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3.4 Summary of objective 1
identical in terms of geographical area, each covering 0.28 sq. km. Thus, the total geographical area of the study region under consideration is 2.27 sq. km.
3.4 Summary of objective 1
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Reasons for the lack of development in the study region
Thus, objective 1 can be effectively summarized by understanding the main reasons as to why there is unplanned development in the study area, whereas its neighbours are well developed and effectively planned to large extents. Therefore, the reasons why this region is lagging behind its neighbours in terms of development, can be noted below in the forthcoming paragraphs as follows.
Figure 3.7 : The study region (highlighted through yellow boundaries) & surrounding planned developments (residential and industrial townships)
Source: Google Maps
Thus there are certain reasons as to why the surrounding regions are ahead in terms of development as compared to the study region.
Another relatively new township in the vicinity, New Town is also a planned township, which has sprang up post the 1990s. New Town’s administrative boundary has been sub-divided into action areas (I, II, III, III-A, etc.). New Town also has a Land Use Development Control Plan (LUDCP), and is under the jurisdiction of another development authority, the New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA). Also,
the LUDCP has been formulated in 2012 and is effectively followed till date in New Town.
Figure 3.8 : Regions of the New Town Planning Area (NTPA) covered under LUDCP and Proposed land use for NTPA
Source: LUDCP for New Town Planning Area, 2012
Figure 3.9 : LUDCP for Rajarhat Gopalpur
Source: http://kmdaonline.org/ludcp/
In the Rajarhat Gopalpur Municipality, the presence of the LUDCP, explains the availability of a planning document in the region, in spite of the fact that it had not been revised since 1998.
Figure 3.10 : Salt Lake and NDITA are properly planned townships
One of the most prominent neighbours to the study region, Salt Lake, is located to the north west of the study region. As explained in the historical documentation earlier, Salt Lake is a planned satellite town which was built by a Yugoslavian planner, Dobrivoje Toskovic, during the mid-1960s. Salt Lake is a planned satellite town, predominantly a residential township, is divided into sectors and blocks, throughout its area.
Among the 5 sectors that were formed from the Bidhannagar Municipality in 1995, the first four sectors were reserved as residential townships. The final of the five sectors, which was designated as an industrial township, was understandably named as Sector V. Sector V is another planned development in the vicinity of the study region. It is a planned industrial township, which has grown effectively in the last decades. Post 2006, Sector V, also known as Nabadiganta Industrial Township Authority (NDITA) became a key economic activity generator in Kolkata. This was solely due to the hegemony of the IT sector and in the region. NDITA is sub-divided into blocks (AN, BN, CN, DN, EN, etc).
Finally, venturing into the study region, in the study region of the wards 27 and 28, there has been no recognised land use interventions ever. There is no document signifying land use planning. One of the only recognized planning documents in West Bengal, the Land Use Development Control Plan or LUDCP, which is present for New Town and Rajarhat Gopalpur, is lacking in the case of this study region. Also, it is not properly planned like Bidhannagar or NDITA.
Figure 3.11 : The study region does not fall under the above highlighted regions
Source: http://kmdaonline.org/ludcp/
Thus, the absence of planning interventions in the region has led to the creation of these unplanned developments. Also, the absence of any regulations has further aggravated the planning process. These unplanned developments, have to an extent been squeezed in between the planned regions. The regions, which were once parts of Gram
Panchayats and municipalities, have literally been landlocked by modern day planned developments, residential and industrial townships in this scenario.
As the BMC is newly formed, it does not have any LUDCP yet. Also, the study region or Bidhannagar is not a part of the KMC, as it falls under the jurisdiction of the BMC.
Figure 3.12 : Also study region is not a part of the KMC boundary – therefore excluded from it.
Source: http://kmdaonline.org/ludcp/
Thus, the question to be understood in this context, is that how integrated does this region become with the surroundings. The forthcoming parts of this thesis report will demonstrate the influence of these surrounding planned developments on the study region, by understanding the growth patterns in the study region and also understanding the study region from more detailed level through many parameters.
