Invited Lecture on Role of Urban Planners
Dr. M. Ramachandran, IAS (Retd.), Former Secretary, Urban Development, Govt of India, was invited to speak on the 'Role of Urban Planners in Nation Building' by Department of Planning, School of Planning & Design, Manipal University Jaipur on 28th March, 2018. He emphasized on the importance of urban policy interventions and urbanization in India. The comprehensive lecture included the role of cities in creating a major share of national GDP and various issues like services to be provided by urban local bodies, housing deficit & housing for all, worldwide best practices in urban planning by citing the examples of London, Singapore, Manchester, etc.
He discussed about the capacities of local bodies in meeting the housing demand, infrastructure gaps and the accessibility of the planning system for the citizens. He concluded by addressing that planning should be a collaborative process of striving to improve the quality of life of people along with the adequacy of long term plans and the way ahead. Planners therefore play an important role for the management of growing urban and rural settlements and hence, the nation building. Also, in an open discussion with the students of Department of Planning, he shared his experiences of his administrative service during the urban development years as mentioned in his book "The Mavericks of Mussoorie".