'Human settlement academy' planned for slum dwellers
The government is planning to set up a human settlement academy for slum relocation in various cities. Replying to supplementaries during Question Hour, Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation Minister Jagmohan told the Rajya Sabha on Monday that the housing problems for slum dwellers was a continuous challenge and the Government …
'Slum-dwellers' population up 5,000% in 50 yrs
Delhi's unplanned urbanisation woes are aptly summarised by the increase in the number of slum-dweller, which has swelled by 5,000 per cent over the past five decades. Settlers are estimated to be occupying around 9.5 sq km of the government land (in 1994) , with total cost of the area …
Brakes on the urban sprawl
India's crowded cities may suggest that urbanisation is growing at a rapid pace. But the numbers suggest otherwise. The annual growth rate of urban population in India has actually dropped from 3.1 per cent during 1981-91 to 2.7 per cent during 1991-2001. This reinforces the declining trend of urbanisation in …
Delhi's big drive against diesel starts to run out of gas
Delhi is the most polluted city in the world in terms of suspended particulate matter, according to the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) an independent New Delhi think-tank. But the city's efforts to cut pollution from vehicles in the pubic transport system are being hit by a lack of …
Low-cost houses to be built in a slum cluster as a test case
In line with experiments conducted in Mumbai, the Delhi government is planning to change its slum relocation policy to upgradation. Katputli Colony in the Shaadipur area will become the first jhuggi cluster to be upgraded under this experiment.
ADB to treat state plan as model
The draft 'resettlement plan' submitted by the West Bengal government to the Asian Development Bank will be treated as a 'model' at the ADB workshop on resettlement to be held in Manila. A senior member of the North-South Economic Project Development Board said the government has submitted the draft 'resettlement …
SC stops demolition of hotels near Goan beaches
In a major blow to Goa's environmentalists, the Supreme Court has granted leave to the State government's special leave petition relieving about a dozen hotels and holiday resorts from the threat of demolition for constructions within 500 metres of the high tide level (HTL) violating CRZ notification of 1991.
Air quality down after April : Teri study
Strongly contending the government's claim of success in curbing air pollution in the Capital, the Tata Energy and Research Institute (Teri) disclosed that the air quality had infact deteriorated further after the April 2000 ban on old vehicles and the subsequent directive for conversion of commercial vehicles to the CNG …
Ultra-low diesel better than CNG, say experts
Ultra-low sulphur diesel is a better option than CNG, said experts of the Tata Energy Research Institute here on Monday. These experts feel that CNG is not a viable option for the city transport service. They feel that natural gas should be diverted to the domestic sector in the city …
More rural roads in Himachal soon
The prime Minister's Gram Sadak Yojna(PMGSY) was launched in Himachal Pradesh. The Union Minister for Rural Development, Mr. M. Venkaiah Naidu, who laid the foundation stone of Rajpura-Khera road in Nalagarh, said Rs.70000 crore would be spent under the PMGSY to connect all villages in the country by link road …
Paradip bags ISO 2002
The Paradip port has achieved a major milestone to its credit changing its standing among the major ports in the country. Speaking to The Hindu, the chairman of the Paradip Port Trust (PPT), Mr. Santosh Kumar Mahapatra, said the port had done remarkably well by registering a growth of 45 …
Bengal Municipal Act a model law
The West Bengal Municipal Act,1993, which governs all municipalities in the state, has been recommended as a model law by the National Conference for Good Urban Governance, held in Delhi .
Cabinet approval for rural roads scheme
The Cabinet has approved the commencement of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY) as a 100 per cent Centrally-sponsored scheme and has also decided to set up a Group of Ministers (GoM) to work on expanding the scope of Lok Adalats.
State-level summits on urban development soon
The Union Minister for Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation, Mr. Ananth Kumar, today called for evolving a viable, self-propelled and effective delivery system as part of the scheme for good urban governance in the country.
Mumbai will beat London numbers in 15 years
Mumbai will be among one of the world's largest cities by 2015, while London will lost its place as one of the 30 most populated cities in the world, a US sociologist has predicted.
Urban core plan cost seen at $65b
India needs an investment of about $65 billion to meet its urban infrastructure development programme, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) said yesterday. The chamber said massive investments were required both for creating infrastructure, as well as for the operation and maintenance of the current infrastructure facilities in the country. …
DJB fails to dam water losses
Non-functioning of a majority of consumer water metres coupled with inadequate and inefficient manpower to record their readings has been resulting in huge revenue losses to the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) besides coming in the way of water conservation.
HC notice to Centre on chemical units
The Delhi High Court has issued notices to the Union Government, the Delhi Government,the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), traders dealing in hazardous chemicals and others on an application seeking action against officials responsible for allowing unauthorised storage and trading of the chemicals.
