Bengaluru: The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), which has been criticised for the lack of public consultations over the Revised Master Plan (RMP) 2031, has finally announced a series of zonal-level public consultations. But they are unlikely to pass off smoothly as there is no data in the RMP for an informed debate, say stakeholders.
The BDA has published a series of projected scenarios for 2031 for an extrapolated projected population of 2.03 crore, more than double from the last census data (2011). The RMP puts forward future scenarios that look at water supply, power requirements, solid waste generated and transport strategy.
Urban planners said that the scenario building is the third stage of any master plan and made no sense without finalising the vision document. “Ideally, the agency will conduct field studies, which, along with public consultations, should form the basis of the vision document. The scenario building will be done based on the finalised vision document,” said Rejeet Mathews, an urban planner involved in several masterplans across the country.
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Citizen Action Forum and several other citizen groups, who have crossed swords with the BDA over the master plan and lack of public consultations, are mulling over boycotting these consultations and even approaching the courts to seek a stay on the planning process.
In the recent past, development plans for Mumbai and Goa had been struck down by the Bombay High Court for procedural lapses.
N.S. Mukunda of Citizen Action Forum said that the BDA is exceeding its brief by going ahead with the plan even after Bengaluru Metropolitan Planning Committee (BMPC) was tasked with planning. “The planning process should be participative. This is no way of preparing the plan,” he said.
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BDA has already prepared a vision document, which was discussed at the last BMPC meeting. However, it is yet to put the vision document for public scrutiny.
“How can a set of bureaucrats and consultants decide on the vision for the city for the next 15 years and force us to debate scenarios simulated from that ‘vision’?” said Leo Saldanah, Environment Support Group, who added that the public consultations as per norms should be held at the ward level, for which ward committees should be put in place.
‘As per norms’
BDA Commissioner Rajkumar Khatri says, “We are organising public consultations as per norms. We will announce a calendar of events, a series of public consultations in all the 10 BBMP zones starting January 12. We will hold separate consultations with other stake-holders, including the BBMP council, urban experts and NGOs. Nothing is set in stone.”