Policy 03 n Special Feature 05 n Focus City 06 n Energy 09 n Green 12 n Water 16 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 31

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

Special Feature: KPMG releases report on world’s Top 100 infrastructure projects +O5

Events: World Cities Summit and Singapore International Water Week 2012 +31

Rio+20: Charting a course for sustainable cities

Sustainable development means meeting the needs of the pres-ent without compromising the requirements of future gener-ations. Sustainable develop-ment is based on three pillars: economic development, social development and environ-mental protection. The United Nations Conference on Sustain-able Development, known in short as Rio+20 that took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from

June 20-22, 2012, was an oppor-tunity for member states to pave the way to a safer, more equitable, cleaner, greener and more pros-perous world for mankind.

This year’s summit came 20 years after the 1992 Earth

Summit in Rio, which saw the adoption of Agenda 21 – a blue-print to rethink economic growth, advance social equity and ensure environmental pro-tection. At Rio+20, the UN brought together 193 state del-egations, international institu-tions and green interest groups to agree on a range of measures to reduce poverty while promot-ing decent jobs, clean energy and a more sustainable and fair use of

resources. Rio+20 highlighted seven

areas that need priority atten-tion. One of these areas was sus-tainable cities. With rapid urban-ization, cities have become hubs for ideas, commerce, culture,

science, productivity and social development and have enabled people to advance socially and economically. However, cities have their own set of challenges, including congestion, pollution, lack of funds to provide basic services, a shortage of adequate housing and declining infra-structure. So, now, the question is how these challenges can be overcome in ways that allow cit-ies to continue to thrive and grow.

Recognizing the importance of cities, the declaration of the +20 conference, titled ‘The Future We Want’, highlights the commit-ments of the member states to make cities sustainable and more developed. In the declaration, the member states of the UN recog-nize the need for well-planned cities that can promote econom-ically, socially and environmen-tally sustainable societies. The need for a holistic approach to urban development and human settlements that provides for affordable housing and infra-structure and prioritizes slum upgrading and urban regenera-tion is also prominent.Contd. on page 2...

“Let me be clear. Rio+20 was a success. In Rio, we saw the further evolution

of an undeniable global movement for change.”

- Ban Ki-moonUN Secretary-GeNeral

The recent Rio+20 summit raised many issues of global environmental concern. Here we look at commitments made and challenges faced by the world in the throes of rapid urbanization

India’s first canal-based solar power project inaugurated by Narendra Modi +09

2 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGESTCOVER sTORy

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Contd. from page 1Member states recognize the importance of disaster risk reduction, resilience and cli-mate risks in urban planning. The important role of munici-pal governments in implement-ing the idea of sustainable cities, by adopting energy efficiency programs in building manage-ment and developing sustain-able, locally appropriate trans-port systems is also underlined in the declaration.

Finally, on the issue of sus-tainable cities, the declaration emphasizes the need to imple-ment the Habitat Agenda, with the active involvement of all rel-evant UN entities, and calls for adequate and predictable finan-cial contributions to the United Nations Habitat and Human Settlements to realize these commitments.

However, the declaration has

come under a lot of flak from environmental groups, which say the Rio+20 summit did not deliver any of the transforma-tional changes they were expect-ing. According to them, world leaders failed to take a firm stance on zero de-forestation, an energy revolution based on renewable energy, oceans, ecological food for all.

But, Rohit Aggarwala, special advisor to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, said many of the services that have a direct impact on the environment, such as zoning, waste removal, street planning, and so on, are actu-ally handled at the local level. According to him, national pol-icy often builds on what is accom-plished at the city level. “By start-ing with cities and companies, we lay the groundwork, otherwise it is like picking up the big end of a wedge,” said Aggarwala.

“I returned to Rio 20 years later to better

understand developments that mean so much for the

future of our world. I came back saddened by the realization that 20

years later it seems people have grown up but the world’s leadership is still in kindergarten.”

- sunita NarainDIrectOr, ceNtre FOr ScIeNce aND eNVIrONMeNt

• Some 3.5bn people –half of humanity – live in cit-ies today.

• By2030,almost60%ofthe world’s population will live in urban areas.

• 95% of urban expan-sion in the decades to come will take place in developing world.

• 828m people live inslums today and the number keeps rising.

• The world’s citiesoccupyjust2%oftheEarth’sland,butaccountfor60-80%of energy consumption and 75%ofcarbonemissions.

• Rapidurbanization isexerting pressure on fresh

water supplies, sewage, the living environment and pub-lic health.

• Thehighdensityofcit-ies can bring efficiency gains and technological innovation while reducing resource and energy consumption.

(Data source: Rio+20 campaign website)

Urban Facts and Figures

The Ministry of Urban Devel-opment has ordered the Delhi Government to settle bound-ary lines on the basis of images takenin2007of1,639unauthor-ized colonies in the national capital. A notification to this effect has been issued by Delhi Development Authority (DDA).

The current development has brought huge relief to the people of unauthorized colo-nies. Previously, an unauthor-ized colony’s boundary was

fixed up on the basis of images taken in 2002.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Urban Develop-ment Minister Ashok Kumar Walia lauded the effort of the Union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath in this regard and said that the process of regularization of colonies in Delhi will soon get the desired impetus, resulting in consider-able relief for the inhabitants of unauthorized colonies.

The emerging concept of cen-sus towns is bridging the gap between rural and urban areas. Census towns, by definition, are settlements with a population over5,000thatneitherpossess

the characteristics of a village nor have they reached ‘munici-pality level’ to be categorized as towns.

Through the Provision of Urban Amenities in Rural

Areas (PURA), the government is making an effort to develop ‘census towns’ by undertaking key activities, such as sanita-tion, water supply, street light-ing and waste management. The Planning Commission has agreedtoallocateRs1,500crorein the 12th Five-Year Plan to go aheadwith50suchprojectsthisyear.

“Ten to 15 projects will betaken up this year in West Ben-gal, UP, Tamil Nadu, Maharash-tra, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh in a public-private partnership mode to build and improve upon the physical infrastruc-ture,” union rural development minister, Jairam Ramesh said.

At present, West Bengal tops the list of states with census towns,adding528such townsin 10 years, followed by Kerala, with362towns.

Innovative scheme aims to boost semi-urban settlements

Delhi ordered to regularize colonies according to 2007 map

PURA will help develop sanitation, water, lighting and waste management in ‘census’ towns

Bhiwani, Narnaul to be included as counter-magnet towns in NCR

POLICY

In the contemporary world of omnipresent, all-powerful, mar-ket-driven and large mainstream media; there is still place for local radio – and the government wants to promote it.

The central government has decided that local bodies are to promote community radio sta-tions and make them an efficient tool of communication with the local habitants.

Every eligible local body will be able to apply to the Informa-tion and Broadcasting Ministry for a license to run these radio

stations, a ministry spokesman said.

Community radio – a medium of the community, for the commu-nity, about the community and owned and run by the commu-nity – gives a voice to the voice-less and empowers the have-nots.

Community radio has the potential to bring a very signifi-cant constructive social change at the community level by way of carrying programs of public interest on health, water and san-itation, education and empower-ment of women.

Good news for the citizens of Kolkata. The army has approved the request of Chief Minister Mamata Baner-jee for the Kolkata Munic-ipal Corporation (KMC) to carry out beautification work along the Red Road.

According to the law, the army is the custodian of the Maidan area. The police is responsible for uphold-ing the law and order, while the PWD’s city division is responsible for maintain-ing the open space known as Kolkata’s breathing ground.

Beautification of the city has always been a pri-ority in the government’s agenda. A special commit-tee has been formed to draft a strategy to beautify the city to give it a clean, green and aesthetic look.

The Central government is to examine a demand to incor-porate Bhiwani and Narnaul towns of Haryana as counter-magnet towns in the national capital region (NCR), state excise and taxation minister, Kiran Choudhry, said.

Counter-magnet towns are those that can be properly developed and urbanized as alternative centers of growth, and draw immigrants to them.

Promoting expansion and prosperity of counter-magnet towns is the principal part of the strategy to reduce migra-tion and population explosion in the Delhi metropolitan area.

Speaking to the media, Choudhry said she has writ-ten to Union Urban Devel-opment Minister Kamal Nath in this regard and he has responded positively to her demand.

Local bodies will run community radio stations

Kolkata to get ‘beauty treatment’

4 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

Coimbatore Corporation is in consultation with the techni-cal advisory group from civil society to set up a development plan for the city. The group will act as an advisory council to the various projects implemented by the civic body, including the JNNURM scheme.

The new and innovative

advancement plan will focus on the suburbs and areas recently added into the ambit of the cor-poration. If all goes well, a del-egation of experts from Philip-pines-based Cities Development Initiative for Asia (CDIA) will also give their valuable inputs for the plan.

“The corporation officials and

the mayor have responded pos-itively and the initial work for the preparation of the plan will be started in the coming days after a meeting of the techni-cal advisory group next week,” said S Baskar, co-coordinator of the City Technical Advisory Group and Coimbatore munic-ipal corporation.

The residents of Bandra-Khar area in Mumbai are support-ing ACP Vasant Dhoble’s onslaught on pubs and eateries.

Residents and town plan-ners blame bad governance for the increasing presence of such establishments in the Bandra-Khar belt.

Different citizens and res-idents groups will jointly file an inquiry under the Right to Information (RTI) Act to find

out whether lounges, bars, bistros, restaurants and pubs across the city have all their legitimate licenses in place. Residents groups in Bandra-Khar who are disturbed by these establishments passed a resolution to support ACP Vas-ant Dhoble who has been con-ducting raids on pubs and eat-eries, and demanded separate and isolated ‘entertainment zones’.

Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) and the central govern-ment have clashed over the establishment of a district-level review and monitoring commit-tee for Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) funds.

After a series of grievances regarding SMC-constructed housing projects for the mar-ginalized sections of society and delay in BRTS project, a delegation of JNNRUM offi-cials visited the city and took

a first-hand report of the work done. Money for the work came from the allocation of central funds given to various civic bod-ies under diverse schemes of urban housing and infrastruc-tural facilities.

Surat (rural) MP and Union minister of state for roads and transport, Tushar Choudhry, demanded the formation of district-level committees to improve monitoring and the implementation process of funds allotted for Surat.

HUDCO demands open land as collateral against loans

Coimbatore Corp to consult on civic development plans

SMC at loggerheads with Centre over JNNURM funds

Bandra-Khar residents irked by illegal pubs

Groups support raids on bars and eateries

With more families searching for their dream homes in the smaller towns on the outskirts of Mumbai – due to increas-ing realty prices and scarcity of space – the state government is to revise norms and guarantee planned development of these new suburban areas.

A government-appointed panel of town planning spe-cialists has suggested exten-sion of floor space index (FSI), transfer of develop-ment rights (TDR), free-of-FSI, and fungible FSI norms, which are currently only applicable to municipal cor-porations and municipal councils. As in Mumbai, a no-objection certificate from the fire department would be necessary for high-rises in these towns.

The Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) is trying to identify open land for the Goda-vari drinking water supply project (Maulana Abul Kalam Srujala Sravanthi). The Hous-ing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) refuses to accept assets, such as sewer-age treatment plants (STPs) and

reservoirs, as collateral against Rs 1,000 crore in loans for the project.

HUDCO decided to sanc-tion the loan when the Water Board approached it last year but demanded open land as collateral.

“In a letter to the munici-pal administration and urban development (MA&UD)

department, the HUDCO said it prefers open land as collat-eral to infrastructural assets like STPs and reservoirs,” a senior Water Board official commented.

pOlICy

Maha government to develop smaller towns

SPECIAL FEATURE

Global advisory firm KPMG has selected six upcoming urban infrastructure projects from India among its top 100 global innovative infrastructure proj-ects. The report, titled Infra-structure 100: World Cities Edi-tion, was released at the World Cities Summit 2012 in Singapore.

The projects highlighted in the report were selected by inde-pendent judging panels of indus-try experts from five regions of the world: Asia Pacific, North America, Latin America, Europe and the Middle East, and Africa.

Projects were then divided into 10 project categories – Urban Mobility, Global Connec-tivity, Urban Regeneration, Edu-cation, Healthcare, Water, New and Extended Cities, Recycling and Waste Management, Urban Energy Infrastructure and Com-munications Infrastructure.

This recognition is a mat-ter of pride for India and shows that the process of urbaniza-tion in India, to a great extent, is heading in the right direction. Here we look at the projects that made it to this elite list.

Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (Global Connectivity): The $90 billion Delhi-Mum-bai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project was placed second

among the 100 most innova-tive projects. The DMIC will cut across five states, linking the capital with Mumbai and will impact some 320 million people.

Plans include a high-speed rail network for freight, a six-lane expressway and a 4,000-mw power station. The corridor includes development of indus-trial production centers along its length, including nine indus-trial zones and 24 new cities. The plan is to create a globally com-petitive business environment.

Gorai Dumping Ground Sci-entific Closure (Recycling and Waste Management): This proj-ect is a PPP to renovate an area of Mumbai formerly used as a

dumping ground. The site spans 19.6 hectares and was opera-tional from 1972 to 2009. Its clo-sure posed significant health hazards, as it was located next to a residential area, and involved reforming the existing heap and sealing it off with impermeable surfaces. Plans are to install on the site a power plant that will run on methane gas generated by the decomposing rubbish.

New Delhi Sewerage Mas-terplan (Recycling and Waste Management): The New Delhi Sewerage Masterplan is being developed on a PPP model with Aecom. The capital’s current sewerage system only connects

55%of itsresidents to thecen-tral network. The project seeks tocovertheentire1,500sqkmarea of the capital.

Chennai Solar Economic Zone (Urban Energy Infra Structure): This project, by GMR Solar, is being devel-oped on a 312-acre site to pro-vide a strong ecosystem for the solar industry and its sup-

ply chain. Once completed, it will be a 3,700-acre zone intended to attract high-tech investment to the growth-cor-ridor between Bangalore and Chennai.

Sabarmathi River-front Development Project (Urban Regeneration): This project is an urban regen-eration and environmental

improvement initiative cur-rently underway in Ahmed-abad, involving reclamation of a 10.5-km stretch of thebanks of the Sabarmathi to create public space for cul-tural and civic institutions.

KPMG releases report on world’s Top 100 infrastructure projects Super Six from India make the cut

1. Urban Mobility: East Side Access, New York City, U.S.2. Global Connectivity: Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor, Delhi to Mumbai, India 3. Urban Regeneration: Oresund Regional Develop-ment, Denmark and Sweden4. Education: Princess Nora Bint Abdul Rahman Univer-sity for Women, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 5. Healthcare: Royal Lon-don Hospital, London, UK6. Water: Tuas II

Desalination Plant, Tuas, Singapore7. New and Extended Cities: Tianjin Eco City, Tian-jin, China8. Recycling and Waste Management: Deep Tunnel Sewerage System, Kranji to Changi, Singapore9. Urban Energy Infra-structure: Cidade Inteli-gente, Buzios, Brazil10. Communications Infra-structure: BRICS Cable Project, South Africa and Mauritius

Education City Dantewada (Education): This project in Chhattisgarh will provide edu-cational facilities that will align skill with opportunities. A poly-technic, middle school, sports complex, industrial training institute with workshops and residential quarters for staff

and students will be built as part of the project.

World Top 10 Infrastructure Projects

Bangalore is India’s third most populous city and fifth most pop-ulous urban agglomeration. Since the formation of municipal gov-ernance150yearsago, thecity’spopulation, urban pattern, social development, housing, civic amenities to infrastructure, traf-fic, and transportation have wit-nessed tectonic changes. With the current annual population growth rate of 3.25%, the city’spopulation is likely to touch the 10 million mark by the end of 2012.

The main area of concern for the city is related to provision of housing, civic amenities and alternate modes of transporta-tion, protection of natural areas and supply of adequate infra-structure facilities.

Namma MetroWork for the second phase of the Namma Metro is expected to start soon. The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) has received a loan ofRs 1,800crore from the Housing and Urban Development Corpo-ration (HUDCO). Though it is still awaiting Central govern-ment sanction, the state govern-ment has already given the green signal. The project is an extension of all four reaches of Phase 1 and includes two new lines, covering 72 kms. The first stretch between Baiyyappanahalli and MG Road, for which the work started on April 15,2007,was inauguratedon October 20, 2011.

Phase1,whichcostRs11,609crore, has a length of 42.3km and consists of purple and green lines. Cumulative revenue on the first 12 days on these two lines touched the Rs 1 crore mark. The total project cost in Phase 2 is aroundRs26,405croresandwilladd61stationstothenetwork.

Construction of the second phase will be taken up in 2014 only after completion of the first phase by 2013. Once the sec-ond phase opens (expected by 2017), road traffic is expected to reduce by 35%. The number ofdaily passengers on the metro is estimated at 12 lakhs in 2013 and 19 lakhs in 2021.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has also signed an agree-menttolend$250mtofundPhase2. During the first six months of Phase 1 operation, BMRC earned revenueofRs6.6croreandtheaverage daily ridership was 24,968.Firstofitskind,alltrainshave wi-fi services. The Metro

stations are equipped with Power Heart Automated External Defi-brillator (AED) to protect its com-muters against death from sud-den cardiac arrest.

BMRC has also been entrusted withthetaskofbuildinga35-kmline known as Bangalore High Speed Rail Link. The proposed

starting point for this project is Cubbon Road and it will end at Bengaluru International Airport.

Karnataka large and medium industries minister, Murugesh Nirani, recently held talks with officials from Japan Railways. The minister met with Diazo Nozawa, who worked to bring the first Bullet Train in Japan in 1964.TheUniongovernmenthasalready accorded in-principle approval for setting up an indus-trial and high-speed rail corridor between Chennai and Bangalore.

Karnataka wants the Chen-nai-Bangalore corridor to be extended up to Mysore via

Bangalore. “We have held pre-liminary talks with Japanese railway engineers.,” Nirani said. “Chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda will decide the future course of action to realise the project, which will cost about Rs 200 crore per km.

“Japan International Con-struction Corporation will con-duct a feasibility study on the project,” the minister added. The state envisages taking up similar superfast corridor projects from Bangalore to Belgaum via Tum-kur and Chitradurga in the sec-ond phase and between Banga-lore and Bidar in the third phase.

Booming BangaloreFOCUS CITY

Development in Bangalore, India’s technology capital, has accelerated hugely over the past couple of years. Swanky malls and multi-storey complexes continue to grow rapidly, giving the city a global presence and international appeal. Branded the Silicon Valley of India, the city is the second fastest growing

major metropolis in India. However, this unplanned growth and development has created several hurdles for the city administration

Once the second phase of the metro opens (expected by 2017), road traffic is expected to reduce by 35%. The number of daily passengers to travel on the metro everyday is estimated at 12 lakh in 2013 and 19 lakh in 2021.

7URBAN NEWS DIGEST - July 2012

Road corridorsWith various road corridors, such as Bellary in the north, Sar-japur in south-east and the pro-

posed peripheral road section of south Bangalore, these areas have become big potential for future growth.

According to a study by pri-vate real estate consultant, CB Richard Ellis, on behalf of the Department of Stamps and Reg-istration, proximity to the inter-national airport in the north, good connectivity in the south-east and increased commercial activities in the south will propel growth in these places in future.

South, south-east and east Bangalore, comprising Kora-mangala, Sarjapur outer ring road, Hosur road, Bannerghatta road and Whitefield outer ring road saw a substantial growth in the decade 2001 to 2011. “Sub-stantially higher levels of prop-erty development activities are expected in north Bangalore– between the outer ring road and the proposed peripheral ring road – along Bellary road (NH-7). East Bangalore, too, is set for high growth in the near future due to its proximity to the inter-national airport.

“Sarjapur outer ring road cor-ridor has emerged as the most preferred destination for prop-erty buyers in the recent past,” the study revealed.

Currently the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) is working on six different road projects – GAD Sarjapura road and Madiwala road junction, GAD. St. John Hospital Road, GAD Jakkasandra junction, Development Entry Points to Bangalore City, GAD Koraman-gala 80 ft road junction, Sig-nal Free Corridor Sirsi Circle to Agara Lake NCC Ltd. The Sirsi-Agara signal-free corridor proj-ect is proposed along the Sarjapur Road stretch between Madiwala andAgara.TheRs125-croreproj-ect proposes four underpasses on the 4-km stretch over a span over three years.

Efforts are on to seek the par-ticipation of Japanese companies in the execution of the proposed Peripheral Ring Road (PRR)

around Bangalore. The PRR is planned to be developed 7 kms away from the Outer Ring Road (ORR), which will extend the city limits by over three times. This comes amid upgrades of the ORR to a six-lane highway at a cost of Rs 347 crore.

The six-lane expressway is expected to start by July. Also the 14.5-metrebusesthatcanaccom-modate more than 110 commuters have been launched on the city roads. The KSRTC will soon be trying out hybrid buses that run on both diesel and LPG. Manju-nath Prasad, MD, KSRTC, said, “We have fitted the bus with an LPGkit.Thebuswillrunon85%dieseland15%LPG.WhenCNGcomes to the state, we will replace it with CNG. We are also exper-imenting with bamboo floor-ing for buses. The bamboo will be purchased from Mizoram and will be compressed and fire retardant.”

Master plan 2015Focusing on urban management, theRevisedMasterPlan2015wasprepared under the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act (KTCP), covering a Local Plan-ning Area of 1306 sq. kms andconsistingof387villages,7CityMunicipal Councils (CMC) and 1 Town Municipal Council (TMC).

The master plan aimed at compact, balanced and equita-ble and even urban growth for Bangalore city. For the first time, technical support in GIS platform was used by Bangalore Develop-ment Authority (BDA), to pre-pare this plan. The unique fea-ture of this exercise was that a Geo-Referenced Comprehensive Land Information System was built in for the entire planning area. Information such as land use, population, etc; down to the parcel level (individual survey number) was incorporated into the information system. Modern

tools like aerial photography were used to map all the ground details to prepare the scientific base map.

Quick Bird Satellite images were used for incorporating the latest changes so that planning was based on the latest updated information. In order to further fine tune the information base, satellite images were used for feature extraction which was also validated by ground truth verification.

TheRevisedMasterPlan2015vision document envisages a compact, balanced and equita-ble, urban growth for the city. In order to guide such growth, the

Revised Master Plan 2015 usesthe proposed land use plans and zonal regulations. Zonal Regula-tions are an integral part of the

RevisedMasterPlan–2015.TheLocal Planning Area is delin-eated into 47 planning districts, based on planning parameters. In2008,thecivicgroupCAF(Cit-izens Action Forum) and others jointly filed a PIL (Public Interest Litigation) questioning the plan’s approval process and some of its provisions. However in March 2012,the Karnataka high court stated that the comprehensive development plan drawn up for the city– Revised Master Plan

2015–willbethefinaldocument,governing land use and zoning regulations in any area.

Meanwhile BDA has already started work on preparing

RevisedMasterPlan2035 forthe city. BDA town planner member BM Tirakanagoudar said, “The work is at a nascent

stage. First we would study drawbacks of revised mas-ter plan 2015.Help ofHyder-abad based branch of ISRO, National Remote Sensing Cen-tre (NRSC) is also taken. The centre has been entrusted with the task to provide images of the city. After this, all such images will be handed over to a private agency that qualifies in the tender.” The information provided by IRS satellites can be used in several fields like

agriculture, environment, for-estry, water resources, urban development, surveying for minerals, drought, flood fore-casting, ocean resources and

disaster management. BDA was also seeking sugges-tions for RMP 2035 from the general public.

fOCus CITy

8 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGESTfOCus CITy

Solid wasteBangalore generates about 3,000 tonnes of solid waste per day, of which about 1,139 tonnes are

collected and sent to compost-ing units such as the Karnataka Composting Development Cor-poration. The remaining solid waste collected by the munici-pality is dumped in open spaces

or on roadsides outside the city. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahan-agara Palike (BBMP) has in its budget for 2011-2012 earmarked Rs. 25 lakh for each ward forconstruction of dry waste seg-regation centre and installation of organic waste converter. The budget proposals also include establishment of installation of mechanised segregation of waste plant at the landfills sites under PPP model and massive com-posting plant.

Financial crunchIn the last two fiscals BDA has been badly hit by financial crunch. Due to major shortfall in its revenue receipts, the author-ity’s financial achievement in

2010-11was11.33%.Againstanestimated Rs 3,650.08 crore,onlyRs413.65crorewasrealised.Authorities admitted that non formation of planned layouts was the reason for such short-fall in revenue. The agency said on its website, “An amount of Rs 736.98crorewasestimatedtoberaised by allotment of sites in Nadaprabhu Kempe Gowda Lay-outandRs664crorefromDrShi-varam Karanth Layout, totaling Rs 1401.14. Since the layouts were not formed, the revenue esti-mates were not achieved.”

ChallengesWith the rapid population growth, the number of vehicles on the road is also increasing at a tremendous pace. Currently the cityhasaround1.5millionvehi-clesandagrowthrateof7-10%isrecorded every year. Two wheel-ers along with cars almost com-prise90%ofthetotalvehicularpopulation in the city. Almost all

the roads in the city are above their capacity and volume.

Travel speed has dropped to 15kmperhourduringthepeakhours. Also the city is severely affected with the parking prob-lem and increasingly towards the developed areas of the city. Public transport vehicles are vying for road space with private modes. The unplanned nature of growth in the city resulted in massive traffic gridlocks that the municipality attempted to ease by constructing a flyover sys-tem and by imposing one-way traffic systems. Some of the fly-overs and one-ways mitigated the traffic situation moderately but were unable to adequately address the disproportionate growth of city traffic.

In2005boththeCentralGov-ernment and the State Govern-ment allocated considerable portions of their annual bud-gets to address Bangalore’s infrastructure. Unless more and

more citizens start using public mode of transports, no amount of expansion of metro rail or city buses could help solving traffic woes.

TG Sitharam, head of Cen-tre for Infrastructure, Sus-tainable Transport and Urban Planning, said, “We should con-centrate on moving people and not vehicles. Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyder-abad are cities with more than 10,000 people/sq km. We have 12 motor vehicles per 100 peo-ple and our sale of cars is grow-ing at 25%-30%peryear. Ifwewant to seriously fight pollution, most of which comes from vehi-cles, we have to make bold deci-sions with regard to congestion and parking. Along with this, the government should seri-ously pursue commuter rail to meet the population’s transpor-tation needs. Buses going long distance also need to be made direction-based.”

SL No. Name of Road V/C Ratio

1 Nrupatunga Road 3.62

2 District Office Road 2.51

3 K.G. Road 2.51

4 Lalbagh Fort Road 2.67

5 Puttanna Chetty Road 2.45

6 Richmond Road 2.26

7 M.G. Road 2.26

8 Chord Road 2.51

9 Tumkur Road 2.62

10 Sankey Road 1.52

Volume CapaCity Ratio of VehiCles on diffeRent Roads on BangaloRe

BangaloRe metRo

line first operational last Extensional stations length Terminals

(km)

Purple Line October 20, 2011 36 40.1 Whitefield Kengeri

Green Line 32 34.3 BIEC Anjanapura

Line 3 16 18.8 R V Road Bommasandra

Line 4 18 21.2 Gottigere Nagavara

Total 102 114.4

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Bangalore generates about 3,000 tonnes of solid waste per day, of which about 1,139 tonnes are col-lected and sent to compost-ing units. The rest is dumped in open spaces or on road-sides outside the city.

ENERGY

In a bid to make thermal power stations energy efficient by 2015, the Bureau of EnergyEfficiency (BEE) has notified the target figure for fuel con-sumption reduction. Around 144 thermal power stations across the country will be able to save Rs3,000 crore in three

years by being energy effi-cient. Ajay Mathur, director general, BEE said, “A quarter of our power capacity must be upgraded to ensure this target is met.”

The implementation period for PAT cycle is three years, fromApril2012toMarch2015.

The nation’s largest solar power plant has been com-missioned by Reliance Power in Pokharan. The plant will displace over 70,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide emis-sions annually.

However, this is still not sufficient in terms of demand, as one-third of India’s rural population has no access to electricity.

“India needs to substantially

close the gap between demand and supply of electricity. While coal-fired power generation is the main reason behind car-bon dioxide emissions, the use of advanced technology is rapidly changing that sce-nario. The impact of greener technology in coal-fired power generation is also very important,” said JP Chalasani, chief executive officer of Reli-ance Power Limited.

India’s first canal-based 1 MW solar power project commis-sioned on Sanand branch canal near Chandrasan village of

Kadi taluka in Mehsana dis-trict was inaugurated by Guja-rat Chief Minister Narendra Modi recently. Modi said, “When

Gujarat Government mooted the idea of canal-top solar power plant, no developer was ready to take up the project. So we were compelled to go on our own i.e. through a state-owned com-pany.” Commissioned in Febru-aryandsetover750meter-longstretch, the 1 MW plant will gen-erate16lakhunitsofcleanelec-tricity and prevent evaporation of 90 lakh litres of water from the canal annually. The length of the Narmada Main Canal, constructed under the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP), is 458km. The Sardar Sarovar Nar-mada Nigam Ltd (SSNNL) has so far constructed about 19,000 km long canal network, out of the 75,000kmplanned for theentire project.

India’s first canal-based solar power project inaugurated by Narendra Modi

Reliance to build nation’s largest solar power plant

The board of state-run Power Grid Corporation of India has recently approved an investment proposal worth Rs 3, 433.40 crore. The com-pany will invest in Rs 1,909.24 crore in projects in the Sri-kakularm power grid and Rs1,263.26croreforstrength-ening of the XVIII in South Regional Grid system.

The power transmission firmwillalsoallotinRs174.16crore for a fibre optic commu-nication system for central sector sub stations and gener-ating stations in the southern region.

AfurtherRs75.74crorewillbe allotted for work at its sub station for Raichur - Sholapur

transmission.The work is anticipated to

becarriedoutover36months,

29 months, 30 months and 21 months respectively, from the date of investment approval.

Energy efficiency may save thermal power stations Rs 3,000 crore

Coal India signs fuel supply pacts with 27 power units

Power Grid Corp okays Rs 3,442 cr in investments

Coal India Ltd (CIL) has made an agreement with 27 power units, including the Adani’s Mundra power plant in Guja-rat.CIListosupplyfuelto48power units as per the direc-tive. The Prime Minister’s

Office (PMO) will be holding a meeting to look into various issues of the agreement, mainly the penalty clause, which have kept power firms like NTPC from inking the fuel supply agreement (FSA) with CIL.

‘India needs mix of green and traditional power sources’

10 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGESTENERgy

GE India is to invest some Rs1,100 crore ($200m) in a facil-ity for developing products for the energy sector, to be built in Pune.

“The new manufacturing

unit will develop localized products and solutions for the energy sector in its first phase of operation, com-mencing in 2013,” a company statement said.

The company has signed an MoU with the government of Maharashtra for the upcoming manufacturing site, which is located at MIDC Industrial Park at Chakan, Phase II, Pune. There is good news for power

projects using imported coal, they would soon be allowed to raise tariffs by up to Re 1 per unit. This is being done in order to offset the effect of increase in fuel price due to additional taxes or changes in law by the governments of source countries. A major upsetting

factor for Indian power pro-ducers is the changes made in tax laws by source countries such as Australia and Indone-sia. These changes have raised fuel costs for all imported coal-fired power projects, even those that were based on sup-plies from captive mines in these countries.

DelhimayinjectRs245crinTPDDL

GE India to invest Rs 1,100 crore in Pune facility

Power firms may up tariffs to offset fuel hikes

The Delhi government may soon injectafreshequityofRs245croreinto Tata-backed power distribu-tion company Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL), in a bid to help it tide over the liquidity crunch. The aid is sim-ilar to that given by the govern-ment to BSES.

As the government had already heeded to the BSES demand by infusing fresh equity ofRs500croreinDecemberlastyear, top officials said it would be unjustified to deny the sim-ilar assistance to TPDDL. The government has a 49% share in TPDDL.

A MoU has been signed between Power Exchange India Limited (PXIL) and Korea Power Exchange (KPX) to explore business collabora-tion for strategic initiatives in overseas power markets.

According to the agreement, the two will share information regarding power markets, co-operate on improvements of competitive electricity markets,

train employees to enhance their understanding of the elec-tricity markets and share exper-tise, including the new busi-ness initiatives like renewable energy certificates.

“We are hopeful this associ-ation will help our objective of transforming the Indian elec-tricity market,” said Rupa Devi Singh, managing director and CEO of PXIL.

Power Exchange India signs pact with Korea Power

India’s Go Green initiative has made rapid progress in its bid to boost solar power capacity to 20,000 MW in a decade and to increase the number of wind-mills. However, entrepreneurs say they need supportive poli-cies to sustain growth.

The country needs to meet 15% of its power needs, or80,000 MW, from renewablesources by 2020, with an invest-mentofRs1.5lakhcrore.

“The sector is highly opti-mistic. Between the national solar mission projects and the state sponsored projects, the total demand is more than 1

GW over the next year,” said Rajiv Arya, CEO of Moser Baer Solar.

However, solar firms want

anti-dumping duties, say-ing that foreign firms are sell-ing equipment at ridiculously low prices.

Alternative energy firms need more supportive policies

GREENA UN report has pointed out that India and China will account for 57% of world’stransport-related emissions by 2030. Launched on the eve of the Rio+20 Summit, the fifth edi-tion of UN Environment Pro-gramme’s Global Environmen-talOutlook(GEO-5)statesthat

due to rapid economic growth, Asia-Pacific has become the fastest growing source of green-house gas emissions globally. TheGEO-5pointstoimportantprogress only in four of the pos-sible 90 goals and objectives that are required to achieve global sustainable development.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corpo-ration (DMRC) is looking to tap into solar power to reduce

dependence on non-renewable sources of power. Delhi Metro is planning to install solar panels at

the Karkardooma and Noida sec-tor-21 metro stations and also at the Yamuna Bank depot. Based on the outcome of the initiative, DMRC will plan further for its phase III structures. This move comes on the heels of a special environmental drive launched by Delhi Metro chief, Mangu Singh, on the occasion of World Envi-ronment Day last month.

Delhi Metro to install solar panels at stations

UN: India, China will account for more than half of world’s transport emissions by 2030

CII to set up ‘tree bank’ during road works

The latest attraction in Singa-pore is an imposing canopy of artificial trees measuring up to 50 meters high, towering overa vast urban oasis. The colos-sal solar-powered “supertrees” arepartofa250-acrelandscap-ing project called Gardens by the Bay in the Bay South gar-den, which opened to the pub-lic recently.

The man-made mechanical

forest is made up of 18 super-trees that act as vertical gar-dens, generating solar power, acting as air venting channel for nearby conservatories, and collecting rainwater. Eleven of the supertrees have been fitted with solar photovoltaic systems to produce electricity. The elec-tricity generated is used for light-ing and water technology within the conservatories below.

Each supertree varies in heightbetween25and50meters,featuring tropical flowers and various ferns climbing across its steel framework. The large can-opies operate as temperature moderators, absorbing and dis-persing heat. The project is part of a redevelopment scheme to create a new downtown district in the Marina Bay area, in south Singapore.

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in associa-tion with Greater Hyder-abad Municipal Corpora-tion (GHMC) is planning to set up a tree bank in the city to store trees during road widening works. S. Raghu-pathy, executive director at CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green

Business centre said the tree bank is to be established next year so that trees can be stored, maintained and sold to corporate companies and individuals. GHMC Special Commissioner Navin Mittal, said it was essential to adopt effective methods to conserve greenery in the city.

Solar-powered ‘supertrees’ in Singapore

In Ahmedabad, the members and volunteers of the presti-gious Center for Environment Education (CEE) organized a bicycle rally on World Envi-ronment Day. CEE’s Parthesh Pandya said, “We want to emphasize the fact that pub-lic transport not only reduces congestion on roads but also

reduces pollution and use of fossil fuels. Moreover, bicy-cling, or walking is included to promote healthy living.”

The theme for 2012 on the World Environment Day encompasses various aspects of human living, ranging from transport to energy to food to sustainable livelihood.

On World Environment Day, the United Nations highlighted the need for a change in think-ing to ensure the sustainability of the Earth’s resources as the world population grows.

“Sustainability entails pro-viding opportunity for all by balancing the social, eco-nomic and environmental

dimensions of development,” UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in his message for the day.

“We have to rebut the myth that there is conflict between economic and environmental health,” he said. Observance of World Environment Day began in 1972 as a way to raise

awareness of the environment, and encourage political atten-tion and action. Ban said that along with the world’s growing population, there will be more pressure on natural resources – food, water and energy – and countries will need to shift their development paradigms to find sustainable solutions for their citizens.

Ban added that progress should be made on some of the building blocks of sustainabil-ity – energy, water, food, cities, oceans, jobs and the empower-ment of women.

UN calls for change in thinking on sustainability

Bicycle rally walks the talk in Ahmedabad

Diesel is gradually becoming one of the greatest contribu-tors to Gurgaon’s soaring air

pollution levels over the past few years. In a city like Gur-gaon, which suffers from a

30% power deficit on a nor-mal day, diesel-based electric-ity backup systems are nec-essary. The use of generators has gone up in the recent times because of frequent power cuts and a growing demand of die-sel generators.

“Diesel plays a major role in polluting air. Burning fuel emits carbon dioxide. Carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrous oxide and particulate matter, all very harmful for the environment,” district pollu-tion officer, Balraj Singh said.

Recently, diesel fuel was categorized as a Group 2B car-cinogen by the International Agency for Research on Can-cer and the World Health Orga-nization. International norms say clean diesel should contain only 10 parts per million (ppm) of sulphur, whereas the type available in India contains any-thing up to 300 ppm sulphur. According to the Centre for Sci-ence and Environment (CSE), the cleanest variety of diesel fuel available in India contains 50ppmsulphur,whichisstillway above the safety limits.

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region can expect a three-fold increase in carbon diox-ide production by 2050, arecent study by the National Environmental Engineer-ing Research Institute has predicted.

Over the next four decades, carbon dioxide emissions in residential areas willincreaseupto51milliontonnes compared to the cur-rent15million,accordingtothe report.

The study was carried out

to understand housing and transport issues with regard to energy and environment, and the links with climate change.

The key findings of the study showed that both fuel and journey time increase in peak traffic. Carbon dioxide emissions increased by 33 to 75%whentraveltimewasupby five to 30 minutes.

It is estimated that some 5,100milliontreeswillneedtobeplantedby2051tooffsetcarbon dioxide.

Excessive dependence on diesel polluting Gurgaon

The cleanest variety of diesel fuel available in India contains 50 ppm sulphur – way above the safety limits.

-Centre for Science and Environment

Mumbai to see CO2 levelsrise300%by2050

gREEN 13URBAN NEWS DIGEST - July 2012

UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon

July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGESTgREEN 14 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

The Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) has got three more months to formulate a policy for regulation of the quarry business and crushing stones. The division bench of Gujarat High Court consisting of acting chief justice Bhaskar

Bhattacharya and justice JB Pardiwala extended the time limit.

The GPCB was also asked to lay down guidelines to reg-ulate the stone crushing activ-ities in the state, to stop the environmental condition

deteriorating further near human habitats. According to the High Court order passed in March, the GPCB was sup-posed to draw the policy after conducting research, and sub-mit a compliance report to the HC by June 11.

Several glue factories in Jaj-mau regularly discharge toxic water containing chromium and other poisonous chemi-cals into open drains flowing through congested localities and ultimately flowing into fall-ing the Ganga.

Law enforcement agencies are making efforts to save the Ganga from pollution. Many glue units dotting the river that were once sealed by the Pol-lution Control Board are now

functioning and discharg-ing effluents directly into the Ganga.

The water released in the drains is black, laden with efflu-ents, and flows into the Ganga untreated. The polluted water discharged from the units had affected the groundwater used for drinking purposes and other household works. Munic-ipal commissioner N K S Chau-han said that those flouting the norms would be penalized.

Maharashtra state is to propose an environment tax to the cab-inet soon.

The environment tax will be levied on any activity affect-ing the environment – stone-crushing, mining, vehicular pollution, industries and large infrastructural projects. The tax will be in proportion to the capital investment and extent of production of an industry.

Environment Minister Sachin Ahir said the state

environment department has practically no funds. The tax will be utilized for cleaning lakes, rivers, for setting up information centers, and for collecting data on air and water pollution.

CM Prithviraj Chavan has agreed that the money realized from this tax will not go to the environment department but be diverted to a consolidated fund and pumped back into the environment.

Delhi parking rates set to quadruple

High Court gives Gujarat extension on quarry reforms

Polluting the environment? Prepare to be taxed!

Jajmau glue factories poisoning Ganga

The Supreme Court-appointed Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA), which looks after congestion and pollution issues in the city, has proposed a four-fold increase in parking rates in the capital.

The rates, which will be final-ized by the Delhi Government soon, may vary from Rs 30 to Rs 50. Currently, parking ratesfor cars in the three newly-elected civic agencies are Rs 10 for 10 hours and Rs20 for the whole day.

In NDMC areas, the rates are Rs 10 for the first two hours and Rs 10 for every subsequent hour. Public transport should be strengthened to restrict use of private vehicles, the organiza-tion said.

If the Haryana Urban Devel-opment Authority (HUDA) approves the Green Ring Project, Gurgaon will soon become a solar campus, and will have important areas lit up through solar energy.

The Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and the United States Department of Energy are assisting the Advit foundation to realise the project.

The Green Ring project will mainly concentrate on the use of solar power for lighting

common areas; waste manage-ment through composting; using green technology in new con-structions and energy-efficient water pumping.

A pilot project will first be tried in the sample areas, one kilometer from HUDA city centre to Golf Extension Road and from Sohna Road to Golf Course Road.

India is to set up an Invest-ment Promotion Cell for the energy sector to provide a single point of contact for investors. Minister of New and Renew-able Energy Farooq Abdullah announced the country plans to invest $50bn in renewableenergy over the next five years, including$25bninsolarenergy,$19bn in wind power, and $3bn each in hydro and biomass sectors.

Abdullah called on global investors to support India’s renewable energy sector and assist in its quest for a low-car-bon and an environmentally sustainable growth path.

India’s leading iron and steel companies have scored poorly in the green rating test

conducted by the Centre for Science and Environment. The Indian iron and steel sector’s

energyconsumptionof6.6GCalper tonne is 50% higher thanthe global best practice, with water consumption three times as high. Sunita Narain, director general of CSE said, “The poor environmental performance of this sector is a measure of the failure of the regulatory insti-tutions in the country. Nobody is asking this sector to improve its green bottom-line. Nobody is measuring and monitoring its actual performance.”

Most steel plants were found to be non-compliant with pol-lution norms. Steelmakers Ispat Industries (now JSW Ispat) in Maharashtra, Essar Steel in Hazira, Gujarat and state-owned Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited in Visakhapat-nam, Andhra Pradesh top the list.

Green Ring Project could make Gurgaon a solar campus

Indian iron isn’t green

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a wing of the World Health Organisation (WHO) has unintentionally contributed to the debate about diesel cars in India by confirming that die-sel engine exhaust fumes can

cause cancer. The body has removed diesel exhaust from its Group 2A list of “proba-ble carcinogens” to the Group 1 list of substances that have definite links to cancer , there-fore changing its status to “carcinogen”.

IARC: Diesel fumes cause cancer

IEA: Global green investment must double by 2020

Abdullah calls on investors to back new energy

Global investments in renew-able energy must double by the year 2020 to keep global tem-peratures from rising beyond 2 degrees Celsius, said the Inter-national Energy Agency (IEA) in its recently published litera-ture, Energy Technology Per-spectives 2012.

“The window of opportunity is closing rapidly on achieving the 2°C target. The investments made today will determine the energy system that is in place

in 2050. Therefore, the lackof progress in clean energy is alarming,” the IEA book states.

Over the past year, the IEA has urged governments to stop subsidizing fossil fuels and to instead subsidize renewable energy to stabilize the earth’s climate. The IEA’s 2°C scenario gives more importance to clean energy technologies that can ensurean80%chanceoflimit-ing long-term global tempera-ture increase to 2°C.

The investments made today will determine the energy system that is in place in 2050. The lack of progress in clean energy is alarming.

gREENURBAN NEWS DIGEST - July 2012 15

Have you ever thought whether your drinking water was safe? The water supplied by the Delhi Jal Board is not. It’s shock-ing, but true. The drinking water most Delhiites are get-ting at home has been found to

be contaminated with sewage water and could be harmful to health.

Some81ofthe116tapwatersamples - almost 70% - sup-plied across the capital by the DJB have failed a purity test

conducted by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).

The study by the MCD con-cluded that the tap water flow-ing through DJB pipelines could be the cause of various water-borne diseases.

The Haryana Urban Develop-ment Authority (HUDA) has finally woken up to the need for proper water supply in Gurgaon, where the water crisis is worsen-ing daily.

In meetings earlier this month with the Municipal Cor-poration of Gurgaon (MCG) and other agencies, HUDA adminis-trator Praveen Kumar directed officials to ensure proper water supply.

Gensets should be installed at water works and other water establishments as soon as possi-ble, it was decided.

Kumar also told officials that gensets should be taken on a hire basis until the department pur-chased its own.

To drink or not to drink?

Gurgaon wakes up to water crisis

Global warming is increasing day by day, which in turn has affected the water sources. In face of such a crisis, Dr Kama-lesh K Sirkar, India-born pro-fessor of chemical engineering at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, has won a pat-ent for a low-cost desalina-tion technique that not only brings down capital costs but also ensures a safe source of water.

According to SVK Babu, director of Veolia Water India, lessthan1%ofthemunicipal-ity water in India comes from

desalination plants. In Nagpur, Veolia Water

has initiated a river water treatment project that meets the drinking needs of 2.5m people there.

Traditional desalination plants have been energy-intensive and costly, making them unfeasible to be imple-mented in India.

Desalination involves the removal of dissolved salts from water. The process has also helped decontamination of ground water in over one lakh wells in West Bengal.

Madras High Court has issued a ban on lorries drawing water from Kodaikanal Lake.

The HC issued a notice to the Kodaikanal Municipal Com-missioner on a PIL.

The district environment engineer said water was being drawn from the lake, despite him having sent representa-tions to the collector and com-missioner to stop the practice.

Indian wins patent for clean water technique

Lorries illegally draining Kodaikanal Lake

Study reveals 70% of Delhi tap water is contaminated

Dr Kamalesh K Sirkar

WATER

WASTE

Hindustan Zinc, part of the Vedanta Group, confirmed this month that it had signed an agree-ment with the Rajasthan govern-ment to set up the first sewage treatment plant in the state at Udaipur. The 170-crore plant will only function to treat domestic

sewage and not industrial sew-age. Udaipur produces almost 70 million liters of sewage per day due to its growing population and infrastructure development. This will be a landmark project in the field of water conservation and care for environment.

The Ministry of New and Renew-able Energy (MNRE) has devel-oped a National Master Plan for Development of Waste to Enegry (WtE) in India.

With the booming growth rate, increasing urban popula-tion and a shift from an agricul-ture-based economy towards industrialization, India has seen a massive rise in waste in urban and semi-urban areas. The increase in purchasing

power has also resulted in a huge growth in consumption of goods and services.

Inevitably this has led to a rapid escalation in the amount of municipal waste. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is dumped in most cities in an unregulated way in low, open spaces on the outskirts of cities.

The Ministry of Environ-ment and Forests (MoEF) pub-licized the Municipal Solid Wastes Management and Han-dling Rules in 2000 demand-ing municipalities across India adopt sustainable and environ-mentally friendly ways of pro-cessing MSW.

In this regard, WtE offers a plausible solution towards achieving integrated solid waste

management. WtE is perceived as a process through which MSW is properly utilized and produces energy. This also frees up valuable land that would oth-erwise have been used for waste dumping.

With the growing population in the cities of developing coun-tries, the amount of garbage gen-erated by city dwellers is set to rise sharply over the next two

decades, according to a report published by World Bank. The report – What a Waste: A Global Review of Solid Waste Manage-ment – presents meticulous data

on municipal solid waste gen-eration, collection, composition and disposal by country and by region.

China surpassed the U.S. as the world’s biggest waste producer in 2004, the report revealed, and also estimated the quantity of municipal solid waste will steeply grow from the cur-rent 1.3bn tons a year to 2.2bn by 2025.

The annual cost of solid waste management is projected to rise from$205bnto$375bn.“Improv-ing solid waste management, especially in the rapidly growing cities of low-income countries, is becoming an increasingly urgent issue,” said Rachel Kyte, vice president of sustainable devel-opment at the World Bank.

World Bank: Garbage is global problem

From trash to cash

Patna faces sewage disaster

Hindustan Zinc to build first sewage plant in Udaipur

Report shows city trash is rising; China overtakes U.S. as greatest waste producer

Waste-to-energy scheme plans to make use of India’s increasing rubbish dumps

Patna is facing a huge problem insewage.Withjust10%ofthepopulation linked to a proper sewagenetworksystem,90%ofthe city’s excreta flows directly or indirectly into the Ganga River. The Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) has admit-ted that half of the city’s 290 MLD of sewage flows directly into the Ganga. The other half trickles underground contam-inating the groundwater which is then used to supply drinking water to the public.

Patna Municipal Corpora-tion currently possess three sewage treatment plants with a collective capacity of 105

MLD. However, due to their decaying state, only about 50MLD of sewage reaches these plants. When Patna’s Public Health Institute tested water samples, it found more than half to be full of bacterial con-tamination and totally unfit for human consumption.

The quantity of municipal solid waste will grow to 2.2bn tons by 2025.

In most places, waste is dumped

in an unregulated way in low, open

spaces on the outskirts of cities.

Half of the city’s

290 MLD flows directly into the Ganga.

18 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGESTwasTE

In a development in the area of solid waste management, Agartala-based Association for Research on People and Nature (Arpan) has planned to set up a plasma gasification

plant in the city to deal with ever increasing solid waste. Plasma gasification is a tech-nology to transform solid waste into energy at medium-scale investment.

Plasma gasification plant to manage waste

The East Delhi Municipal Corporation’s grand project to regain the land at the Ghazipur landfill site is facing problems.

With the trifurcation of Munic-ipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), the project has now been stalled as the East Delhi

Municipal Corporation has very limited space to dump the waste. The project was envis-aged by the previous MCD.

The aim was to get back nearly 1/3 of the 31 acre land in the next three years. Sources say all the three landfill sites have reached their saturation level. But with the dearth of new landfill sites, the corpora-tion is still dumping rubbish at the Ghazipur landfill site.

“It is important to start the land reclamation process as we don’t have new landfill sites. Withcloseto8,000metrictonsof garbage generated everyday in the city, it is important to cre-ate space. The entire land will be reclaimed within 10 years. The project will start soon,’’ said Annapurna Mishra, Mayor, East Delhi Municipal Corporation.

Delhi landfill site project stalled

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FINANCE

Odisha is to implement three more Externally Aided Projects (EAP) through international funding agencies, announced Odisha chief secretary, Bijay Kumar Patnaik.

The projects in the pipeline – to be funded by groups, such as KFW of Germany, DFID and World Bank – include the Odisha

Urban Infrastructure Devel-opment Fund (OUID), the Odi-sha Modernising Economy Gov-ernance and Administration (OMEGA) and the Dam Reha-bilitation Improvement Project (DRIP).

Patnaik disclosed this infor-mation after reviewing the

progress of the 10 ongoing EAPs in the state.

The central government has withdrawn Rs 5,000 crorefrom various local bod-ies in the country under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). This step was taken following complaints about irregularities in the works.

The amount comes to almost 7% of the ambitiousJNNURM project launched in2005.Thewithheldfundswill be released only after inquiries are completed, which is expected to take around three months, Union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath said.

The state-owned Housing and Urban Development Corpora-tion (HUDCO) has declared it is planning to raise some Rs 10,000 crore through tax-free bonds and other instru-ments this fiscal to fund business expansion. The declaration came after the announcement of the financial results of the company.

HUDCO chairman and managing director, V P

Baligar, said that of the total resource mobilization tar-get for the current fiscal, Rs 5,000crorewouldcomefromtax-free bonds. Some would be raised from non-tax free bonds.

The company is also talking to the National Housing Bank forloansworthRs500crore,ata competitive interest rate, for its social housing operations in rural areas.

A major challenge in the form of non-performing assets (NPAs) has arisen for urban cooperative

banks (UCBs) in the state of Gujarat. The gross NPAs of UCBs in Gujarat has increased

fromRs438crorein2009-10toabout Rs 900 crore in 2010-11, according to industry estimate.

According to the data given by the Gujarat Urban Coopera-tive Banks’ Federation (GUCBF), in 2010-11, the gross advances stoodatRs12,056crore,ofwhichaboutRs900croreor7.46%wasconsidered as NPA.

“The NPAs have risen due to various reasons, includ-ing failure to recover debt. In some instances the cases reg-istered with the debt recov-ery tribunals were delayed and sometimes the manage-ment failed to take timely action against bad loans,” said a GUCBF official.

Gujarat banks face NPA nightmare

HUDCO to raise Rs 10,000 cr for business growth

Three more internationally funded projects for Odisha

As time passes, major cities across the globe are still wait-ing for funds from development banks to take up environment conservation measures. Accord-ing to a recent report by the Car-bon Disclosure Project (CDP), most of the cities are still largely financing the climate change ini-tiatives from their own funds.

Most of the cities are fac-ing acute problems as multi-lateral development banks are providing less than 1% of thetotal funds for maintaining in the environment and climate change initiatives.

Where’s the cash for climate crisis?

Centre withholds JNNURM funds pending inquiry

Cities left waiting for bank funds for environmental initiatives

Union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath

TRANSPORT

Canada’s help is being sought for the implementation of a large-scale intelligent trans-port system in India.

Indian road transport and highways minister CP Joshi and his Canadian counterpart

Denis Label signed a Mem-orandum of Understanding (MoU) during a high level meeting in Quebec.

The MoU will facili-tate sharing and exchange of knowledge and techni-cal expertise in the areas of infrastructure development, operation and maintenance of roads.

Accepting that India still has far to go in building an intelligent transport system, Joshi emphasized that Cana-dian expertise in these areas will enable it to achieve the goal through enhanced coop-eration, technology transfer and capacity building pro-grams under the MoU signed between the two countries.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon ped-alled his way round Manhat-tan, as part of a campaign to promote urban cycling.

The ride took the cyclists from the UN Plaza on the bank of the East River to the Third Avenue offices of the Neth-erlands Mission to the UN, which organized the ride.

“I would much rather see bicycles and bike-rid-ers around here than the lim-ousines, armoured SUVs

and other gas-guzzling cars that we all use at the United Nations,” Ban told fellow riders.

The Working Group on Urban Transport (WGUT) has said public private partnership (PPP) plans are to be allowed in metro rail projects “if a project is found to be fit and viable for this approach on account of ridership alone”.

The plan is to permit private parties to be part of the construc-tion of metro projects in cities like Pune.

The WGUT also stated that the PPP “should not be linked with providing land for prop-erty development beyond what is needed for the operation of rail transit”.

“If the PPP model is accepted by the central government as per

the recommendations made by the working group, the govern-ment and the local bodies will

not have to bear the burden of the project,” a state urban devel-opment department official said.

Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), which runs the world’s largest fleet of CNG buses, incurred losses of a whopping Rs 2,042 crore in 2010-11.

According to a report pre-sented by the Comptroller and the Auditor General, out of the 13 PSUs, nine earned a profit of Rs310.80crore.

Losses were put down to deficiencies in planning, mon-itoring and implementa-tionof projects and financial mismanagement.

The DTC lost potential rev-enue of Rs 33.14 lakh due to the delay in handing over the 157 bus shelters to privateconcessionaire.

In a bid to create a healthier, less energy-intensive life-style, Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, is planning its very own ‘sustainable city’ – where horses will be the main form of transport.

Diamond Developers announced plans for the 743,000 square-meter city last April, home for 10,000 residentsor2,500families.

Groundwork is expected to be laid this year for con-struction, which will be com-pleteby2016.

Horses rule the streets in Dubai’s sustainable city

Delhi Transport Corp. loses Rs 2,042 crore

Bring back trams!Cities urged to reintroduce cheaper, greener transport

India seeks Canadian expertise for intelligent transport system

UN chief leads NYC bike ride to promote urban cycling

‘PPP can be allowed for metro rail projects’

The Ministry of Urban Devel-opment has urged metropolitan cities to consider re-introduc-ing trams after a study by the Institute of Urban Transport revealed the tram is a cheaper, more environmentally friendly form of transport.

Trams could be introduced along Bus Rapid Transit corri-dors, the ministry said.

The Municipal Corpora-tion of Delhi had planned to re-introduce trams in Chandni Chowk.“Aslateas1963,tramswere an important mode of public transport in Chandni

Chowk,” said one official. He added, “The trams are an eco-friendly mode of transport and are extremely cheap. In Kolkata, for instance, trams cost as little as Rs 2.”

Indian road transport and highways minister, cP Joshi

22 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGESTTRaNspORT

The Eastern Peripheral Expressway, connecting Sonipat, Ghaziabad and Pal-wal, is one of the 2012-13 targets for the Roads Ministry.

The target to complete the 9,500 km project was setby Prime Minister Manmo-han Singh in a recent meeting with the core sector ministries, including power, coal, shipping and roads.

In the coming weeks, the National Highways Author-ity of India (NHAI) will invite bids for the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE). Accord-ing to a Roads Ministry offi-cial, “The toll rate issue has been resolved and the bids for EPE will be invited in the next two weeks.” The Roads Minis-tryawardedcloseto8,000kmof highway projects in 2011-12.

With Chennai Corporation and the Cement Manufac-turers Association success-fully conducting a white-top-ping experiment on one stretch of the Velachery Main Road, travelling will now be much

easier in Chennai. Some 40 bus routes in the

city could now go from broken-up, black back-breakers to rein-forced, white-topped wonders that will make traveling through the city a breeze.

“We have conducted a test of the white-top technology on 700 meters of Velachery Main Road,” a corporation official said.

The white-top technology is prominently used in the U.S. and Europe.

Folding electric vehicles (EV) may soon help cities get rid of a long-stand-ing mass-transit problem and convince commuters to opt for public transport.

The lightweight, folding electric cars could ease traffic congestion, parking problems, and keep the city pollution free.

The cars can be strategically dis-tributed at electrical charging/

renting stations throughout a city and its suburbs.

Elizabeth Deakin, a city and trans-portation planning expert at the Uni-versity of California in Berkeley said, “The first-/last-mile problem has been growing steadily during the last 50years or so as cities expanded. It’s often just too far to walk to a mass-transit station.”

A smoother ride in ChennaiWhite-top technology makes traveling a breeze

Bids start for eastern express project

Folding cars fight pollution, ease traffic

REAL ESTATE

Pune has become a hot favou-rite for expats wishing to invest in property. The appre-ciating value of the dollar has given further impetus to non-residential Indians (NRIs) to invest in residential proper-ties in various cities, includ-ing Pune.

“The government has been making very proactive pol-icy changes that are clearly aimed at routing more NRI investments into the coun-try,” Om Ahuja, the CEO of residential services at Jones Lang LaSalle India commented.

One such positive change is that NRIs can now take home loans from NHB-approved Indian financial institutions, provided they meet RBI’s applicable terms and conditions.

NRIs are also free to rent out their property without the approval of RBI in India. Rent received can be cred-ited to NRO/NRE accounts or remitted abroad.

Despite mounting interest rates and escalating property prices, the Bangalore real estate market

is performing well in comparison to other cities.

According to a recent report

by property brokerage firm Knight Frank India, Bangalore has typically been an end-user-

driven market with moderate price appreciation.

“Stability in the market, as

well as minimal speculation, has been driving the end-users to proceed with their purchase deci-sions,” the report said.

“Nearly39%ofthetotalnum-bers of residential units launched in FY 2012 were priced between Rs2,500andRs5,000persqft,emphasizing the acknowledg-ment of developers that custom-ers in the mid-end segment are the prime demand drivers,” the report added.

The report also stated that, despite the threat of global eco-nomic turmoil looming over res-idential property buyers, the Bangalore residential market has been relatively resilient.

Big shopping malls are fast losing their lustre among builders. Construction com-panies have stalled a number of projects across the coun-try due to mounting costs and declining demand in a slow-ing economy. Many upcoming projects were put on hold at the last moment, as just one-third of the anticipated supply of 24.27 million sq ft retailing space in 2011 was eventually executed.

India’s largest realty firm DLF has deferred their plan for a luxury mall in Mum-bai and another in Chen-nai to unlock value, while other builders such as Sheth

Developers, Nirmal Lifestyle and Sonal Group have delayed

the completion of their new malls by two to four quarters.

Mortgage customers can now freely shift loans without paying

prepayment charges, after a move from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) scrapping such pen-alties. The move lessens the dis-parity between interest rates charged for new and old home loan borrowers. Fear of losing borrowers has compelled lend-ers to bring down interest rates uniformly.

“Though many banks have in the recent past voluntarily abol-ished prepayment penalties on floating rate home loans, there is a need to ensure uniformity across the banking system,”

the RBI said in a circular to all banks. “It has been decided that banks will not be permitted to charge prepayment penalties on home loans on floating inter-est rate basis, with immediate effect,” the statement said.

The exclusion of foreclosure charges/prepayment penalty on home loans will lead to reduc-tion in the inequity between existing and new borrowers, the statement said, adding, compe-tition among banks will result in fair pricing of the floating rate home loans.

RBI abolishes prepayment penalties on old and new home loans

Bangalore realty resilient despite global crisis

CREDAI seeks PM help to curb black money

Builders shelve plans for big shopping malls

Pune becomes hotproperty for expats

The Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (CREDAI), the apex body for real estate developers, today sought the prime minis-ter’s assistance to bring reforms for curbing black money in the realty sector.

“The economic reforms ini-tiated by then-finance minister Manmohan Singh over 20 years

ago have seen the end of the Licence Raj, but the real estate sector is still governed by con-trols and increased controls,” CREDAI President Mr Lalit Kumar Jain said in a statement.

Jain added that delay at any stage gives rise to “greas-ing of palms,” as the developer is always anxious to finish his project in time.

lalit Kumar Jain, National President creDaI

24 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGESTREal EsTaTE

Even as first-time buyers are draining their savings to buy a home, realty rates in India are escalating.

According to Samantak Das, national head (research) of property brokerage firm Knight Frank, inherent factors drive

property prices in each city. The price difference in turn reflects on flat sales across various cities across the country.

“Base prices in tier-2 cities such as Bhopal and Guwahati are affordable compared to big cities like Mumbai, which are reeling

under price pressure,” said Das.Property prices in India have

increasedby12%inthelastyear.According to a house price index survey by Knight Frank, real estate markets in some countries are doing well, but, worldwide, thepicture doesn’t look so rosy.

Global property prices have seen their weakest annual per-formance since the depths of recessionin2009,recording0.9%growth in the year ending March 2012. Doubts over the future of the eurozone, and Asian govern-ments’ efforts to cool their mar-kets and deter speculative invest-ment have taken their toll.

The Uttar Pradesh State Indus-trial Development Corporation (UPSIDC) is to grant freehold status to all residential, indus-trial and commercial plot hold-ers, the UP government has declared.

The policy and the rates for conversion of leasehold plots to freehold are to be fixed by the end ofJune, the announcement said.

The Ghaziabad Develop-ment Authority (GDA) cur-rently assigns residential plots on a freehold basis, but the UPSIDC will make a fresh start. In Noida, Greater Noida and the Yamuna Expressway areas, all land – residential, commercial, industrial or insti-tutional – is allotted on lease.

Once the freehold policy comes to force, the allottees will be able to pay the respec-tive development authori-ties a certain amount to con-vert the status of their housing plot from leasehold, where the authority is the owner of the land, to freehold, where the individual residents become owners.

Six Indian real estate compa-nies, which lent heavily dur-ing the peak of the economic cycle in 2007-08 tobuy landbanks, are still sitting on a huge debt pile. The combined

debt of DLF, Unitech, HDIL, Sobha Developers, Godrej Properties and Anant Raj Industries, amounted to Rs35,425croreintheMarch2012 quarter.

With the appreciation of the dol-lar, the number of NRIs looking to invest in real estate is on the rise. Since Mumbai is a thriving realty market, NRIs have most often preferred to invest in the city.

“We have experienced a surge in NRI investments every time the dollar gets stronger. Consid-ering the current scenario where

the rupee has depreciated by nearly23%inthelastsixmonthsor so, NRI investments are bound to increase significantly,” said Manju Yagnik, vice chairman of Nahar Group. Thane, Powai and Wadala are some of the preferred locations in the city; they are fast growing and have easy connec-tivity with mono rail, express-way and elevated road.

Even as industrialists are con-cerned about the slow pace of reforms hitting industrial renaissance in West Bengal, one sector is growing by leaps and bounds in the state – real estate. Experts say realty today is one the fastest growing sec-tors in Bengal’s otherwise dis-mal economy. “We expect the hotel business to grow by 10 to 15%pan-Indiathisyear,”saidSudhir Sinha, India president and chief operating officer of Best Western. “Eastern India is expected to post a faster growth,” he added.

Sahara India has initiated 10 integrated township proj-ects across Tier-II and -III cities in the country spread

over 900 acres. The com-pany has a land bank of around 27,000 acres across the country.

India ranks third highest in global realty price rise

UPSIDC to grant freehold policy for plots

Real estate firms have huge debt pile

West Bengal real estate sector on a speedy growth stage

As dollar rises, so do NRI investments in Mumbai

Sahara commences 10 township projects

“Property prices in India have

increased by 12% in the last

year.”

Bangalore-based real estate developer Puravankara Projects is investing in Saudi Arabia to meet the hous-ing needs of non-resident

Indians living in the coun-try. To reach out to NRIs, the company has also set up a 24/7 sales support desk in India.

Puravankara Projects ventures in Saudi Arabia

IN BRIEf

HOUSING

The pilot project under Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) is to be com-menced shortly at the Sanjay Nagar Bhatta Kachi Basti in Jai-pur, announced urban devel-opment & housing (UDH) prin-cipal secretary, GS Sandhu. The project will cost some Rs 400 crore. In Jaipur alone,

22.4%ofthepopulationdwellinslum areas, and the administra-tion listedasmanyas238 slumlocations in 2011. Speaking at a seminar on Strengthening Civil Society Voices on Urban Poverty in Rajasthan, Sandhu said the pilot plan would help in the execu-tion of the ambitious RAY scheme

for slum eradication and redevel-opment. Additional chief secre-tary department of social justice and empowerment, Aditi Mehta-said urban poverty was a greater challenge in comparison to rural poverty and emphasized the need for meaningful surveys to get the real picture.

The Akhilesh Yadav govern-ment in Uttar Pradesh is initi-ating a housing scheme for the urban poor called Aasra. The government has sanctioned Rs 100 crore for this program in the 2012-13 budget.

Houses will be granted free of cost to around 4,000 urban poor in first phase of the scheme. “Beneficiaries will be selected from the list of the poor identified in the Centre’s survey. Minorities will be given preference,” said Shiva Shankar Singh, director of State Urban Development Agency (SUDA).

“Districts will be selected for construction of houses accord-ing to the population of urban poor after the survey. Districts

with high density of Muslim poor will be given priority,” said another urban develop-ment official.

The Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) building scheme, announced in the 2009 budget, set out guide-lines to improve living condi-tions for the urban poor – or economically weaker sections (EWS) – through the construc-tion and provision of housing.

An important part of the programme was in the devel-opment of rental accommoda-tion. However,private builders are not too keen on the idea. “Developing an organised rental market is a challenge because of restrictive govern-ment policies, very low rental yields, restrictive rent con-trol acts and the lack of incen-tives and opportunity,” said a developer, who requested anonymity.

A Rs 100 crore fund for upgrad-ing civic utilities has been sanctioned by the state urban development department of Ahmedabad. The money will go towards improving streets, water supply and street lights in private housing societies.

The AMC has already received close to 2,000 applica-tions from private societies for the project.“We have already distributed the funds in different zones,” said municipal commis-sioner Guruprasad Mohapatra.

“We received 500 applica-tions from societies in the new west zone, 300 from north zone, 400 from the east zone and closeto50fromsouthzone.

“Since the scheme is based on the first-come-first-served model, we have earmarked funds early. Third party inspections will be involved to ensure quality work. We will have a mechanism in place where people can mon-itor the progress work too,” Mohapatra added.

Jaipur: RAY pilot project to be launched soon

Ahmedabad okays Rs 100 cr fund for utilities upgrade

Builders not keen on rental part of RAY scheme

Free housing for urban poor in UP

ahmedebad municipal commissioner Guruprasad Mohapatra receiving a cheque. the money will go towards improving streets, water and lighting in the city

akhilesh yadav. His government has launched the “aasra” housing scheme

26 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGESThOusINg

After Maharashtra declared 2014 as the new cut-off date for the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP), the Maharash-tra Housing and Area Develop-ment Authority (Mhada) — the nodal agency for the implemen-tationoftherevampofSector5— has altered its own deadline. The agency has decided to press forward the tenders for con-sultant and a building firm, for which it shall soon publish a cor-rigendum, said a Mhada official.

Sector 5 is being devel-oped by Mhada at a cost of Rs45crore,spansover23hect-ares. Mhada is to rehabilitate

residents in 300sqft houses, provide a corpus of Rs 40,000

per house and maintain them for 20 years.

Affordable housing for mid-dle class families is now a possibility. The state urban development department has sanctioned the Gujarat Hous-ing Board’s (GHB) proposal for constructing 70-meter-tall res-idential towers. The UDD has also said the GHB need not pay any premium to the govern-ment in lieu of the extra FSI to

reach these heights. This is a lucrative option as land prices constitute 60% of the totalproject cost in Gujarat and the additional volume of flats can rationalize this difference. The announcement is also an invitation for private devel-opers to partner with GHB in a PPP model for constructing residential towers.

The Karnataka govern-ment has fixed less than 7%ofthesitestobeissuedunder housing schemes devised to help the eco-nomically weaker sections (EWS). However, unlike the original plan of allocating 2 lakh sites every year, a total of2.25lakhsiteshavebeengiveninthelast18years.

“The guidance value of land has increased three-fold in many places and this is delaying the process,”

said managing director of Rajiv Gandhi Rural Hous-ing Corporation Limited N S Mahadeva Prasad.

“The orders have to come from the deputy com-missioner of the concerned district based on the land availability and benefi-ciaries. This we have not received by and large. The department was to take defensive measures which further delayed the proj-ects,” he added.

Having made provisions for formation of a housing reg-ulatory authority that looks after the welfare of buy-ers, Maharashtra has now turned its attention to resolv-ing pressing issues concern-ing cooperative housing soci-eties. Cooperation Minister Harshvardhan Patil said the government is to bring out a new legislation in this regard within six months.

Due to a lack of standardiza-tion in provisions of the exist-ing bylaws, disagreements are increasing over membership rights in a society and the pro-cedure and fees for transfer-ring membership from one person to another in the event of sale of a property or death of the original members. A ded-icated regulatory mechanism for housing societies is also in the pipeline, said Patil.cooperation Minister Harshvardhan Patil

the Minister of Presidential affairs and Public administration, Botswana, Mokgwetsi Masisi (extreme left) calls on the Union Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty alleviation, Kumari Selja (extreme right)

Government sites out of reach for poor

Government approves tall buildings, houses to go cheaper in Gujarat

New law to settle housing society disputes

MhadabringsforwardSector5revampdeadline

India and Botswana have agreed to actively team up and share experiences in the area of human settlements, including slum devel-opment. The decision was taken at a meeting between Botswana’s Minister of Presidential Affairs

and Public Administration Mok-gwetsi Masisi and Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Min-ister Kumari Selja. During the half-hour meeting, the min-isters talked about common areas of interest, such as slum

improvement, reasonable hous-ing, skill development and moni-toring of training programmes for the beneficiaries through biomet-rics tracking system and commu-nity involvement in government programmes.

India, Botswana to collaborate on slum redevelopment

NDMa vice-chairman, M Shashidhar reddy

Kerala Home Minister thiruvanchoor radhakrishnan

SAFETY

Japan restarted nuclear power production earlier this month for the first time since shutting down all the country’s reac-tors in the wake of the Fuku-shima Daiichi meltdown after last year’s devastating tsu-

nami.Kansai Electric Power Co. Ltd. (KEPCO) began an operation to restart the Ohi nuclear plant’s No. 3 reactor, despite protests from rough demonstrators at the site.

Earlier, Japan’s Prime Min-ister Yoshihiko Noda had pleaded to the nation to accept the reopening of two nuclear reactors that were shut down after the Fukushima disaster.

The government has taken sufficient safety measures, he said, to guarantee the two reactors in western Japan would not seep out radiation if an earthquake or tsunami as severe as last year’s should strike.

“Japanese society cannot survive if we stop all nuclear reactors or keep them halted,” Noda said.

Local approval is not legally required for restarting the reactors, though govern-ment ministers have promised to gain permission from the prefecture. The government issued new security guide-lines in April to address res-idents’ worries.

The National Disaster Man-agement Authority (NDMA) is to simulate an earthquake to ensure preparedness in case of the real thing. The “mega mock” exercise will take place February 2013 with

an epicentre at Sundernagar in Himachal Pradesh.

NDMA vice-chairman M Shashidhar Reddy said experts from IIT Mumbai and IIT Chennai had been appointed for the purpose

along with the teams of experts from NDMA.

These experts will be tak-ing into account a 200-km-long rupture line that may be created if an earthquake of this magnitude hits the region.

Gurgaon traffic police have updated the list of issues per-taining to road safety to 94 issues. These issues need to be resolved by public and private agencies.

The Haryana Urban Develop-ment Authority (HUDA) has the highest number of issues — 31 — that need to be resolved, followed by the Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) with 27 issues.

HUDA has been asked to repair the Jharsa road in Sector 15,DhanwapurroadinSector4,and the slip roads near Artemis Hospital and Genpact Chowk , among others.

The traffic police has asked the Haryana State Roads and Bridges Development Corpora-tion Limited (HSRDC) to con-struct a central verge on the

Pataudi-Tawroo and Gurgaon-Jhajjar (via Sultanpur) state highways.

The corporation has also been asked to remove speed

breakers and paint zebra cross-ings at every intersection, with traffic lights in front of every school and hospital in their respective jurisdictions.

Gurgaon road safety issues rise to 94Traffic police demand repairs, zebra crossings and traffic lights

NDMA to run ‘mega mock’ earthquake exercise

City safety norms reviewed in Kochi

Japan reopens reactors amid safety concerns

The first review meeting of the Citizens for Security program, inaugurated by Kerala Home Minister Thiruvanchoor Rad-hakrishnan on May 25, washeld at the City Traffic (West) police station conference hall in Kochi recently.

The program aims to cre-ate a layer of knowledgeable civilians, trained in disaster management to assist police during emergency situations

and security threats.All Circle Inspectors have

been ordered to position person-nel in front of schools and main junctions near schools dur-ing morning and evening rush hours to ease traffic hold-up.

Directives have been issued to remove all adver-tisement boards that obstruct traffic, failing which legal action would be initiated against those concerned.

Japanese Prime Minister yoshihiko Noda

28 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGESTsafETy

Ambulances and personnel are tobepositioned at 50 accident-prone areas in the city, according to an initiative by the BMC. The plan is to have ambulances and staff stationed at city’s important centers.

“We often hear of accident vic-tims losing lives due to excessive bleeding. A delay even for a frac-tion of a second in rushing them to hospital can cost a life. We are working for an arrangement to save lives,” said BMC’s health committee chief, Geeta Gawli.

However, citizens are unsure whether the plan will mate-rialize. Looking at the pres-ent scenario of civic health care facilities, it seems the corpo-ration is not too serious about maintaining services in which it makes investments.

Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit has cautioned the three newly constituted civic agencies to coordinate with each other to ensure citizens do not face water logging dur-ing monsoon.Dikshit asked the three corporations to take care of sanitation, lift-ing of debris and to tackle the water-borne diseases

during monsoon.The flood control depart-

ment was asked to keep relief material, boats, jackets, com-munication systems, food items and drinking water ready in case of emergency. A Central Flood Control Room set up in Gandhi Nagar, in east Delhi, will also function throughout the day and night.

Radiation caused by the Fuku-shima nuclear disaster were below cancer-causing lev-els. across most of Japan this month. However, infants in one town appear to be at a higher risk of developing thy-roid cancer, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday.

After the disaster at the Tepco-operated power sta-tion, people in two locations in Fukushima region may have received a radiation dose of 10-50 millisieverts (mSv) inthe year. The 9.0 magnitude

earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011 wrecked the plant, triggered nuclear melt-downs that contaminated food and water and forced mass evacuations.

According to the United Nations, populations exposed to radiation above 100 mSv stand a greater chance of con-tracting cancers of all kinds.

The experts later based their assessment on data avail-able up to last September on the amount of radioactivity in air, soil, water and food supplies after the disaster.

The civic body has prepared a directive for citizens and plans to grade Mumbai in respect of Community Resil-ience Index. The Brihan-mumbai Municipal Cor-poration (BMC) has asked community-based organiza-tions (CBOs), advanced local-ity managements (ALMs), NGOs and various govern-ment agencies to come up with a set of behavioral and conduct guidelines which can be followed in case of an emergency.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has formulated measures aimed at decreasing the rising number of road traffic accidents.

Part of the Twelfth Five-Year-Plan (2012-17), the plan includes

increasing the emergency med-ical care network by ensuring a primary crash response time of eight to 10 minutes.

“The report has suggested several positive measures,” said one senior official. “We need to

strengthen the infrastructure and study all aspects of road accidents and injuries to minimise deaths.”

According to national statis-tics,thereweresome5lakhroadaccidents in India in 2010, with 1.3 lakhdeathsand5.2lakhinjuries.

Ministry plans to cut traffic deaths

Firstaidservicesat50Mumbaiblackspots

Tool to measure community resilience

Delhi’s monsoon emergency measures

Fukushima radiation ‘below cancer level’

Crash response time must be 8 to 10 mins

E-GOVERNANCE

Kerala is to leverage the e-gov-ernance platform to become the first fully digital state, according to Kerala Chief Minister Oom-men Chandy.

Efficient and transpar-ent delivery of services will be assured in this manner, Chandy said.

As a part of the services, every citizen will be given an e-mail ID based on the UID

Aadhaar. All government trans-actions and applications would be handled through e-mail.

According to the CM, files would migrate to the digital mode by March 31, 2013.

4G connectivity with optical fiber broadband would reach all panchayats by December 31, 2013. All pensions and schol-arships would be distributed through banks.

IBM is helping New York City become a global leader in urban solar energy market analysis and sustainability. This will be done

through an innovative agreement with CUNY Ventures, a City Uni-versity of New York Economic Development Corporation entity.

The aim of the accord is to encourage solar adoption by developing the capability to ana-lyze and understand key solar market indicators that make the solar system development more cost competitive.

IBM’s Intelligent Operations Center (IOC) is being used by smarter cities as their backbone. Most importantly, this analytics-based approach will help New York monitor and analyze solar production and capacity through a virtual control room that will provide a dashboard view of key indicators.

The collaboration is a part of Solar Market Analytics, Road Mapping and Tracking NY, a project supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

Paban Singh Ghatowar, the Union Minister for Develop-ment of North Eastern Region (DoNER), has fought hard for a more efficient and dedicated e-governance mission team to transform it into a developed and empowered region in the field of e-governance.

While addressing the North

East e-GOV Summit 2012 held at the premises of IIM-Shillong, the minister lamented that most states in the north-east are “inad-equately equipped in terms of personnel and skill-sets” to push e-governance to a higher level. Ghatowar said the gaps should be identified and addressed accordingly.

Madhya Pradesh is soon to become a model state in the field of e-governance. So says Sam Pitroda, the advisor to

prime minister on public infor-mation, infrastructure and innovations.

Other than setting up

systems such as e-order, e-sum-mons, e-library and e-pay-ments, in future police offices, hospitals and jails would also be controlled through e-gover-nance, Pitroda said.

He also added it would be a great advantage for the state to link universities, reserved institutes and industrial groups with a knowledge net-work. He also said e-connec-tivity should be made accessi-ble to gram panchayats (local self-governments at the village or small town level).

Meanwhile, the Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) is to soon get a Geographical Information System (GIS) for online management of prop-erty and property tax.

‘MP to become an ideal e-governance state’

IBM helps NYC go solar

‘North east lacks skill and equipment to be e-power state’

Top IT firms vie for e-governance overhaul project

Kerala aims to go fully digital:CM

MCA 21, one of the govern-ment’s most ambitious e-gover-nance projects for Indian indus-tries, is scheduled for a revamp as the Ministry of Corporate Affairs works to upgrade its effectiveness amid increasing danger of corporate frauds.

Top IT companies such as TCS, Infosys and Wipro are said to be in the competition to grab the prestigious project, which

is estimated to have a budget of hundreds of crores of rupees.

“We want to take this for-ward as early as possible,” Cor-porate Affairs Minister Veer-appa Moily said.

A greater push for com-puterization of regular corpo-rate filings will make it easier to keep a check on illegal activ-ities by companies, the govern-ment feels.

Paban Singh Ghatowar, the Union Minister for DoNer

30 July 2012 - URBAN NEWS DIGEST

GIS mapping of seven towns and cities completed in Bihar

Work on police, state link-up gets 3-year extension

A project that is part of a Euro-pean-funded initiative, known as Smart, is aiming to create a vast amount of data to improve city life across the globe.

According to researchers of the of University of Glasgow, sensors attached to traffic

lights, lamp-posts and other city landmarks would help in creating smarter cities.

The data sourced from these smart cities can be reused across multiple applications, making the system more effective.

The project is a joint research initiative of nine partners including Atos, Ath-ens Information Technology, IBM’s Haifa Research Lab, Imperial College London, City of Santander, PRISA Digital and Telesto.

Satellite imaging of the actual position of physical resources has been completed in seven major cities and towns. The three-phase urban renewal program aims to cover 29 major and minor towns and cities. So far covered are Patna, Danapur, Khagaul, Phulwarisharif, Bodh Gaya, Purnia and Katihar.

The first phase of the pro-gram includes GIS mapping and satellite imagery. The sec-ond phase of the urban renewal programme involves survey of land and property (buildings) to assess the tax to be charged on the property owned.

During the third phase, spe-cially developed software is to be installed so information on all the available resources and properties mapped is accessible.

The first and second phase activities are being conducted under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mis-sion (JNNURM).

The GIS data had been pre-pared with respect to Danapur,

Khagaul, Phulwarisharif and Bodh Gaya. Similarly, the first phase of work has been com-pleted in Purnia and Kati-har towns, and tenders have been invited for the second phase of work.

Mobile Governance is the latest advance on e-gover-nance and a next step towards advanced public services.

Delivering timely and accurate information to citizens and an estab-l i s h e d system of two-way commu-nication between the gov-e r n m e n t and people is one of the keys to strengthening democracy by facili-tating enhanced utilization of public services, participation and empowerment of citizens.

Kerala has been recog-nised in the 2012 edition of the World Bank’s publication for its m-governance activities. The M-Governance in Kerala project means more than 60government departments can utilize mobile technology to improve public services.

Public services offered via mobile phones reach many more people than those offered through the internet and can

be used for various purposes, such

as improving public health

s e r v i c e s , e d u c a -tion sys-tems and p u b l i c transport.

It has also led

to develop-ment in the

social and eco-nomic sectors by

making people aware of recent trends and opportuni-ties. NGOs have also started using mobile technology for widespread use to direct social change.

The future of M-Gover-nance is bright provided the right direction is taken and the right methodologies are implemented by the govern-ment, citizens and all stake-holders involved.

The government has granted an extension of three years to the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS) for its plan to facil-itate storage and retrieval of criminal data.

The CCTNS will ease collec-tion, storage, retrieval, analy-sis, transfer and sharing of data and information between major police organizations and state headquarters.

The extension was given so that the plan can be imple-mented smoothly across all

states and union territories. The CCTNS aims at creating a comprehensive and integrated system for enhancing the effi-ciency and effectiveness of policing through adoption of the principle of e-governance. Once the plan is implemented, police stations across the country will also be able to share fingerprints and other biometric details of accused, convicted persons and fugi-tives through an integrated satellite-based communica-tion system.

Srinagar a click away from e-governance

Cities get Smart From E to M: M-Governance is the next step in public service

The Srinagar Municipal Cor-poration (SMC) is to start an online Building Permission System shortly.

The move follows a request from Ministry for Home, Hous-ing and Urban Development chairman Nasir Aslam Wani.

Wani asked the authori-ties of Srinagar Municipal Co-orperation to complete the pro-cess of e-governance.

Hence, the SMC services are soon to be just a click away from the residents of this historic city.

E-gOVERNaNCE

Nasir aslam Wani

EVENTS

The recently concluded Singa-pore International Water Week 2012, held at Sands Expo and Convention Center, Marina Bay Sands, ended on a high note. Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) is an important global platform for the shar-ing and co-creation of inno-vative water solutions. This event, themed ‘Water Solu-tions for Liveable and Sustain-ableCities,’attracted18,554par-ticipants from 104 countries and regions, and saw a record

participationof750companies.SIWW 2012 boasted a record S$13.6 bn announced for proj-ects awarded, tenders, invest-ments and R&D MoUs made at the event.

This year the five flagship pro-grams – the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize, Water Leaders Summit, Water Expo, Water Convention and Business Forums – yielded insights by some of the world’s leading experts and personal-ities, including Helen Clark, administrator of the United

Nations Development Program and former prime minister of New Zealand; Kamal Nath, India’s Minister of Urban Devel-opment; Shintaro Ishihara, gov-ernor of Tokyo; Pamela Cox, vice president (East Asia and the Pacific) of World Bank; Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, Singa-pore’s minister for the environ-ment and water resources and Prof. Mark van Loosdrecht, the 2012 Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize laureate.

Co-located with the third edi-tion of the World Cities Summit and the inaugural CleanEnviro Summit Singapore, SIWW 2012 provided broader opportunities for dissemination of ideas and access to integrated solutions for sustainable urban development.

“We’re very grateful for the stronger-than-ever indus-try support and delighted that the success of this year’s event has strengthened its stature as the global platform for the shar-ing and co-creation of innovative water solutions,” SIWW manag-ing director Maurice Neo said.

• Thissummitattracted18,000 delegates from 104countries and regions, including ministers, govern-ment officials, top industry leaders, academics and rep-resentatives from interna-tional organizations. There was also stronger business focus this year, with the realization of several sig-nificant collaborations and partnerships between the public and private sector.

• TheWorldCitiesSum-mit Expo showcased cut-ting-edge technologies and

bestpracticesfromover28cities and 130 companies over the four-day period.

• TheWorldCitiesSum-mit Mayors Forum, a key highlight of the summit, had the largest ever par-ticipation of over 100 may-ors, more than half of whom were new attendees from China, Russia, India and countries from ASEAN, Africa and South America. The mayors discussed chal-lenges and innovative solu-tions to build sustainable cities.

The World Cities Sum-mit is a global platform for government leaders and industry experts to address sustainable city challenges, share inno-vative urban projects and build partnerships. Khoo Teng Chye, executive director of the Centre for Live-able Cities, one of the sum-mit organizers, said: “As cit-ies today consider water and waste management solutions in the context of liveability and sustainability, the summit will

strengthen its role as an inte-grated platform addressing dynamic governance, master planning and leading urban solutions in the future.“In addition, the World Cit-ies Summit Mayors Forum 2013 will be hosted by Bilbao, Spain, the inaugural winner of the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize. This marks the first time ever that this forum is going to another country, demonstrat-ing that it is gaining traction internationally and is garner-ing external interest.”

Singapore International Water Week 2012

World Cities Summit 2012

• At the Middle East andNorth Africa Business Forum, Saudi Arabia’s National Water Company announced it would be investing some S$11bn in capital expenditure on munic-ipal water infrastructure for four major cities – Riyadh, Jed-dah, Makkah and Taif– over the next five years.

• The Philippines’ leadingwater authority, The Metropol-itan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), announced its US$1.5billioninvestmentpro-gramme to establish a Water Security Legacy (WSL) for the 15 million residents of MetroManila.

• Singapore-based UnitedEngineers Limited (UEL) announced two projects at the Changi Water Reclamation Plant and one for a waste-to-energy project at a poultry farm

in Singapore worth over S$70 million.

• Hyflux another Singa-pore-based company, also offi-cially launched its Hyflux Inno-vation Centre, serving as the nerve centre of Hyflux’s global operations. Apart from exec-utive and corporate offices, the centre will also house its engineering design and tech-nology commercialization departments, and the R&D laboratories.

• The inaugural Indus-trial Water Solutions Forum which saw a turnout of over 200 participants,presented key industry perspectives on the challenges faced by the oil and gas, food and beverage, mining, and chemical sectors and how innovative solutions can turn these challenges into business opportunities.

• TechXchange this yearsaw strong interest with a turn-out of over 200 participants, double that of the inaugural event in 2011, as well as a line-up of 21 water R&D innovations from Singapore and all over the world.

• Prototypes of some ofthe new, cutting-edge local technologies, such as the Fish Activity Monitoring System, Aquaporin-based biomimetic membranes and the Parasitom-eter presented at the TechX-change, were also showcased at the Water Innovation at the SIWW booth.

• Housed within 17,000square-metres of covered exhi-bition space on a single floor, the Water Expo saw a two-fold increase in the number of par-ticipating companies since the inauguraleventin2008.

1-5 July 2012 1-4 July 2012

Highlights of the event

The World Cities Summit Mayors Forum, a key highlight of the summit, had the largest ever participation of over 100 mayors, more than half of whom were new attendees from China, Russia, India and countries from ASEAN, Africa and South America.

Highlights of the event

Postal Registration No. DL(S)-01/3406/2012-14RNI No.DELENG/2012/41753

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