Policy Update
Sanju Joshi
Overview:
With a population of about 34.66 million as of 2025, Delhi, is the most populous city of the nation. Being the capital of India, it draws migrants looking for work, better living conditions, and economic opportunities. By 2035, Delhi’s population is predicted to surpass 42 million. Given this quick expansion, the question of whether the government can control this population growth in the upcoming years emerges.
By examining the current trends, patterns, and needs of the populace, the Master Plan for Delhi acts as an action plan to address these issues and direct the city’s development. The administrative body responsible for MPD is the Delhi Development Authority. However, the central government and all other agencies involved in the development plan must work together to implement it. In 1962, the Delhi Development Act of 1957 was used to promote the first MPD plan. The following plan, which was implemented in 2001 and 2021, offered a comprehensive framework for Delhi’s planned development.
The MPD-2041 is especially significant because it addresses critical issues such as urban stress, population growth, climate urgency, and the overall development of the city. The plan places a lot of emphasis on effective and efficient growth because it is based on lessons learned in the past.
MPD-2041’s vision
“Foster a Sustainable, Livable, and Vibrant Delhi” is the mission’s slogan. The plan has three main objectives to reach the target.
- Goal 1: Construct a city that is ecologically sustainable and takes climate change into account.
- Goal 2 : To develop a future-ready city that addresses the necessities of people. Offers a safe and sustainable lifestyle.
- Goal 3 : To boost economic and cultural development in the city.
To achieve the goals, the mission will prioritize:
- Environmental Sustainability
- Facilitating Economic Development
- Enhancing heritage, culture and public life
- Improving housing and Social Infrastructure
- Moving towards low-carbon Mobility Development Resilient Physical Infrastructure
Focus Areas of MPD 2041
- Environmental Sustainability
Special focus has been projected to environmental sustainability, given the pace of resource depletion in Delhi. The Master Plan for Delhi focuses on reducing pollution, building green-blue infrastructure that will include natural areas, parks, wetlands, and water bodies, promoting urban farming. Urban farming improvise cultivating practice in the cities involves transforming rooftops, balconies, and communal spaces into green patches. This practice enhances food security, promotes local produce, and a greener urban environment.
- Facilitating Economic Development
The plan will provide incentives to set up clean economies that will foster economic development considering sustainable values. The plan will support the creation of knowledge, finance, services, and cultural hubs. Old commercial areas will also be upgraded, with the government offering incentives for it. Additionally, the plan has placed importance on the informal sector as well. It aims to support people from the unorganized sector by evolving a better working space and conditions for them.
- Enhancing heritage, culture and public life
Delhi has centuries of history stored in the form of monuments, architecture, and traditions. MPD 2041 introduces key policies to preserve Delhi’s culture and heritage. It emphasizes identifying and preserving the culturally significant zones, introducing Heritage TDR, and implementing active frontage, squares and plazas, street improvement, walkable plans for public spaces, and safety.
- Improving housing and Social Infrastructure
Under housing and social infrastructure planning, the government intends to regenerate both planned and unplanned areas. Promotion of rental, and affordable housing with in-situ redevelopment of slums rather than displacement of existing residents. Additionally, efforts are made to improve social infrastructure to improvise community spaces and infrastructure for elderly, women and children.
- Mobility And Transport
The plan promotes multimodal integration, ensuring smooth connectivity between metros, buses, e-rickshaws, bicycles, and pedestrian pathways. It encourages the use of public transport to reduce dependency on private vehicles, aiming to tackle issues like traffic congestion and air pollution. Transit-Oriented development (TOD) is a key strategy that encourages high density, mixed use development around transit hubs to promote walkability and reduce travel distances. The plan also focuses on creating safer streets for people and eliminating the negative factors from transport infrastructure.
Responsible Agencies and Their Functioning:
DDA and the government will be responsible for carrying out the smooth and fair implementation of the policy. The institution will watch over the land use planning for infrastructure, recreational areas, and public facilities. Also, they will be ensuring timely provision of essential infrastructure like water, sanitation, and transportation.
DDA will set up an online single-window mechanism to support smooth implementation of various policies. The portal will act as a one-point facility for the application process, participation, and status tracking system. One of the very important aspects of this plan is to connect with the local population. The government and DDA will maintain individual customer and query portals for people, especially youth, women, and the elderly, involved. To improve the quality of public understanding, FAQ portals and IEC material will be publicized with a citizen-driven approach.
Role of the LAN Monitoring and Review Unit (PMRU):
PMRU is responsible for regularly tracking and reviewing the progress of MPD. It manages the GIS database of the plan, builds a central data bank using information from various agencies, compiles annual reports, and conducts surveys to evaluate key trends, issues, and challenges on a wide range. It acts as a technical support unit to the Apex review committee.
Comparative Insights: Mumbai Master Plan (MMP 2035)
Similar to MPD 2041, Mumbai Master Plan 2034 is a comprehensive urban development plan that aims for sustainable development, improving infrastructure, and social-cultural inclusivity. Key components of the plan include construction of new metro lines like Metro Line 3, Metro Line 5, and Metro Line 10, along with the Mumbai Harbour Link that will connect Mumbai to Navi-Mumbai and the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road.
Redevelopment of slums is one of the major objectives of Mumbai’s Master Plan. Housing and Urbanization, Coastal Road Project, Industrial Development, Economic Growth, Environmental Sustainability, etc. are some key issues MMP 2035 will be dealing with.
Delhi, with similar initiatives, can draw the lessons from MMP 2035, using its experiment and outcomes for refined future strategies.
Current Urban Challenges in Delhi
Delhi, being the most populous city in the country, faces a complex web of urban challenges. Rapid population growth and a strikingly high amount of migration raise concerns for a sustainable lifestyle for all. Traffic congestion disrupts the daily activities of people, whereas poor air quality and worsening pollution in the city pose severe health risks. Lack of affordable housing options has led to a significant increase in the number of people living in slums. Officially there are around 750 noted big and small slums in Delhi, which have at least 2 million people living in them.
The city also struggles with waste management and natural resource degradation. The degrading conditions of the Yamuna River have been a major concern for the city. The Yamuna cleaning mission has even been one of the major headlines for various political parties to promote, highlighting the seriousness of the matter. Delhi has also been struggling with an unprecedented amount of migration that led to the expansion of the informal sector in the city.
Delhi is also inflicted with a high number of crime rates. Data shows overall crime statistics remain high. Crime rates like Burglary, kidnapping, murder, rape, etc have been alarmingly high. Delhi is among one of the most unsafe cities for women. High crime rate, negatively impacts the status of the city and impacts development. Perceived social safety among the citizens declines leading to social cohesion and increasing security risks drives tourism away threatening city’s economic interest. While some crime have seen a decrease, others are on rise, and overall impact of crime on Delhi’s development rate has been negative.
Together all these challenges highlight the need for urgent actions in the city. People are expecting strict policy regulations and persistent social efforts from government to eliminate the gaps in the city.
Conclusion:
A future envisioned through MPD 2041 is a utopian version of the current reality of Delhi. Delhi is struggling to sustain a balance between a healthy environment and competitive economic growth. However, a comprehensive plan like MPD and structured institutions can fast-pace Delhi’s way to sustainability. MPD 2041 lays the foundation for a city that not only supports its current population but also envisions an opportunistic society for coming generations as well. Success of the mission, however, depends on the implementation and the coordination of the concerned authorities.
- Delhi Development Authority. (2021). Draft Master Plan for Delhi 2041 – Volume 2: Spatial Development Strategy & Action Plan.
https://dda.gov.in/sites/default/files/inline-files/Pub%20meeting%204%20-%20Ch%2018%20to%202219072021_compressed.pdf - Delhi Development Authority. (2021). Draft MPD 2041 (English). https://dda.gov.in/sites/default/files/inline-files/Draft%20MPD%202041%20%28English%2909062021_compressed_0.pdf
- Delhi Development Authority. (2021). Draft Master Plan for Delhi – 2041.
https://dda.gov.in/master-plans
About the Contributor: Sanju is a Research Intern at IMPRI, pursuing Economics Honours from Delhi University.
Acknowledgement: The author would like to Thank Ms. Aasthaba Jadeja for supporting and reviewing the Article.
Disclaimer: All views expressed in the article belong solely to the author and not necessarily to the organisation.
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