Sustainability of Urban Fringe Development and Management in NCT-Delhi: A Case Study

Abstract

India has been undergoing rapid urbanization and urban population growth for last more than three decades, with large cities taking a major share of it. These large cities expand spatially and many areas on their ‘fringe’ (the areas near city boundary) also come under the influence of urban growth and development. Unlike central cities, which are governed by formal institutions for planning, governance, management and delivery of infrastructure services, fringe areas are characterized by either poor structure or the absence of governance institutions. Like other large Indian cities, Delhi has also been growing in terms of population and geographical area for the last more than five decades to form the National Capital Territory (NCT). With rising levels of urban population, the surrounding fringe areas of NCT-Delhi have also been undergoing significant change. This paper analyses the growth of one such urban fringe area—Ghitorni settlement—located on the periphery of NCT Delhi along Mehrauli-Gurgaon highway corridor. It discusses population pressures, socio-economic changes, civic services and fragmentation of institutional responsibilities, all of which lead to decline in the quality of life and living environment in this fringe area. The sporadic pattern of development also poses tremendous challenges to urban governance, planning, finance and delivery of civic infrastructure; thereby raise questions of its sustainability. The sustainability urban fringe area development in the NCT Delhi is discussed in this paper on the parameters of physical, socio-economic, planning, infrastructure services, financial resources, ecology/environment and governance institutions.