Ahmedabad, Feb 9: The 74th National Town and Country Planners Conference concluded on Saturday with a call for a shift towards regional, transit-oriented and technology-enabled planning to address rapidly evolving urban and economic challenges. Experts at the conference emphasised the critical role of metropolitan and city-region planning in driving high productivity, inclusive and resilient growth, drawing lessons from global city regions such as London, Singapore and Tokyo.
Participants noted that metropolitan regions have the potential to transition local economies towards higher productivity growth when supported by appropriate institutional frameworks and long-term economic planning. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region was cited as an example where a fundamental shift in planning strategy, institutional behaviour and development philosophy is underway. The region is now preparing a city-region economic plan aligned with local, national and international requirements, a model that could be adapted by other metropolitan regions based on their unique resource base and growth potential.
The conference noted that schemes undertaken by the Government of Gujarat for Sanand, Kalol, Savli, Hirasar and Bardoli are expected to significantly ease urban pressure on surrounding major cities in the near future. Participants stressed that regional planning should be adopted as a key instrument for achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047. Regional frameworks should be essential for integrated planning, development and management of both rural and urban settlements, particularly in the context of city-region economic plans.
Megacity regions in spatial planning was identified as a tool for defining settlement hierarchies, infrastructure networks, transportation systems and service delivery. Existing land-use frameworks such as Rural Rapid Development Formulation (RRDF) planning and cluster development under the Rurban Mission were recommended as useful references for metropolitan regional planning.
There was a consensus view on the use of artificial intelligence in city and regional planning. Delegates noted that effective AI-driven planning would require strengthening data volume, velocity and variety at city and regional levels. A structured approach was recommended, starting with data integration, followed by modelling, scenario simulation, predictive analytics and decision-support systems aligned with policy formulation.
The conference called for a paradigm shift in planning for large-scale events such as international games, cultural festivals and religious gatherings. Such events should be viewed not merely as temporary projects, but as opportunities for inclusive infrastructure creation, employment generation, poverty reduction, environmental protection and institutional strengthening, along with clear plans for post-event utilisation of infrastructure assets.
Participants emphasised the need to move away from static master plans towards a “living city” concept that is active and participatory within a city-region economic planning framework. Traditional town planning schemes, including newer land pooling models, were recommended for review in terms of implementation timelines, landowner participation, use of modern technologies, compensation mechanisms and overall governance effectiveness.