India
Indian Town Struggles to Balance Architectural Heritage and Living Heritage
Recent events in the southern India town of Hampi, recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, expose the struggle to balance the needs of historical tourist sites and those who make their livelihood from them, writes Rachel Proctor May.
No Room for Street Vendors on Model Roads
"Model road" project in the Indian city of Ahmedabad has sidewalks, crosswalks, and on-street parking, but no street vendors.
India's Energy Problem: Coal Shortage or Too Much Coal?
Dueling pieces in Foreign Policy and the Christian Science Monitor come to completely different conclusions on the connection between the great Indian blackout of July 31 and the country's reliance on coal.
India Encourages Monster Master Planning Effort
Planners in search of work might want to consider looking in India. As Nate Berg reports, the Indian government is hoping a new technology initiative will catalyze master planning efforts in 7,935 cities and towns across the country.
World's Biggest Blackout Cripples India
For the second day in a row, massive blackouts have brought India's cities to a standstill as trains, traffic lights, and ATMs failed in New Delhi and throughout 14 states across the north and east of the country.
An End to the Days of "Drill First, Ask Questions Later"?
An Indian court pulls the plug -- sort of -- on unregulated groundwater exploitation.
Delhi's BRT Battle Likely Headed to the Supreme Court
The fight to bring efficient public transit to the Indian capital in the form of a dedicated Bus Rapid Transit corridor may be headed for the country's Supreme Court, as the government fights the city’s wealthy, car-owning minority.
Energy Shortage Constrains India's Economic Growth
Energy shortages in coal, natural gas, and diesel fuel are constraining India's growth. At the heart of the shortages are government subsidies that keep prices low, state-run monopolies that are unable to increase production, and costly imports.
Indians Turn to Social Media to Meet Neighbors
In rapidly modernizing, and urbanizing, India, young professionals find themselves cut off from their neighbors and small town traditions in fortress-like gated communities. The Internet is providing a platform for them to re-establish community.
The Changing Face of Urbanism in India
Neha Thirani speaks with Rahul Mehrotra, urban planner and chairman of Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design, about the challenges facing "emerging India," including its parasitic gated communities, preservation, and 392 "urban time bombs."
India's Megacity Discusses its Mega-Problems
Naresh Fernandes chronicles a recent upsurge in events providing opportunities for Mumbai's residents, and fascinated guests, to discuss the city's myriad challenges, and possible solutions. But can all the talk result in real action?
Is Public Outreach Enough to Overhaul India's Slums?
Mukta Naik, a consulting planner with Indian housing firm micro Home Solutions, discovers that grand plans for a 'slum-free India' missed the mark on one key point: the lives of slum dwellers.
What Can We Do With Crowdsourced Maps?
Shriya Malhotra explores the potential for participatory mapping to manage the complexities of cities in the 21st century.
Towards a Right to Space
Kerwin Datu reflects on the implications of treating the world's diverse mixed-use slums as residential only enclaves.
Capitalizing on India's Auto-Rickshaw Sector
India's Bajaj Auto company introduces an ultracheap small car focused on the country's rickshaw industry. Meanwhile, an unrelated study finds that the unorganized auto-rickshaw sector presents a huge business opportunity.
The Case Against Skyscrapers in Delhi
Planners and development experts explain why modeling Delhi after cities like Singapore, Hong Kon and Mumbai is misguided and dangerous.
The Paradox of India's Informal Slum Economy
This piece from The New York Times goes inside the economic powerhouse of Mumbai's Dharavi slum to profile the informality that both troubles it and brings it prosperity.
An Invitation to Sprawl?
New legislation by the Maharashtra State Governments would allow private land owners to apply for city boundary expansions as a tool to ease congestion.
Reflecting on Delhi
Delhi was being celebrated as a capital for the first time, under British rule, a hundred years ago. This short piece from the Economist compares today's Delhi with the images of fanfare in December 1911.
Ambitious Effort to Urbanize India
The Indian government is betting big with simultaneously building a massive high speed freight corridor between Delhi & Mumbai as well the physical infrastructure for 24 new cities that will become an industrial corridor.
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