Lavasa future cities

Most Indian cities today are reeling under problems of infrastructure collapse because of increasing population, lack of planning and poor management. The underlying cause very clearly is absence of a robust governance structure and its accountability to public. India has the 2nd largest urban system in the world. 310 million live in 5161 cities and towns. That's like cramming the entire population of America into the third of the space. Most Indian cities are probably operating at their peak levels of occupancy. Perhaps in some cases, it's a miracle they still work. To make matters worse, in the next 30 years , another 400 million will migrate to these cities. That's about twenty Australias for you. And by 2030, India's urban population is estimated to reach a staggering 575 million. It's about time somebody asked the question: in the years to come, where will India live? Lavasa, in association with The Times of India presents Lavasa Future Cities, an initiative borne of a vision to build new cities that are sensitive to the environment and intelligently planned for a fast-evolving future. It is an unchangeable fact that the India of tomorrow will find expression in its cities. What we can question and hence change is how that future will be lived. It’s time we started a new conversation. Lavasa Future Cities; it starts now.

A Livable City

What makes a city livable? It is a commonly debated question and an important one for cities striving to improve their quality of life. What makes a community pleasant? What leads its citizens to feel a sense of pride in where they live? There are an enormous number of potential criteria for assessing the livability of a city. What should be our urban planning model? Some policy makers have often looked up to the Singapore model and advocated the benefits of central planning in directing the growth of the city. As the example of India’s previously planned cities like Chandigrah and Gandhinagar has shown, that may not always be the best answer. City planning is one of the few sectors where the public and private sector can work individually toward common goals