Chennai’s Future Needs Greater Resident Participation: Urban Experts

Speaking at a Madras Day discussion on Chennai’s urban future, the panellists said the city’s development could not rely solely on large infrastructure projects and government-led planning. They stressed the need to give neighbourhoods and residents a greater role in shaping development.

Farhath Begum, chief administrative officer, Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA), said public cooperation was crucial to making Chennai more accessible and liveable. She said the CMDA’s Third Master Plan seeks to address growing pressure on the metropolitan region through decentralised development.

“Chennai is one of the most populated cities in the country. The demand is going up and pressure is growing on policymakers to decentralise development. Everybody wants to study and work in Chennai,” she said.

The CMDA has proposed six satellite towns at Thirumazhisai, Tiruvallur, Chengalpet, Minjur, Kanchipuram and Mamallapuram. The state government is also promoting manufacturing hubs in Hosur, Tiruppur, Coimbatore and Thoothukudi to create employment opportunities outside Chennai and reduce migration pressure.

For the first time, the Third Master Plan will include a comprehensive economic growth strategy for the entire metropolitan area. Begum said the plan was formulated in response to a more than 30 per cent rise in population and the challenge of providing adequate housing and infrastructure.

According to the CMDA, Chennai currently adds only around 22,000-23,000 dwelling units annually, compared with about 80,000 each in Hyderabad and Bengaluru and 1.25 lakh in Mumbai. The plan seeks to make better use of available land, leverage floor space index (FSI) and promote affordable housing.

“One of the ambitious proposals in the Master Plan is the compact city model, which would increase urban density using the FSI tool,” Begum said, stressing the importance of well-planned infrastructure and optimal land use.

Pavithra Sriram, co-founder of Project Thiruvanmiyur Mada Street and Design Co, said residents had already shown how neighbourhood-level initiatives could bring meaningful change despite institutional and practical challenges.

“Residents are already coming together to identify problems and find solutions. This kind of participation should be recognised as an important part of the city’s development process,” she said.

She added that decentralisation should not simply mean shifting development away from the core city, but should also involve planning based on the distinct character and needs of individual neighbourhoods.

Dr T.D. Babu, trustee of Nizhal and member of the Chennai District Green Committee, said future development should respect Chennai’s ecological character and natural drainage systems. He criticised construction in flood-prone areas such as Okkiyam Madavu and said the city needed to rethink its development model.

Smrithi Prasad, manager, Urban Planning–India, C40 Cities, said neighbourhood participation should complement wider systemic planning. She pointed to interconnected challenges such as encroachments, street parking, flooding and street vending.

“Residents need to be encouraged to take stewardship and ownership of their neighbourhoods,” she said, adding that they should be treated as stakeholders rather than merely beneficiaries or complainants.

She stressed that planning could not happen only from the top and called for greater dialogue between metropolitan-level plans and residents’ experiences on the ground.

The discussion, titled ‘From Belonging to Blueprint: Neighbourhoods Shaping Chennai’, was part of Madras Reimagined: Heritage | Culture | Urban Futures, organised by Global Shapers Community Chennai, Heritage Inspired and Art Kin Centre to mark Madras Day.

The organisers said residents’ inputs gathered ahead of the event would be compiled into a report and shared with decision-makers and civic groups, potentially providing an additional input for future urban planning.