Assessing Smart-Growth Strategies in Indian Cities: Grounded Theory Approach to Planning Practice
Publication: Journal of Urban Planning and Development
Volume 141, Issue 4
Abstract
Urbanization in India is neither unique nor exclusive, but is similar to a worldwide phenomenon and has led to the development of urban sprawl, as it has elsewhere in the world. In the context of rapidly evolving policy frameworks in India, this article assesses the extent to which urban planning policies address sprawl. Local development plans of 53 cities across India are analyzed using content analysis and grounded theory. The study reveals that cities in India are not completely embracing smart-growth strategies in their development plans, and the use of smart-growth strategies differs among highly populated metropolitan cities versus less-populated cities. The study identified that four barriers—conventional urban planning mindset, lack of incentive-based practices and resources, ad-hoc planning, and lack of integrated land use transportation and environmental planning—impede smart-growth strategies in India. Furthermore, the results reveal a theory of planning action, which urban planners may tend to incorporate in their early stages of planning steps to address sprawl before they move toward more complex political policies.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
Adrian Guillermo Aguilar. (2008). “Peri-urbanization, illegal settlements and environmental impact in Mexico city.” Cities, 25(3), 133–145.
Alonso, W. (1960). “A theory of the urban land market.” Reg. Sci. Urban Econ., 6(1), 149–157.
Baer, W. C. (1997). “General plan evaluation criteria—An approach to making better plans.” J. Am. Plann. Assoc., 63(3), 329–344.
Balta, M., Tekel, A., and Tekel, H. (2012). “Urban development process of built environments in metropolitan areas in Turkey: Case study of Angora settlement, Ankara.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 70–77.
Basawaraju, R., et al. (2011). “Analysis of the impact of urban sprawl in altering the land-use, land-cover pattern of Raichur City, India, using geospatial technologies.” J. Geogr. Region. Plann., 4(8), 455–462.
Bayramoglu, Z., and Gundogmus, E. (2008). “Farmland values under the influence of urbanization: Case study from Turkey.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 71–77.
Berke, P. R., and Conroy, M. M. (2000). “Are we planning for sustainable development? An evaluation of 30 comprehensive plans.” J. Am. Plann. Assoc., 66(1), 21–33.
Berke, P. R., Godschalk, D. R., Kaiser, E. J., and Rodriguez, D. (2006). Urban land use planning, 5th Ed., Univ. of Illinois Press, Champaign, IL.
Blair, R., and Wellman, G. (2011). “Smart growth principles and the management of urban sprawl.” Community Dev., 42(4), 494–510.
Bohnet, I., Pert, P., and Schultz, P. (2010). :Sea- and tree-change phenomena in the Wet Tropics: Impacts of urbanisation and mitigation potential.”, Reef and Rainforest Research Centre, Cairns.
Brueckner, J. K (2001). “Urban sprawl: lessons from urban economics.” Brookings-Wharton papers on urban affairs 2001, W. G. Gale, and J. R. Pack, eds., Brookings Institution Press, Washington, DC.
Brunner, A. (2013). “The effects of urban sprawl on daily life: Smart growth implementation of Atlantic station.” Transportation Research Board 92nd Annual Meeting, Transportation Research Board, Washington, DC.
Cabral, P., Santos, J. A., and Augusto, G. (2011). “Monitoring urban sprawl and the national ecological reserve in Sintra-Cascais, Portugal: Multiple OLS linear regression model evaluation.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 346–353.
Census of India. (2011). “Registrar general and census commissioner.” Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, New Delhi, India.
Conway, T. M., and Lathrop, R. G. (2005). “Modeling the ecological consequences of land use policies in an urbanizing region.” Environ. Manage., 35(3), 278–291.
Couch, C., and Karecha, J. (2006). “Controlling urban sprawl: Some experiences from Liverpool.” Cities, 23(5), 353–363.
Duany, A., Speck, J., and Lydon, M. (2009). The smart growth manual.
Duranton, G. (2009). “Cities, agglomeration and spatial equilibrium by Edward L. Glaeser.” J. Region. Sci., 49(3), 568–571.
Ewing, R. (1997). “Is Los Angeles-style sprawl desirable?” J. Am. Plann. Assoc., 63(1), 107–126.
Feng, J.-M., Wang, Y.-L., Ma, Z.-G., and Liu, Y.-H. (2012). “Simulating the regional impacts of urbanization and anthropogenic heat release on climate across China.” J. Clim., 25, 7187–7203.
Feng, L., and Li, H. (2012). “Spatial pattern analyis sof urban sprawl: Case study of Jiangning, Nanjing, China.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 263–269.
Fischel, W. A. (1999). “Does the American way of zoning cause the suburbs of metropolitan areas to be too spread out?” Governance and opportunity in metropolitan America, A. Altshuler, ed., National Academy Press, Washington, DC.
Frumkin, H. (2010). “Urban form and extreme heat events: Are sprawling cities more vulnerable to climate change than compact cities?” Environ. Health Perspect., 118(10), 1425–1428.
Gordon, P., and Richardson, H. (1997). “Are compact cities a desirable planning goal?” J. Am. Plann. Assoc., 63(1), 95–106.
Gregory, W., et al. (2009). “An indicator of the impact of climatic change on European bird populations.” Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. B-Biol. Sci., 4(3), e4678.
Han, J., Hayashi, Y., Cao, X., and Imura, H. (2009). “Evaluating land-use in rapidly urbanizing China: Case study of Shanghai.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 166–171.
Huang, Q., et al. (2013). “Using construction expansion regulation zones to manage urban growth in Heifei, China.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 62–69.
Iwata, O., and Oguchi, T. (2009). “Factors affecting late twentieth century land use patterns in Kamakura City, Japan.” Geogr. Res. Q., 47(2), 175–191.
Jaeger, J. A. G., Bertiller, R., Schwick, C., and Kienast, F. (2010). “Suitability criteria for measures of urban sprawl.” Ecol. Indic., 10(2), 397–406.
Klug, S., and Hayashi, Y. (2012). ”Urban sprawl and local infrastructure in Japan and Germany.” J. Infrastruct. Syst., 232–241.
Lang, R. E. (2002). “Open spaces, bounded places: Does the American West’s arid landscape yield dense metropolitan growth?” Hous. Policy Debate, 13(4), 755–778.
Lang, R. E., and Dhavale, D. (2005). “Beyond megalopolis: Exploring America’s new “megapolitan” geography.” Census Rep. 05:01, Metropolitan Institute at Virginia Tech (June), Alexandria, VA.
Lang, R. E., Dhavale, D., and Haworth, K. (2004). “Micro politics: The 2004 presidential vote in small-town America.” Census Rep. 04:03, Metropolitan Institute at Virginia Tech, Alexandria, VA.
Leao, S., Bishop, I., and Evans, D. (2004). “Simulating urban growth in a developing nation’s region using a cellular automata-based model.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 145–158.
Lee, D., and Choe, H. (2011). “Estimating the impacts of urban expansion on landscape ecology: Forestland perspective in the greater Seoul metropolitan area.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 425–437.
Litman, T. (2003). “Measuring transportation: Traffic, mobility and accessibility.” ITE J., 73(10), 28–32.
Liu, L., Dong, X., and Chi, S. (2010). “Quantitative delimitation of metropolitan areas based on a synthetic method: Case study in the Lanzhou metropolitan area.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 357–364.
Lucas, R. (1988). “On the mechanics of economic development.” J. Monetary Econ., 22, 3–42.
Mieszkowski, P., and Mills, E. S. (1993). “The causes of metropolitan suburbanization.” J. Econ. Perspect., 7(3), 135–147.
Miles, M. B., and Huberman, A. M. (1994). Qualitative data analysis: An expanded sourcebook, 2nd Ed., Sage Publications, Newbury Park, CA.
Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. (2002). “Auto fuel policy report.” Delhi, India.
Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. (1999). “Handbook on transport statistics in India transport research office.” Delhi, India.
Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. (2000). “Handbook on transport statistics in India transport research office.” Delhi, India.
Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. (2003). “Handbook on transport statistics in India transport research office.” Delhi, India.
Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. (2010). “Handbook on transport statistics in India transport research office.” Delhi, India.
Ministry of Urban Affairs and Poverty Alleviation. (2011). “National urban transport policy.” Delhi, India.
Mohan, D. (2004). “Road traffic deaths and injuries in India: Time for action.” Natl. Med. J. India, 17(2), 63–66.
Mohan, M. (2010). “Geospatial information for urban sprawl planning and policies implementation in developing Country’s NCR region: A study of NOIDA City, India.” FIG Congress 2010: Facing the Challenges—Building the Capacity, Sydney, Australia, 1–15.
Muller, J. (1981). “Fossil pollen records of extant angiosperms.” Bot. Rev., 47, 1–140.
National Government of India (GOI) Planning Commission. (2011). “11th Five Year Plan.” Vol. I.
Nelson, A. C., and French, S. P. (2002). “Plan quality and mitigating damage from natural disasters: A case study of the Northridge earthquake with planning policy considerations.” J. Am. Plann. Assoc., 68(2), 194–207.
Padam, S., and Singh, S. (2001). Urbanisation and urban transport in India: The sketch for a policy, Transport Asia Project Workshop, Pune, India.
Portney, K. (2003). Taking sustainable cities seriously: Economic development, the environment, and quality of life in American cities, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA.
Portugal, L. S., and Araújo, L. A. (2008). “Procedure to analyze the performance of urban networks in Brazilian cities.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 119–128.
Pucher, J., Korattyswaroopam, N., and Ittyerah, N. (2004). “The crisis of public transport in India: Overwhelming needs but limited resources.” J. Publ. Transp., 7(3), 95–113.
Quigley, J. M. (1998). ‘Urban diversity and economic growth.” J. Econ. Perspect., 12(2), 127–138.
Quigley, J. M. (2009). “Urbanization, agglomeration and economic development.” Urbanization and growth, M. Spence, P. C. Annez, and R. M. Buckley, eds., Commission on Growth and Development, World Bank, Washington DC.
Ramanathan, V., et al. (2005). “Atmospheric brown clouds: Impacts on South Asian climate and hydrological cycle. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA, 102(15), 5326–5333.
Romer, P. M. (1986). “Increasing returns and long-run growth.” J. Polit. Econ., 94(5), 1002–1037.
Saizen, I., Mizuno, K., and Kobayashi, S. (2006). “Effects of land-use master plans in the metropolitan Fringe of Japan.” Landsc. Urban Plann., 78(4), 411–422.
Saleh, B., and Al Rawashdeh, S. (2006). “Study of urban expansion in Jordanian cities using GIS and remote sensing.” Int. J. Bifurcation Chaos Appl. Sci. Eng., 5(1), 41–52.
Saxena, S., Banister, D., and Hickman, R. (2008). Transport and climate change: reducing CO2 emissions in London.” RGS Conf., London.
Sivaramakrishnan, K. C. (2011a). “Re-visioning Indian cities: The urban renewal mission.” Sage Publications, New Delhi, India.
Sivaramakrishnan, K. C. (2011b). “Urban development and metro governance.” Econ. Polit. Wkly., 46(31), 49–55.
Sivaramakrishnan, S. (2003). “A continuous time representation and modelling framework for the analysis of non worker activity-travel patterns: Tour and episode attributes.” Transp. Res. Rec., 1831(1), 11–20.
Sperandelli, D., Dupas, F., and Dias Pons, N. (2013). “Dynamics of urban sprawl, vacant land, and green spaces on the metropolitan fringe of São Paulo, Brazil.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 274–279.
Sudhira, H. S., and Gururaja, K. V. (2012). “Population crunch in India: Is it urban or still rural?” Curr. Sci., 103(1), 37–40.
Tamilenthi, S., et al. (2011). “Dynamics of urban sprawl, changing direction and mapping: A case study of Salem city, Tamilnadu, India.” Arch. Appl. Sci. Res., 3(1), 277–286.
Tiwari, G. (2001). “Traffic flow and safety: Need for new models in heterogenous traffic.” Injury prevention and control, D. Mohan and G. Tiwari, eds., Taylor & Francis, London, 71–88.
Tiwari, G., and Mohan, D. (1999). “Sustainable transport systems: Linkages between environmental issues, public transport, non-motorized transport, and safety.” Econ. Polit. Wkly., 34(25), 1589–1596.
Wang, Y., Deng, X., Marcucci, D., and Le, Y. (2013). “Sustainable development planning of protected areas near cities: Case study in China.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 133–143.
White, M. D., and Greer, K. A. (2006). “The effects of the watershed urbanization on the steam hydrology and riparian vegetation of Los Peñasquitos Creek, California.” Landsc. Urban Plann., 74, 125–138.
World Bank. (2010). “India’s transport sector: The challenges ahead.” Washington, DC.
Ye, L. (2013). “Urban transformation and institutional policies: Case study of mega-region development in China’s pearl river delta.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 292–300.
Zhang, T. (1996). “On China’s planning reform: A comparative approach.” Urban Plann. Forum, 3, 1–7.
Zheng, Z., and Bohong, Z. (2012). “Study on spatial structure of Yangtze river delta urban agglomeration and its effects on urban and rural regions.” J. Urban Plann. Dev., 78–89.
Zhou, M., et al. (2011). “Mass spectrometry of intact V-type ATPases reveals bound lipids and the effects of neuclitide binding.” Science, 334(6054), 380–385.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Copyright
© 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 2, 2014
Accepted: Oct 21, 2014
Published online: Dec 9, 2014
Discussion open until: May 9, 2015
Published in print: Dec 1, 2015
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.