walled city have witnessed a rise of 30% in real estate prices in the January-March quarter this year compared to the same period last year.

On the whole, prices in the city went down by 0.6% - posh western areas saw a 25% decline. Realty prices here were hit after the post-Godhra 2002 riots but the situation seems to be changing now. The city, which recently turned 600, is the only one from India to be included on UNESCO’s tentative list of World Heritage

Cities. “Because of the buzz around the World Heritage City status, there are many

who now want to go back to the old city,” said city-based developer Uday Vora.

The Surat Urban Development Authority (SUDA) is planning to grant additional floor space index (FSI) on both sides of the 66 km outer ring road surrounding the city. Once everything is final-ised, the city can expect a spur in real estate development projects and more skyscrapers. SUDA has reserved 500 metres on both sides of the road for town plan-ning schemes.

However, the state urban development has questioned SUDA about their plans to

acquire the land for the remain-ing part of the road that is yet to be developed. At present, 37 km stretch of the ring road is ready and 29 km has to be developed. In its letter to SUDA, the govern-ment has also said that they could grant additional FSI for the con-struction of skyscrapers in the town planning schemes by col-lecting a premium for 40% on the jantri rate of the area. Realtors will be able to construct 70-sto-rey buildings on this new land, if the FSI is increased to 3.

Looking for a possible solution to reduce the time taken in approval of real estate projects, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation has formed

an internal committee. Kumari Selja, Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation said that timely approval could help in reducing the cost of houses by

25 - 40%. “It is estimated that the cost to ultimate consumer could be 25% to 40% lesser if the time of granting approval is reduced to six to eight weeks,” she said. The committee will submit a report in four months. On an average, around 70 approvals are required for starting work. Experts believe that there is lack of coordination among different government agencies and this delay increases the prices which are passed on to the buyers.

The ministry has also recently set up the Credit Risk Guarantee Fund Trust, which will provide loans of up to Rs 5 lakh for low income housing.

Timely approval could lower housing costs: Kumari Selja

TN ranks second in real estate transparency

Private bodies to beautify Kolkata residential areas

Ahmedabad real estate prices surge by 30%

More skyscrapers on Surat ring road

housing

C h a n d i g a r h M u n i c i p a l Corporation has passed a resolution to take over the entire internal development of over 100 housing societies located in the southern part of the city. In the resolution, the municipal councillors have asked the UT (Union Territory) that with proper allocation of funds, the internal land of these societies be transferred to them so that development of internal areas of societies could be done in a proper manner, as the area comes under MC and

residents of these societies are voters of the civic body.

Chairman of Chandigarh Social Welfare Council S S Bhardwaj said, “The condition of residential societies is pathetic. These societies are paying charges to the authorities, but are not in a position to ask for facilities. We have been raising the issue with the UT administration for the last many years and now we are quite relieved to hear that the civic body has taken a crucial decision.”

Soon developers in Maharashtra will not need to build flats on plots reserved for premium housing for low and middle income buyers. Bowing to the pressure from the builders lobby, the state government is set to nullify its policy on inclusive housing.

A state government official said, “The state government has agreed to amend the notification and allow builders to build LIG and MIG (lower- and middle-income groups) housing components on separate plots after several difficulties were brought to light by the builders.” However, there will be a restriction which says that the alternate plot would have to be situated within the

same municipal ward. All the buildings on completion will be handed over to the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority at the construction cost, after which the authority would allot the flats to buyers.

In a request to the urban development department, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has asked for an increase in the minimum area for cluster redevelopment from one acre to five acres and more incentive floor space index (FSI) for old and dilapidated buildings.

This is a part of Mumbai’s urban renewal plan for which a committee has also been set up. When launched in 2009, cluster development policy mandated a minimum acreage of 10 but later reduced to one on pressure from developers. Still, only five projects were approved, the largest being the 14-acre Bhendi Bazaar project that is being implemented by the

Bohra Trust. Under this project, developer would get an incentive FSI of 80% against every 100 sq ft of rehab area, including accommodation reservation like housing for displaced, schools

and hospitals. Proprietor of Nish Developers, who has taken a seven-acre cluster redevelopment project in Parel says, such projects were the only way to bring about urban renewal.

A h m e d a b a d M u n i c i p a l Corporation (AMC), in view of the assembly election scheduled later this year, has announced a Rs 100 crore project, which is a part of the Swarmin Jayanti Chief Minister Urban Development Fund, to resurface housing societies’ internal roads and to install streetlights and drinking-water pipelines on the PPP model. The government under the project

will pay 70% of the funds while the remaining 30% will be shared by AMC and a society in the ratio of 10%:20%.

Municipal commissioner Guruprasad Mohapatra said, “The first preference would be given to societies which have more residents from socially backward classes. AMC will fund only those projects which are for conventional streetlights.

However, if a society wants to install power-saver lights, they can pay the excess amount.”

Requests for rise in minimum area for cluster redevelopment

Rs 100 crore project for improvement of housing societies

Maharashtra may dilute policy on inclusive housing

Call for speeding up infrastructure works on projects under JNNURM in Hyderabad

Housing societies to be adopted by CMC

Infrastructure works on housing colonies developed for the poor under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) in Hyderabad needs to be completed fast, informed Greater Hyderabad Municipal C o r p o r a t i o n ( G H M C ) Commissioner MT Krishna Babu.

The pending work was brought to notice by Ranga Reddy Collector in a review meeting on housing projects at the GHMC head office. Babu said that it was the responsibility of the municipal

corporation to provide the necessary amenities on the flats handed over to beneficiaries. “Engineering wing must see that the allottees pay for electricity connections and loan component

before the housing units are handed over,” Babu added. The urban community department was told to coordinate with banks for the loan component and keep the documentation in order.

As a provision in the new resettlement and rehabilitation policy, people who offered their lands for the infrastructure projects of the Delhi Government would now be allocated DDA flats on a privileged basis. “The new provision has been made to ensure that those who

give their lands get residential accommodation made by government on a priority basis. The government will write to the DDA in this respect,” said an official. Besides this, the government would also pay landowners financial compensation as per the prevailing market rates.

The landowners would be offered low income group (LIG) DDA flat, an MIG (middle income group) flat or a high income group (HIG) according to area of land acquired from them.

26 HOusInG June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

The Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA) Kumari Selja has said that it is the responsibility of the State to provide housing and basic facilities like drinking water, electricity and cleanliness etc depending upon their main concern and availability of pecuniary resources.

T h e G ove r n m e n t h a d inaugurated Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal M i s s i o n ( J N N U R M ) i n December 2005 to support States/Union Territories for undertaking programmes for provision of housing and basic services to urban poor/ slum dwellers under Basic S e r v i c e s t o t h e Ur b a n Poor (BSUP) in 65 select cities including Mumbai. T h e G o v e r n m e n t h a s sanctioned the extension of

JNNURM by two years up to the end of financial year 2013-14 for completion of projects sanctioned up to March, 2012 and execution of three pro-poor reforms. In response in Rajya Sabha, Kumari Selja said, a total of 1615 projects, 529 under BSUP and 1086 under IHSDP, have been approved so far for construction of 16,02,387 houses, 10,31,856 under BSUP and 5,70,531 under IHSDP, and other related civic amenities like water supply, sewerage, community toilets, street lighting etc across the country.

A n e w s c h e m e ‘ R a j iv Awas Yojana’ (RAY), which commenced in June 2011 provides financial assistance to States that are willing to allocate property rights to slum dwellers.

There is good news for slum dwellers in Jaipur. The State Cabinet of Jaipur has acquired land in Jaipur under the Rajiv Gandhi Awas Yojana meant to rehabilitate slum dwellers. “We will build 12,000 houses u n d e r t h e R a j iv G a n d h i Awas Yojana to rehabilitate the slum dwellers of Jaipur’s Sanjay Nagar Bhatta Basti. This

will be the country’s biggest rehabilitation project under the Yojana,” said Shanti Dhariwal, the Minister for Urban Development a n d h o u s i n g ( U D H ) . Th e government will spend Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 3 lakh on each house, which will consist of two bedrooms, a living room, store, washroom and some open space.

The residents of Sanjay Nagar

Bhatta Basti have been dwelling illegally for several years in the forest department’s land near the Nahargarh foothills. The government would be rehabilitating these people in the same area by acquiring the forest land, in return, the forest department will be offered around four times more land near Sariska.

“ R e f o r m s r e f l e c t i n g t h e dynamics of city and an enabling approach, bringing down the high standard that poor people can’t adapt to, and master plans with special provisions for the poor will help create better living conditions in the cities for them,” says Diana Motta, project director of Emplas Metropolitan Planning Agency for Sao Paulo State of Brazil, who has come to India to attend an international conference “Slum-free India.”

Motta is of the view that reforms must cut costs to assist inclusion of people in the city. Substitute urban planning, including institutional reforms, legal framework and capacity building would help in bringing

about the transformation. “There is also a need to

harmonise environmental issues with development issues and at present it is not linked,” she said.

S h e a l s o s a i d t h a t environment policies should be reconsidered keeping in mind the urban concerns and financial assistance from private sector should be also be encouraged.

Jaipur goes ahead with biggest rehabilitation for slum dwellers

Progressive reforms help diminishing rich-poor gap, says expert

A rightful move by the Delhi government

‘Time for states to take responsibility’

safety

The Gujarat High Court has given directives to the A h m ad ab ad Mu n i c ip a l Corporation (AMC) to submit its report on compliance of fire safety measures at private and government schools in the city along with high-rise buildings by June 21.

The order has been passed by a division bench of acting Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice J B Pardiwala, while responding to

a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by one Prakash Nambiar.

The AMC has stated in its report that there are 1,227 high-rises in Ahmadabad, out of which, 1,202 buildings have installed fire safety systems while the rest have not.

The high-level security meeting of the police in Kochi analysed the loopholes of the current security system and measures. One of the prime industrial cities in the country, Kochi has several sensitive points which need to be dealt with strong security system.

“It is one of the f ast developing cities and a prime tourist spot. Sea coasts

provide an entry point for terrorists, and this puts Kochi in a vulnerable spot. The meeting gains significance in the wake of the recently-concluded annual security drill ‘Triton’ which dealt with the security of coastal cities,” sources said.

India Yamaha Motor is back with a bang with its First Safe Riding Science of the year at Bal Bharti Public School in Noida, after last year’s success of safe riding sessions.

The Japanese two-wheeler manufacturer intends to train kids theoretically as well as practically with the help of this holistic programme. The day long training programme helped the kids get an insight of the basics of road safety and helped them understand the importance of riding gear.

The kids were also taught how to ride a bike with the Yamaha TTR 50 and PW 50.

GPS will speed up tsunami warnings: Researchers

Yamaha teaches the future of India how to ride safe

Gujarat HC demands fire safety report from high-rises

Security system in Kochi to intensify

BEST to instal speed-governing mechanism

Cities focus on adaptability in the wake of global disaster

In an attempt to detect the magnitude of an earthquake to speed up warnings of potential tsunamis, researchers in the United States have been testing an advanced tsunami warning system using GPS data, combined with traditional seismology networks.

The prototype, which is

a collaboration of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation is known as California Integrated Seismic Network (CISN), and concentrates on environmental conservation.

A fund of US$ 6 million has been granted by the foundation

to seismologists at the University of California, Berkeley, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), and University of Washington, Seattle. This will enable them to find the most efficient way to capture and analyse seismic data so that adequate warning can be given to people on the ground.

“Our research is focused on trying to get data from closer to the earthquake itself in order to determine more rapidly the magnitude,” said Yehuda Bock, Research Geodesist and senior lecturer, Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Also, the director of the seismological laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, Richard Allen, is of the opinion that GPS is good at presenting magnitude, showing exactly how much the ground is physically moving.

In order to keep a check on accidents due to over-speeding, the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) has decided to install a speed-governing mechanism in their buses. A speed limit of 40 km/hr and 60 km/hr has been set for double-decker

and regular buses respectively. The move came after one of its double-decker buses met with an accident at Kalanagar, Bandra. “A speed-governing mechanism will be installed in all buses to monitor the speed limit,” said OP Gupta, general manager, BEST.

Additionally, BEST has also decided to look into the air-conditioned bus routes in the high-density hubs of private cars, which will eventually encourage people to board buses instead of taking their cars, as a result of which, the roads will be less congested.

Margareta wahlström

Addressing city leaders at the 2012 Resilient Cities Congress, a new phase of the ‘Making Cities Resilient’ campaign has been launched by the UN’s top disaster risk reduction official, Margareta Wahlström. The move comes as a summit is going to be held on sustainable development in Rio de Janeiro next month.

Wahlström, the head of UNISDR, the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, told Mayors and local government leaders, “Cities and towns are on the frontline when it comes to economic losses due to the rising frequency and intensity of floods and other disasters. Economic losses since then amount to US$ 500 billion.”

Along with ICLEI, 24 other partners working with UNISDR, supporting the campaign, are UN-HABITAT/UNICEF with

the Child Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) and HABITAT’s World Urban Campaign for Resilient Cities; United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) and Cisco whose Internet Business Solutions Group (IBSG) works with the global public sector on resilient cities.

MUST KNOWAccording to a report on “Progress and Challenges in Urban Climate Adaptation Planning: Results of a Global Survey”, 81% of surveyed cities experienced an increase in natural disasters and approximately half of the 468 cities who participated in the survey reported changes in temperature, precipitation, sea level and natural calamities attributing to climate change.

28 sAfeTY June 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

There is a new way to create public awareness. The Nashik police commissionerate is using an innovative effective method of loudspeakers mounted atop auto-rickshaws to generate awareness about safety and security among common citizens.

For the past few days, one such auto has been travelling throughout the city, broadcasting announcements about what necessary steps should be taken to ensure one’s safety. The auto,

with three police personnel inside, has been drawing the attention of local residents, who listen to the tips on safety

measures and precautionary steps to avoid chain-snatching, house-break-ins and other security related issues.

The Maharashtra State Road Tr a n s p o r t C o r p o r a t i o n (MSRTC), during its two-month survey, has spotted 158 accident-prone spots on major roads passing through the region of Pune. A list of the accident-prone spots has been given to the public works department (PWD) and Zilla Parishads of the respective districts, so that the bus drivers passing through that area can be alerted, thus averting accidents.

According to the survey, there are 1,210 accident-prone spots in the state. The highest among them is the Mumbai region with 392 accident-prone areas, followed by Nashik (286), Aurangabad (195), Pune (158), Amravati (107) and Nagpur (72). Within Pune region, the most accident-prone spots are found in Kolhapur division (38), followed by Pune (33), Satara and Solapur (32 each) and Sangli (23).

Ten Asian cities that are regularly affected by floods, droughts or soaring temperatures are developing a set of key indicators to evaluate their weakness to the effects of harsh climate change and boost up urban planning infrastructure to develop resilience.

M u n i c i p a l i t i e s a n d environmental groups across India, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam will meticulously analyse these key indicators such as capacity of their water

supply systems, and frequency of water logging and rainfall projections, to produce the first ever climate change related urban development data.

“From this year onwards, these pilot cities in Asia will be demonstrating the practical value of these indicators in improving the climate resilience of these cities. Once that happens, they can serve as models for other cities in these countries and elsewhere to adopt,” said Stephen Tyler, senior associate at the US-based Institute for Social

Change and Environmental Transition, a partner organisation working on the project.

The Chennai Corporation is apply-ing new methods and improved technologies in the form of a ‘pave-ment quality indicator’ to detect faulty road compaction. Com-paction is the procedure of creat-ing a road surface with maximum evenness and permanence so as to enhance skid resistance and increase road safety and riding comfort. Poor quality construc-tion of roads has led to pothole for-mation during the monsoon.

A team of quality control experts have found that many bus routes and interior roads in Chennai had not been com-pacted to the specific density. The new technology will help the engineers to detect faulty road compaction on a few stretches. The pavement quality indicator will very soon be introduced on a trial basis in the city and later taken to all zones in the Corpo-ration limits.

The 6.0 magnitude earthquake, which killed seven people, struck the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy, 3.2 miles below ground at 4.04 am on May 20. It was felt across northern Italy, from Liguria to the Veneto.

Three thousand people were

bedded down in tents after the strong earthquake in the early hours. Aftershocks continued to bring down damaged buildings during the day. Italians have started assessing the damage. The earthquake in Italy has devastated one of their most historic regions.

The earthquake has raised serious concerns over the need to create awareness regarding safety among the common p ub l i c. U N I S D R ( Un it e d Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction) Chief, Margareta Wahlström, extended her condolences to those who lost loved ones and said: “This tragedy underlines once again how vulnerable many parts of the world are to earthquakes. The loss of lives and livelihoods which flow from these events must encourage us to ensure that risk assessments are acted on and that the public is well educated on the realities of living in earthquake zones which regularly produce the largest loss of life and largest economic losses of any natural hazard.”

Italy earthquake raises concern on public awareness

Police use auto-rickshaws to disseminate information on public safety

MSRTC discovers 158 accident-prone spots around Pune

Asian cities to develop new indicators to cope with climate change

Technology to detect pothole-prone roads in Chennai

e-governance

In a bid to empower the smart cities of the future, Living Plan IT has decided to develop an urban operating system in London to provide a platform to connect services and citizens. The OS aims to connect key services such as water, transport, and energy. David Willetts, minister for Universities and Science, one of the signatories to the partnership

said, “The development of smart cities in future is a crucial commercial opportunity for Britain, and London is the right place to be doing it.” With partners including Hitachi, Phillips and Greenwich council, it aims to use the Greenwich peninsula as a testbed for new technologies running on the system. In a newly built office

block, Living Plan IT plans to embed thousands of sensors that will monitor external and internal conditions to create smart lighting and heating systems. It also plans to test smart lamp posts on the roads. The concept of smart cities has become a hot topic in the tech industry and it is assumed that 70% of the world’s population will live in such cities by 2050.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been asked to create e-forms for the State Portal Scheme of the National e-Governance plan after almost two years of holding the execution of digitisation of government offices in Kerala.

The scheme was proposed to be implemented in October 2 0 0 9 i n 1 3 g ove r n m e n t departments in the first phase but it got delayed preventing the government from issuing an order to go ahead with the e-form project.

A series of online complaints from the citizens that the Nagpur civic body doesn’t pay attention to has become a matter of serious concern in the city. Even the mayor’s online complaint system has been placed

in cold storage. This online system was introduced by the then mayor Archana Dehankar in December 2010 with an aim to solve citizens’ complaints without letting them stroll from one table to the other.

Sources in the mayor’s office said, “Online complaint redressal system launched by Dehankar would be renovated and launched in coming days”.

In a bid to provide the citizens in the rural and urban areas of UP with the web-based services under 26 heads from July 1, 2012, the Uttar Pradesh government approved the implementation of the long-pending National e-Governance plan. Officials of the National Informatics Cell have been asked by Chief Secretary Jawed Usmani to make sure that the state service

delivery gateways are made functional by the said deadline. Under this programme, people will now be able to send online applications for pensions, look for government help for ailments and weddings, make complaints against dowry demands, get copy of land registrations and enrol for employment.

Originally, this programme was approved for implementation

throughout the country in May 2006 to “make all government services available to the common man in his locality”.

Pune and Ahmedabad have been selected as the only cities in India to analyse and recommend ways that will enable them to become even better places to live and work by IT giant IBM under “Smarter Cities Challenge Grant for 2012”. This is a competitive grant programme in which IBM is awarding a total of US$ 50 million worth of technology and services to 100 municipalities worldwide through 2013.

Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) plans to work with IBM to provide better healthcare for its citizens. Mamtha Sharma,

Manager, Corporate Citizenship and Corporate Affairs, IBM India said, “This project will draw on IBM’s expertise in the area of providing technical solutions in healthcare and implementing recommendations that the city feels are most feasible and beneficial to its residents. A team of five people will work with PMC for three weeks in February 2013. During these engagements, IBM technical experts, researchers and consultants immerse themselves in local issues and offer a range of options and recommended next-steps.”

London to test ‘smart city’ operating system

PMC to provide better healthcare to citizens with the help of IBM

TCS entrusted with creation of e-forms

Nagpur civic body to renovate online complaint system

UP government approves e-governance plan

eventspower-Gen India & Central Asia 2012

India Urban Transport Summit-2012

T h e e l e v e n t h e d i t i o n o f international conference and exhibition, Power-Gen India & Central Asia 2012 along with co-located events Renewable E ne r g y Worl d I nd i a a nd HydroVision India, brought technologies across the entire thermal, renewable and hydro power sector under one roof.

The three-day event took

p l a c e at P r a g at i M a i d a n E x h i bit ion C e nt r e i n t he capital starting April 19. This was one of the most important p ower-rel ate d con ference in the region and aimed to p r o m o t e c o m p r e h e n s i v e cooperation, understanding and technology transfer between the Indian and international power industry.

Redevelopment of old and unsafe houses with better infrastr ucture is a need of the day, since cities are e m e r g i n g a s d o m i n a n t c o mp o n e nt s o f n at i o n a l economic lifeline. In the light of this scenario, PHD Chamber organised a conference on “Disaster Management and

Redevelopment of Unsafe H o u s i n g ” o n M ay 1 7 i n New Delhi.

Addressing the delegate in the event, Tejendra Khanna, Lt Governor of Delhi said, “About 60% buildings in the city are constructed on unauthorised land, 345 slum clusters in Delhi are spread over DDA

land. We need about 80,000 flats to accommodate slum dwellers living in these areas to give them safe habitat.”

Sanjay P Pathak, OSD (Planning), Delhi Development Authority, said, “DDA is deliberating on creation of an a g e n c y w h i c h w o u l d d e v e l o p s y s t e m s f o r retrofitting or renovation of buildings which are found to be structurally unsafe.”

FICCI’s India Urban Transport Summit-2012 was held at Federation House, New Delhi on May 25. Dr Rakesh Mohan,

Chairman, National Transport Development Policy inaugurated the event and in his address speech he said that an efficient,

reliable and safe transport system is vital for fostering rapid economic growth.

The FICCI-KPMG Report ‘Getting Urban Transport on Track’ was released by Dr Rakesh Mohan and Dr Sudhir Krishna, Secretary, Ministry o f Ur b a n D e ve l o p m e n t . ‘Role of PPPs in meeting funding and service delivery challenges’, ‘MRTS and BRTS: Emulating success stories’ and ‘Role of green technologies & i n t e l l i g e n t t r a n s p o r t system’ were discussed at the day-long summit.

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pHD Chamber conference on disaster management in new Delhi

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