‘Uniform recruitment rules for town planners needed across country’: Institute of Town Planners India president at 3-day Ahmedabad conference

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region was cited as an example where a fundamental shift in planning strategy, institutional behaviour and development philosophy is underway. The region is now preparing a city-region economic plan aligned with local, national and international requirements, a model that could be adapted by other metropolitan regions based on their unique resource base and growth potential.

The conference noted that schemes undertaken by the Gujarat Government for Sanand, Kalol, Savli, Hirasar and Bardoli are expected to significantly ease urban pressure on surrounding major cities in the near future. Participants stressed that regional planning should be adopted as a key instrument for achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047.

Megacity regions in spatial planning were identified as a tool for defining settlement hierarchies, infrastructure networks, transportation systems and service delivery. Existing land-use frameworks, such as Rural Rapid Development Formulation (RRDF) planning and cluster development under the Rurban Mission, were recommended as useful references for metropolitan regional planning.

There was a consensus view on the use of Artificial Intelligence in city and regional planning. Delegates noted that effective AI-driven planning would require strengthening data volume, velocity and variety at city and regional levels. A structured approach was recommended, starting with data integration, followed by modelling, scenario simulation, predictive analytics and decision-support systems aligned with policy formulation.

The conference was inaugurated by K Srinivas, Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India, on Friday. He also highlighted that an urban development plan stressing the city’s economic development in the context of its surrounding regions is the need of the hour.

Participants emphasised the need to move away from static master plans towards a “living city” concept that is active and participatory within a city-region economic planning framework. Traditional town planning schemes, including newer land pooling models, were recommended for review in terms of implementation timelines, landowner participation, use of modern technologies, compensation mechanisms and overall governance effectiveness.

It was stated at the conference that detailed recommendations will be formulated after the completion of the technical meeting to be held soon.