Hon PM, Well- Planned Cities & Country's Future!

 

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“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” …  George Bernard Shaw

G B Shaw, those who have even a smallest of exposure with English literature knows this name & for those who have not even littlest then, this name is for English literature in the same way that Sachin Tendulkar is to Indian Cricket, I think that’s best I can explain. And why I thought this quote, is because of one news article about our Hon PM Sir who said “Well Planned Cities” are our country’s only Future! However controversial he may be yet I admire our Hon Pm for his vision as well sincerity in his work (conversion & ways of doing it, are different topic) & right from the beginning when he & his team came in power some nine years back (long time now), they knew their clientele (sorry that’s how political parties look at their voters now a days) are from cities & he has focused on it. May it be trying to make homes cheaper to Smart City mission to PMOY (Pradhanmantri Awaas Yojana), implementation of RERA or budget provisions for infrastructure fronts, his focus has been towards urban population which wasn’t ever the case for first sixty years from independence is a fact. And his latest statement also shows the way govt’s approach towards cities will be & this is directly related to the field I am in i.e., real estate, that is why I felt like writing regarding his views.

Hon PM Sir, it's great that you have understood the importance of the planned cities & sure when the top boss understood seriousness (read as importance) of any subject only then the system moves on that front, this is hundred percent applicable “Law of System'' (sorry for sarcasm) in our country from Galli to Dilli (read as everywhere), may it be a small company or corporate like AA’s or even in the home also! So, I am sure there will be some Aachhe Din for urban planning of the country as well as states & cities like Pune. But before that lets see what’s ground reality (read as, hurdles in doing this) as first & foremost hurdle is our population of one fifty plus crore & the disparity in these numbers as home is a costliest product & any urban planning of the city revolves around the need of the homes & this we have failed to understand that’s why we have failed in making planned cities till now! We all need homes but only few of us are able to fulfil our need on this front in the legal way, this is the biggest problem in the execution of planned cities. One more aspect is already urbanization is our future (again thanks to 150 crore population) & by 2050 nearly 50% of our country’s population will be living in cities or Metros is a prediction & why this is happening, the answer is assured Roti, Kapada aur Makan which villages has failed to offer to the masses & that is why everybody is running towards the cities.

And what’s scene on these three fronts, just to give an analogy to understand the challenges on the front of Makan i.e., Home, here is a comparison…  If a rich man in this city (Pune for e.g.) is hungry, then he can go to Marriott or Conrad type five star hotel. If a higher middle class man is hungry, he can go to any decent outlet in the food mall of Pavilion or Phoenix mall. If a middle class man is hungry, he has the option of going to some Shetty or Thali serving hotel. A class three category man i.e., some peon or constable or driver is hungry then he can get food at joints serving budget food such as limited thali types. If a poor man (read as labour or daily wage worker) is hungry, he has the option of many street-food serving joints for e.g. Puri Bhaji or even Wada Paw! And, all these eating (read as hunger solutions) options are available legally i.e. these food options are available by paying money officially & you get a receipt which every law accepts, right! The story is the same on the front of Kapada i.e., clothing as right from International Brands to local tailor or even good quality second hand readymade clothes, for every class of society clothing option is available or else we would have faced nude marches by now, right? So, the first two basic living or survival needs of the society have been taken care i.e., Roti & Kapda, & that’s a success for which our govt has to be congratulated!

Now look at the scene on the home need front in Pune (For e.g.), a rich man can buy a home anywhere in any posh location with his money, no problem. A higher middle-class man can find a home with some adjustment & bank loan support at some decent location in this city. A middle-class man has to struggle for his life time to find a sizable home even of 2bhk anywhere at good location & has to settle for 1bhk or has to move out of city limit or has to stay in rental home all the time so either he ends up paying home loan instalment for his life or rent, making a permanent hole in his pocket for a basic home. A class four working man won't ever get a home in city like Pune as in his earning not even one room is possible anywhere near so he has to settle for fringe area that home or slum in Pune city (ample of them are there) or illegal home (flat) which eventually gets regularised by the Mai Baap State govt & live under stress till that happens at the mercy of local corporator! And a poor or daily wage class man’s life is worse than a street dog as he has to adjust anywhere, he gets to sleep with his family, he has no choice on the home need front!

Hon PM sir, accept our (we all) this failure first, on the Makan front, as then only we will be able to find a way to make Well-Planned City, because the numbers of families in later three classes is in millions & its these people’s need for home is driving every planning to failure when its urban planning aspect of the city! With your govt’s policy of making homes cheaper there are tons of FSI/TDR/Paid FSI/ TOD or whatever you call to build but where is the land suitable for consuming this FSI, is the question you have to ask your planners. Of-late every alternate building in central Pune has come for redevelopment making ample of homes available in the central part of city but have you seen the price figures of these homes , all are above one crore magic mark & how many can afford this price, has anybody thought of it? All the profits are being enjoyed by the landlords, govt agencies itself & some part by builder (if he is smart enough) & needless to say facilitators in this entire building process (I am sure you understand what I meant by facilitators) but what benefit is passed on to the end buyer of citizen, who is having any control on this? And the outcome is, most of the real needy home buyers have to move out of the city or take solace in slums or illegal homes in the city. And thanks to poor public transport all these people have to buy their own vehicles to commute for their roji roti which is ion city (again unplanned) making them spend more for fuel in these vehicles & choking the ever encroached city roads! PM Sir, with due respect to your vision for well planned city, let me tell you no vision is of any use unless it has backed up with a strict & well monitored action plan which is missing from every city & town of this State & Country, making every city a big chaos or traffic, slums & garbage!

If you (read as your “bhakt gan”) do not believe me then take example of planning authority’s mess in Pune itself. For the last three decades tussle has been going about merging villages in PMC & finally when it is done then also two villages have been demerged (reason unknown) & yet we are unable to finalize development plan of these merged villages as well which rules to be applied & how! In all these delays one can understand that some time is needed but how much time is some time, nobody has any answer or will to find this answer & who is paying for all the delay in basic planning things, not any individual but the entire city is going to pay for this or say already paying! Why can’t there be a fixed time for finalizing development plan of any town or city & why cant right from the top there is a system which will monitor the execution of city’s DP, have you ever asked this question to your so called Sarkari Babus or Town Planners who decides all such policies related to the city, & if you have then can you please share the answer or their solution please?  As well why cannot you rope in our “AA” Corporates to spend for affordable housing by allotting them pieces of land just the way MIDC does for the industries & build thousands of homes on all four sides of Pune as trial case & lease it out to the needy class three class four & daily wages people as then only the core of city will be free for planned development, why nobody thinks on these lines at least for once! The reason is, nobody wants in reality, to make housing affordable to all the classes of the society or else how the big money will remain in only a few pockets, is the truth & this is the main reason behind failure of the dream named Well Planned Cities, in our country!

And if all this is not enough then the local govts’ of all the States (Maharashtra is front runner) are hell bend on regularizing the so-called illegal constructions as that they seem is easiest & safest way to make housing affordable but, in that process, entire city becomes a dust bean, is a fact about which nobody cares except you, is what I feel! Because, first you (read as, the Govt) make wrong policies, then you execute these policies in delayed time as well in the wrong ways & then as these policies don't allow the common man to get his home in his budget you turn a blind eye towards the illegal settlements. And then you regularize these illegal settlements may they be on the lands which are reserved for roads or gardens or hospitals or hills or water bodies under the name of basic needs of housing & then you cry for inability to make Well Planned Cities, wow, just wow, we are as a system on the front or urban planning! As all these encroachments which do not contribute a single rupee for city revenues is a two-edged curse for Well Planned Cities. One is, they make losses to the city by not paying any tax or premium in any form to the city civic body as well this adds burden on the pockets of the law abiding citizens living in so called legal homes. And second is most of these homes (slums/ settlements) are on public reservation lands making the city’s so called delayed planning to go for the toss as never these lands are going to get developed for the purpose we have reserved them for!

So, Hon PM Sir, keeping all due respect for your vision of the Well-Planned Cities, like RERA, form a separate cell, dept or whatever with the help of some rational & dedicated minds & have an action plan in place. We can start from Pune city as a model run (as anyways enough brains are here for that, lol) as we can’t take trial on all the cities at a time so first make one model city, so that the path will be followed by others (just a hope). Or else, you only have said Well Planned Cities are our country’s only future but what if this future never gets into existence; rather, what you have not said, is more important is what I feel & high time if we care for our future, right? Will be happy to assist in any form on this front, as I too care for my city’s future!

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Sanjay Deshpande 

Sanjeevani Dev.

Please view my sharing about real estate in Pune at You Tube link below..

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4xX7eopH5o&t=5s

 

Please do visit my blog links below to read about real estate & home buying! 

https://visonoflife.blogspot.com/2023/01/defining-good-home-real-estate-in-2023.html

http://jivnachadrushtikon.blogspot.com/2023/02/blog-post.html

Creating Togetherness; team Sanjeevani Way (Click link below) 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/65629150@N06/albums/72157627904681345

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