Front-ranking new cities have allocated 35 per cent space for green cover
A file photo of the capital region.
Hyderabad: Though the government and planners say that Amaravati will be environmentally perfect, it will not be the case, say experts. The green space mentioned in the plan of the core capital is just 21 per cent whereas front-ranking new cities have around 35 per cent, they said. “In Chandigarh, which is methodically planned and built, you will find green space of 40 per cent. Even in Singapore, the country that developed our master plan, nearly half is covered by greenery in the form of parks, gardens, golf courses, wild life vegetation including mangrove, according to a study. But we are not up to the national standard or international standard,” said an expert on capital city planning on condition of anonymity. “We suggest that this be revisited in the plan since any compromise on greenery would have a deadly effect,” he cautioned.
Another factor that has drawn flak is that in the 217 square km area of the core capital, there is no space for wetlands or agriculture. Although it may sound odd to mention agricultural areas in cities, wetlands are required for economic development, management of anthropogenic activities, management of land, solid waste collection and disposal, disposal of used water etc.
"As per an observation, they are an essential part of human civilization, meeting many crucial needs for life such as drinking water, protein production, water purification, energy, fodder, biodiversity, flood storage, transport, recreation, research-education etc. The values of wetlands though overlapping, like the cultural, economic and ecological factors, are inseparable. If we ignore them altogether, it would be a disaster. I hope in the detailed master plan all these factors will be taken into account," observed Dr Anand Kolluru, an expert on town planning.
The real test of the plan will be the functionality of all the issues that are mentioned. How best it can be converted into a human capital and how all the systems are integrated. Most of all, how the capital is converted into the life styles of people, especially the present generation, the experts remarked.
Need proper connectivity in region:
Urban planning experts lauded the capital plan for keeping greenery and water bodies unaffected by infrastructure development. Director of School of Planning and Architecture, Vijayawada, Dr N. Sridharan, said that there was a need for road-cum-rail connectivity to the core capital area from important centres like the airport at Gannavaram and other growth corridors in the capital region.
Mr Sridharan added that the only thing missing in the plan was the flow of vastu beyond the triangle, which included Bramhastan on the riverside, and two other axis facing the Kankadurga Temple and Kondapalli Fort.
He added that law enforcement in the capital region, along the lines of rules and laws of Singapore would be important to implement the plan. “It is appreciable that greenery, water bodies are being encouraged and no existing greenery will be affected,” he said.
First planned city for present, future needs:
Urban design and planning experts from the Andhra University say that the master plan, for the new capital city, is quite achievable as vast swathes of land are available. “The master plan is feasible since it is about building a new ‘Greenfield’ city, and there is sufficient land available. It would have been difficult to implement if the same master plan was made for an already existing city by expanding it or changing it. Singapore has already proved itself in building such a city,” said Prof. G. Vishwanadha Kumar of AU’s department of architecture.
He added that a lot of the land has been earmarked for a green belt. There will also be provision for bicycle rinks and pedestrian zones, which are difficult to implement in existing cities. He said Amaravati would be the first city to be planned as per present and future needs. The city is envisaging a population of 1.35 crore by year 2050.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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