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Challenges and Opportunities of Sustainable Urbanization
Challenges and Opportunities of Sustainable Urbanization
Abstract
Sustainable urbanism is examined in terms of its difficulties, policies, and prospects. A new
phrase, sustainable urbanism, has gained popularity in urban planning and design. Researchers
in Delhi and Rajkot, India, have conducted a study to demonstrate the need for sustainable
urban development.
As a result, urban development in India has reached unsustainable levels. Economic growth
and development are discussed, as well as the social and environmental challenges that come
along with it. On the basis of this research we looked at concerns such as sustainability and
spatial design as well as governance and implementation difficulties. What is sustainable
urbanism, what are the challenges that cities like Delhi and Rajkot face, and what are the
opportunities for sustainable urbanism in Delhi and Rajkot are specific research topics.
The environment, society, and people's quality of life are all threatened by a variety of
problems. One strategy can have a positive impact on others because all of these issues are
interrelated and complicated. A major social and ethical issue facing the entire world, including
the metropolitan area of Delhi, is population growth. In Rajkot, expanding industrial and
commercial activity have created a major environmental issue. During my investigation, I also
found answers and other concerns that are worth mentioning.
1. Introduction
“Indian cities like Delhi and Rajkot have seen a great transformation after independence
and the pace of development increased in the last two decades. This rapid urbanization comes
with the benefits of economic growth. Urbanization is closely related to industrialization;
Modernization and rationalization.”(Master plan Delhi) Opportunities, knowledge banks,
innovations, creativity, and commercialization are all found in urban regions. Because cities
attract people from outside the city, human resource capitalization and talent acquisition have
resulted in economic-based urbanism.
“In the first years of independence, almost 82 percent of the Indian population lived in rural
areas or we can say only 18 percent was live in urban areas. This was a kind of moral
justification for following the spirit of Gram Swaraj - the Gandhian model of independent
villages based on a just and nonviolent order” (Subhojit Goswami). “It served as a guideline
for political decision-makers in the years that followed and was reflected in some subtle ways
in rural development policy. However, despite Gandhi's socio-economic vision for rural
sustainability and the need to empower the village community, urban India continues to grow.
Although it is one of the least urbanized countries, where urbanization increased by 13
percentage points in only fifty years between 1951 and 2001.”(Census of India) Despite this, it
boasts the second-largest urban population in the world, behind only the United States. Because
of inadequate infrastructure and planning investments in Indian cities, the economic expansion
of the country was spurred on by the concentration of capital, talents, and other resources within
cities.
India's urban development is not sustainable because there was less time for urban development
and the pressure of development was high, so social and environmental challenges have
become apparent. At the time of independence, the Indian government built more than 70 steel
towns and focused more on existing urban areas. Unplanned urban growth leads to stressed
infrastructure, slum growth, Environmental degradation, traffic problems, and high cost of
living. India's huge population, huge and diverse country Mass and poverty-related rural-to-
urban migration have the administrative leaders, policymakers, and Planners, which in turn
leads to inadequate governance.
1.1 Sustainable urbanism:
“Sustainable urbanism is both the study of cities and the practices related to their construction
(urbanism) that focus on promoting their long-term viability by reducing consumption, waste
and harmful effects on people and places while improving the overall well-being will be of
people and places. Well-being includes, among other things, the physical, environmental,
economic, social, health, and equitable factors that encompass cities and their people.”[19]
The ever-growing urban population is bringing the issue of sustainable urbanism to serious
discussion. Cities are not only environmentally sustainable but also socially and economically
necessary. “Urban sustainability means sustainable mobility equipment, energy, water, homes,
landscapes, etc. Developing a harmonious ecosystem, however, this ecosystem must be
consistent with the impact on people's needs and resources.”(United Nations).
It's no secret that cities can be a source of both ecological issues and environmental opportunity.
On the one hand, rapid urbanization has a negative impact on the environment since cities are
becoming denser. About 75% of worldwide energy usage and over 70% of global carbon
dioxide emissions come from cities. The majority of urban infrastructure is constructed without
regard to the environment. Sustainability. As a result of the urban lifestyle being sustained by
a resource-intensive consumer society, the pressure on Earth's ecosystems is increased. “The
ecological footprint of mankind already exceeds the carrying capacity of the planet by 50
percent, while biodiversity is on the rise strongly negative trend. The ecosystem services we
depend on for our survival and humans Wells are exposed to critical levels of deterioration. At
the same time, cities have enormous potential as hubs for the development of intelligent,
sustainable solutions that can help meet human needs with a minimal footprint while even more
quality of life. Parallel to international processes on climate and Sustainability requires strong,
visionary leadership at the urban level. Cities that are already taking strong measures to address
the sustainability challenges are becoming international stars.”(United Nations)
2. Methodology
Research
Question
Literature study
Existing scenario
Selected case
study
Research question
In this study, I looked at sustainable urbanism in Delhi and Rajkot, as well as its difficulties
and opportunities. The first stage of the analysis looks at the existing state of sustainable
urbanism in Delhi and Rajkot. Second, the problems and prospects for these two cities in terms
of sustainable urbanism, and third, a comparative examination of these two cities, taking some
factors into account.
Literature study
“The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of the recent patterns and
trends of urban growth in developing countries. Over the past 20 years, many urban areas have
experienced dramatic growth due to rapid population growth and the transformation of the
world economy through a combination of rapid technological and political changes. Around 3
billion people - almost half of the world's population now live in urban settlements. And while
cities play an increasingly dominant role in the world economy as centers of production and
consumption, rapid urban growth in developing countries is seriously exceeding the capacity
of most cities to supply adequate services to their citizens. It is expected that virtually all of the
world's population growth over the next 30 years will be concentrated in urban areas in
developing countries. While much of the current sustainable city debate has centered on the
daunting problems facing the world's largest urban agglomerations, the majority of all city
dwellers continue to live in much smaller urban settlements. Many international agencies have
yet to adequately recognize either the expected rapid climb of small and medium-sized cities
or the deteriorating living conditions of the urban poor. The challenges of sustainable urban
development will be particularly great in Africa.”[22]
Existing scenario
“Rapid urbanization is happening in many parts of the planet. In 1800, only 2% of the world's
population lived in urban areas. In 1900, only 15 percent of the world's population lived in
cities and towns Cities. The 20th century has changed this process as the pace of the urban
population growth accelerated very rapidly from the 1950s. In 1950, more than two-thirds (70
percent) of the world's people lived in rural settlements. In 2007, for the primary time in history,
quite more than half the world's population lived in cities. In 2014, 54 percent were the world
population lived in urban areas. It is expected to extend 72 percent by 2050, from 3.6 billion to
six .3 billion in 2050.”[14] Population growth in urban areas is accompanied by an increase in
urban expansion 34 cities with a population of at least 10 million people exist today. It was
only 50 years ago that the population of New York City had reached this level of density. But
in 50 years, the number of cities with a population of over a million people has risen from 80
to 5334! In the coming decades, the majority of the urban population will come from the cities
due to a large young population and rapid growth rates. Rapid global urbanisation has
significant economic, social, and environmental repercussions.
Rapid urbanization is now predominantly a problem for developing countries. “In the middle
of the 20th century, only 17.8% of the developing world population lived in cities, but for 50
years in 1950, this percentage rose to over 40%. By 2030, almost 60% of the population of
developing countries will live in cities. It is estimated that 93 percent of the longer-term city
increase will happen within the developing world.”[14] “Most of the urban increase is going to
be what in Asia, Africa, and Latin America 54 percent, 32.5 percent, and 6.8 percent,
respectively of total urban increase.”(United Nations)
“Urban and rural population growth in the developing and developed worlds.”(United Nations)
“The capital of India, New Delhi, is experiencing one among the fastest urban expansions
within the world. Large expanses of farmland and grassland are being converted into roads,
buildings, and parking lots, attracting an unprecedented number of latest residents. By 2050,
the United Nations plans that India will add 400 million urban residents in what would be the
largest urban migration in the world over a thirty-two-year period.”[12]
“The Rajkot city's development has historically been driven by industrial activity. With
increasing industrial, commercial and commercial activity, the city's population has grown
enormously. Rajkot is the most populous city in the Saurashtra-Kutch region, and its trade
activities are promoted by a beneficial economic and industrial policy. Rajkot is a pioneer
among cities in India preparing for a sustainable, low carbon, and climate-resilient future and
is acting as a model city in Phase I of the Urban LEDS program.”(RUDA).
These are some reasons that I decided to take these cities for research analysis. The Author has
analysed the sustainable urbanism of these cities, what are the problems or challenges, and also
I have tried to find opportunities and solutions for sustainable urbanism. I have also taken some
interviews of people from these cities in order to find some solutions for sustainable urbanism.
2.1 Case study no.1 – Delhi
At this unusual rate of growth, the city's past as well as contemporary developments must be
integrated into a seamless whole that requires focused socioeconomic, natural, and built-
environment transformations." On top of that, it will serve as the seat of national government,
a business hub, and a cultural, educational, and sporting hub for the country.
“The city of Delhi is predominantly urban, 75 percent of its total area (1,483 km²) and 98
percent of the total population (16.79 million) falls under urban jurisdiction. It has the highest
population density in India (11,320 people per km²) and according to the 2011 census, the
decadal growth rate fell from 47.02 percent in 1991-2001 to 21.20 percent in 2001-2011, but
urban density did not.”[14] The urban spill-over continues in the surrounding states of UP and
Haryana.
In 1951, Delhi began to emerge as an urban area. The rapid increase of the urban population in
the NCT of Delhi has resulted in the transformation of rural areas into urban areas. This
urbanization effort has reduced the number of rural villages in the Delhi NCT from 300 in 1961
to 112 villages in 2011. “The rural population decreased from 38.1% in 1951 to 2.5% in 2011.
In 1957 the MCD law was enacted by Parliament and in 1958 elections were held for the Delhi
City Council, responsible for the city's planned development.”[11] “The first master plan for
the period 1961-81 was drawn up by DDA and notified by the Indian government in 1962. This
master plan was revised by DDA for the extended period up to 2001. It was further revised for
the extended period 2001-2021 and notified in 2007.”[12]
By 2026, the amount of individuals expected to be living in Delhi is around 40 million. “In
conjunction with the intensified challenges of environmental degradation, rapid urbanization
has placed pressure on infrastructure, housing availability, and therefore the spread of slums”
[21] another key impact of rapid population rise may be a transformation inside the way that
terrestrial is employed. “Once productive grounds and water bodies, alongside agricultural
lands, are covered over by built-up conurbation. In 1951, the entire area of agricultural land
within the Delhi region was 97,067 hectares. Today, it's but 25,000 hectares” [21]
“Agriculture is the major economic driver and has been substituted by a diverse capitalism.
Since the late 20th century, advanced industries, specifically IT and telecommunications, have
dominated the older trade in goods for instance spices, making Delhi is the main national
trading capital.”[12] “In turn, this process of globalizing economically has generated an
increasing division of rich and poor, and put enormous pressure on the access of the poor to
land and houses”[21]
“A carbon footprint of 0.70 kg per person now exists in Delhi. Other global megacities such as
Mexico City and London have a significantly larger carbon footprint. In spite of the fact that
this statistics may seem encouraging, Delhi's carbon footprint remains a serious concern due to
the fact that it is significantly greater than the national average in India.”[12] As positive as
these numbers may seem at first glance, Delhi's carbon footprint, which is substantially higher
than the national average in India, remains a severe concern. “The processes involved burnt
brick production aren't environmentally friendly. And so the conundrum is highlighted, how
can today's populations achieve better health and overall life quality outcomes whilst ensuring
environmental prosperity within the future?”[21]
“Environmental issues in Delhi are pervasive, affecting many different aspects of daily life.
Transport rules haven't been ready to minimise pollution in terms of air quality. Between 2000
and 2010, the number of cars in Delhi nearly doubled, and this is still the main cause of the
city's poor air quality. While the Supreme Court of India issued orders in 1998 aimed at
regulating vehicle pollution throughout Delhi, those orders were ineffective.”[12]
Strict politics and planning implementation are essential to conserve resources for future
generations. The 3Rs of reuse, recycling, and reduction must be emphasised and represented
in all political policies. Corporate Social Responsibility should be a requirement of all services.
Plastic should be prohibited, despite the availability of low-cost plastic replacements. The
whole population should be involved in the construction of a sustainable city. It can be
accomplished by having teenagers and youngsters create a list of problems and solutions.
Changes in behaviour as well as a sense of belonging to the city must be instilled. Without a
doubt, public transit should be made more inexpensive, efficient, and effective. “Carpooling
and training of drivers in the air 4th Pollution and fuel consumption can be encouraged. There
are also strict political control measures such as Polluters pay and fixed vehicle inspection and
the industry needs strict implementation. It is important to get rid of waste incineration and
biomass and focus on less pollution better-ventilated kitchens.”[3]
“Urban green spaces and nature-based solutions will provide innovative solutions to improve
the quality of urban space and local resilience and promote sustainable lifestyles, which have
a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of urban residents.”[14] Ecosystems supply us
with a wide range of benefits and services that we can't do without. Services that plants and
trees provide, wetlands and pollinating crops that regulate water quality, supporting other
services, cultural services such as the value of spending time in nature are just a few of the
perks. Due to the increasing human demand on the ecosystem over the past few years, these
ecological facilities have been neglected, placing these vital systems that are required for
sustainable life at risk
Following are some green initiatives that could act as opportunities for people:
“The city of Rajkot, western Indian state of Gujarat, has always been in the spotlight of its bold
and innovative steps towards sustainable growth. It is the regional and local leadership of this
rapidly developing city that has given the city several awards in areas such as hygiene and
cleanliness, industrial development, and other contemporary aspects such as the introduction
of renewable energies, the energy efficiency of buildings, an efficient transport system and use
of non-motorized traffic” [7].
“Rajkot has been an important urban center since its inception and the center for social, cultural,
commercial, educational, political and industrial activities for the entire Saurashtra region.
Permanent settlement began in 1646 AD and the city was ruled by various Hindu and Muslim
kings. In 1822 AD the Malay Archipelago Company established a khothi for the first time, and
the first railway line in Kathiawar was built in Rajkot in 1872-73 AD” [8]. The golden age of
Rajkot begins with the reign of Sir Lakhajiraj, as evidenced by the development of
organisations, residential areas, and markets, as well as the establishment of special schools
and libraries for girls.
“The Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) was built as part of the Urban LEDS project on his
previous achievements in climate protection and created a way for the transition to a green and
inclusive urban economy” [7]. According to Rajkot's objective to remain a "liveable" city, the
Green Climate Cities (GCC) programme allows the city to define priority and solve a variety
of concerns. “The GCC process culminated in the development of a cross-departmental
stakeholder committee, which Rajkot would enhance during his climate trip. The demolition
of institutional silos works hand in hand with efforts to mainstream climate considerations
throughout the community, according to the thesis.”[7]
“The Urban LEDS project helped Rajkot identify and promote potential priority sectors. Run
three pilot projects to replace 291 existing high-power-consuming sodium vapour pressure
(HPSV) lamps on selected roads with energy-efficient light-emitting diode lamps; 20 kWp
Solar Photo Voltaic (SPV) installations during a city school and a 100 KLD decentralized
sewage treatment plant (DTS) for treatment. Rajkot is scaling this type of successful
demonstration of projects through several of his planning, policy, and infrastructure initiatives
for a sustainable, healthy, and liveable city.”[8]
“Rajkot has a strong and growing economic sector based mainly on manufacturing and
metalwork. In addition, it is the administrative center for the Rajkot District and hence it is
home to many government and executive bodies. Rajkot fights along some of the problems
often associated with rapid urban development include Water scarcity, transport and service
provision, and energy supply and demand to care. In 1998 the city limits were enlarged to
include three nearby villages. As a results of this territorial expansion, the city's population has
grown by 28.3 percent over the past 10 years, making it the fourth largest city in Gujarat
state.”[9]
Rajkot is becoming more urbanized, and the use of private vehicles is increasing. More and
more people can afford motorcycles, and many existing motorcycle owners will certainly
upgrade to vehicles as incomes rise. Consequently, traffic congestion will intensify, the
environment will suffer, and transportation will have to deal with more difficult operational
circumstances. “When the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) benchmarks and
performance indicators for assessing the degree of urban transport services in Indian cities are
applied to Rajkot, they show that the town has major traffic and transportation issues.”[9]
“RMC has initiated a public cycle sharing pilot program in four prime locations (five cycles in
each location) of the town. More than 25 hotels have also made cycles available for his or her
guests. Also, 60 cycles altogether 18 BRTS stations and 15 cycles in corporation zonal offices
are available on a rental basis, which is getting used by quite 700 people per week. After the
significant response to the pilot public cycle sharing scheme, a pre-feasibility study and
business plan for a public bicycle sharing system in Rajkot city have been prepared under the
Urban-LEDS project to strengthen the non-motorized transport (NMT) system and accelerate
a shift towards sustainable transport modes.”[7] This project is planned to be implemented in
stages. Rajkot City shall lower its fuel usage by 867 kilolitres and greenhouse gas emissions
by 2072 tonnes of co2 equivalents each year if the strategy is executed successfully.
“The three pilot projects implemented as part of Urban LEDS in the city of Rajkot have resulted
in annual electricity savings of 1.06.629 kWh and a reduction in emissions of around 100
tCO2e per year.”[10] Together with ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia
and a Stakeholder Committee, the city developed Low Emission Approaches as part of a project
(LEDs). “The total potential reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from the suggested
solutions in the various sectors for municipal and municipal activities is 4,51,825 tCO2e, which
equates to nearly 25% of Rajkot City's annual base Greenhouse gases emissions in 2012-
13.”(ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability South Asia)
2.3 Comparative analysis of Delhi and Rajkot
3%2%
14%
19%
32%
35%
23%
6%
Greenhouse 8%
Gas
11%
emissions 17%
30%
by sector
Road transport
Residential buildings
Domestic
Commercial and Institutional
Industry buildings
Waste Manufacturing Industries and
Construction
Electricity consumption
Transport
Agriculture
As the city grows, Rajkot is ideally positioned to sustain its 'accountability'. The RMC has
taken use of programmes that provide resources and skills that will help with low-carbon city
development. However, there are other key areas of urban research in Delhi, such as how to
enhance living conditions for the city's rising urban population in slums, and how and where
Delhi's master planning fails to implement the Urban LEDs project.
The GRIHA and GCC criteria should be followed when it comes to attaining sustainability in
urban infrastructure and housing (Green Climate City). Densely inhabited areas are incubators
for new ideas, creativity, and learning. These characteristics must be fostered if the global
problem of sustainable urbanisation in the face of increasing urbanisation is to be solved.
4. Conclusion
Based on the findings of the article, I believe that the long-term development of Delhi and
Rajkot should be comprehensive and satisfy the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable
citizens. Ambitious, action-oriented, and collaborative strategies that adapt to different stages
of development are required. They will have to adjust production and consumption patterns in
a methodical way, which might lead to significant price corrections, the preservation of natural
talents, the reduction of inequality, and the improvement of economic governance, among other
things.
Multiple problems to sustainable urbanism exist in Delhi, including huge demand on poor land
access and housing, an unsustainable urban transportation system, waste management, housing,
and numerous ecological difficulties. When compared to Delhi, Rajkot faces a number of
challenges, including a significant growth in the number of private vehicles on the road, traffic
congestion, unsustainable industrialization, and more difficult operating circumstances for
public transit systems Infrastructure, housing availability, and slum expansion have all been
negatively affected by rapid urbanisation, disregarding the grave issues of environmental
deterioration in both cases. As cities become more sustainable, new opportunities and solutions
are explored alongside the issues at hand.
It should be underlined that the major component of sustainable urbanization is the practical
form of sustainability. It is critical to educate society about these issues, possibilities, and
solutions; otherwise, their implementation in an urban setting will be nearly impossible. We
are accountable for the next generation and future cities, so you must adopt fairly sustainable
urbanization to reduce your negative impact on every aspect of the environment.
5. Acknowledgement
It is a great opportunity for me to write about a subject like “Challenges and Opportunities
of Sustainable Urbanization". I've been reading various books, research papers, and websites
to educate myself with new themes as of this article. To make this topic easier to understand, I
concentrate on the aspects that are significant to us.
Kindly accept thanks to Riyazul Samad Bin Muhammad, the creator of RUSBM Studio, for
his continued support of my research and for his steadfast dedication to it. Throughout the
research and writing of this thesis, his assistance was crucial. A better advisor and mentor could
not have been found.
Apart from me, this Research paper will undoubtedly be of enormous importance to those who
are interested in learning more about this subject. I'm hoping they'll find it understandable.
I have worked very hard and poured my heart and soul into gathering all pertinent knowledge
on this issue. I'm not sure how far I can go with it. Furthermore, I do not claim that all of the
information presented in this document is accurate. There may be flaws, factual inaccuracies,
or incorrect opinions on my part, for which I am solely responsible, but I will do every effort
to provide a better volume in the future.
6. References