Corporatisation of the HMDAs’ Planning functions

That the HMDA has corporatized urban planning in the HMR is evident from Calling for Expression of Interest for ‘Visioning Hyderabad as a Global City’ recently. That no application worth the name has come is another matter. Similarly, the 27 odd Tenders (visit www.hmda.gov.in Web page) floated by HMDA six months back in a jiffy, wanting all these to be completed within 6 months! It does not stop there. The conditions and requirements are so tailor-made that only to one or two particular Corporates qualifies for these, throwing up questions of ethics, unfair and unhealthy trends in urban planning and development.

Similarly, the third- time calling of RFP for VUDA Region Master Plan smacks of monopolisation with its conditions tailor-made only for this particular Corporate.Last heard, Earlier instances of similar cartelization of Master Planning assignments, viz. Vijayawada UDA extended area Master Plan or the ongoing PCPIR Master Plan have not taught lessons to the concerned authorities.

The earlier instance of undertaking the Kakatiya UDA Master Plan in 2007-10 by a similar Corporate entity was a disaster. The local talent and domain knowledge of planners in Andhra Pradesh have not been encouraged. Instead, conditions in the RFPs have been deliberately been put to eliminate any local competition, and in ensuring that only these Corporate entities qualify and undertake the Studies and planning. Where is the necessity for a minimum Rs. 10 Crores for the ‘Mission and Vision Hyderabad Study’ required? Or the Rs. 50 Crores turnover for undertaking a very small area like the ‘urban nodes’ in the Hyderabad Metropolitan region? Where is the necessity in the VUDA RFP for “Consultants of International experience” or having expertise in Air Pollution monitoring or having traffic and transportation studies experience of 10-lakh city” ? Are we expecting any engineering product or what ? How can local planners compete since they do not have such an annual turnover? After all, what is required under the Urban Areas Development Act or the HMDA Act is having physical planning expertise and knowledge with broad proposals. Wonder whether the CBN Sarkar or HMDA or VUDA are aware of something called the Competition Commission of India? What a sad commentary on how urban planning is being corporatized and cartelized in both the States especially in HMDA and elsewhere!

Where is the Planning Department ?

What are these issues on which HMDA wants consultancy studies in such break-neck speed as though HMDA has discovered all of a sudden the virtues in such a strategy of ensuring planned development of the metropolitan region? Starting from detailing out and designing the proposed Regional Ring Road, detailing out the 22 odd urban nodes, doing details of Transit-oriented development along the metro-rail corridors, to undertaking Land Pooling Schemes – all these have the stamp of the corporate infiltrating HMDA, VUDA and VGTMUDA, and dictating their terms. Curiously, in case of HMDA, all these are issued mostly by the Chief Engineer, HMDA, and nowhere there is mention of the Planning Department or its Head of department.

Is the Planning Department dead in HMDA? Far from it! We have atleast 3 Senior Planning Consultants, 2 Directors and 4 Chief planning Officers and a host of Planning Officers, Asst. Planning Officers and Junior Planning Officers, and a support staff of 100 odd technically qualified regular employees, doing God-knows what, while the so-called Metropolitan Development Plan recently approved by the Government in January 2013 is being carried forward by the Chief Engineer! And the above-mentioned 27 tasks are being out-sourced instead of undertaking it in-house with the great talent pool of Planners and engineers that HMDA possesses !

Forsaken metropolitan priorities:

And all these are supposedly being undertaken under the aegis of the above-mentioned Metropolitan Development Plan. The HMDA Act,2008 provisions have been given a go-by, and HMDA is doing all that is what are not required to be done under the HMDA Act- starting from it’s present development control activities, which has become its ‘core function’, to taking up issues that are required to be done by other functional Departments. In fact, HMDA has no powers of direct development control. All it has are only planning powers emanating from the basic philosophy that it is the Tier 1 entity or apex body of metropolitan planning and development, leaving the nitty-gritty to the local bodies and other functional agencies. HMDA was in birth pangs since 2008- after HUDA was incorporated into HMDA and the HMDA Act was enforced. But it could not get out of its ‘development control centric’ functioning, although the HMDA Act requires a separate set-up and way of working/functioning and more planning, development and management approach. HMDA’s decentralization measures by way of Zonal Offices primarily to control development, has been a disaster. It has been way off the mark in its Metropolitan Development Plan which, except for the nomenclature ”metropolitan development’ does not even an iota conforms to the HMDA Act. Then it has ignored the simultaneous preparation and notification of the Metropolitan Investment Plan, which is a key statutory requirement. It has not been able to find its bearings, nor have a growth direction or strategy. In fact, none of the actions of HMDA since 2008 has benefitted the common man. Instead of the above, it has gone in now for development of ‘22-odd urban nodes’ without having an overall and clear infrastructure development plan-which is another statutory requirement, in place.

The Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Plan- a mere eyewash ?

The worst fears of planners are ringing true – that is, the so-called Metropolitan Development Plan is for name-sake only and has nothing to offer for tackling the metropolitan issues of Hyderabad, and what HMDA has done instead is prepare a land use plan for the extended area of the Metropolitan Region which is supposed to be kept as Green Belt (Conservation Zone) and instead open up the fragile Conservation Zone areas of Hyderabad to development (it is in these areas that the above 22 odd urban nodes declared by HMDA are located), ignoring the core city and urban spread, and thereby damaging the whole planning and development process. It is doing what not to be done in the Conservation Zone. The Conservation Zone of Hyderabad is environmentally crucial for the health and vibrancy of the metro area and cannot be let loose to the forces of development otherwise Hyderabad will become another Mexico or Sao Paulo.

Has HMDA become a Mofussil Authority ?

Coupled with the above planning distortion, the HMDA Act categorically forbids HMDA to involve itself in building permissions/approvals and enforcement, and instead the Act has made the local bodies responsible for these. Even in land development, HMDA’s role is confined to ensuring planned area development. That’s why there are specific and detailed provisions on ‘Land Pooling Schemes’ and a separate Chapter on ‘Development Schemes’ The understanding of HMDA in this regard appears to be skewed. Instead of evolving a procedure for these vital tools of ensuring planned area development, it is groping for solutions in such elusive feasibility urban nodes studies. And what are the urban nodes selected ? These are relatively obscure and far flung areas from Hyderabad like Shabad, Chevella,Toopran, Kacharam, or Choutuppal. Instead areas demanding planning and civic attention like the core Hyderabad city, or Kukatpally, Malkajgiri, Saroornagar, Rajendernagar, Lingampally, Gachibowli, Alwal, Qutubullapur, etc. located in the main urban spread of Hyderabad are totally ignored! Looks like, HMDA wants to escape from Hyderabad’s metropolitan problems, and escaping to these moffusil areas, like the ostrich burying its head, wants to tackle the problems of Hyderabad coming in from outside! It would be apt to rename HMDA (Hyderabad metropolitan Development Authority) as Hyderabad Moffusil Development Authority!

Technical and development audit needed:

What is expected or outcome of the 'Vision for Hyderabad' or the slew of 27 Tenders entailing feasibility Studies by HMDA is anybody’s guess. All the above is a recipe for disaster. Another Rs. 100-odd Crores of public money, by way of ‘Consultancy Studies’ would go down the drain. Time that there is a Technical and Development Audit by the AG Office, so that such stellar agencies like HMDA do not go astray and forget their core responsibilities and focus only on the mandate given in the HMDA Act.

Politicians will never learn…

We keep hearing from KCR that he wants the best international Consultants to replan for the HMDA Master Plan. Replan for what ? For making Hyderabad as a porous urban sprawl in the name of Visioning exercise for brand Hyderabad ?

We now hear from the print media that the CBN Sarkar has given the task of identifying Consultants (read International and Corporate ones) to ASCI, Hyderabad. This is yet another sad commentary of the decline of town planning and Master Planning in the State of both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. They think bringing in outside consultants will solve the problems of our cities and towns. They think, these Consultants will bring in the money for implementation of the Master plans. If this were so, then all our previous master plans should have been implemented successfully long back-whether it is the Cyberabad master plan or the HMDA Mater plan, the story is the same: Consultants come , draw fancy plans, pocket Crores of rupees as fees and disappear. The local and home-grown planner or GHMC or HMDA staff are then required to suggest innovative methods for implementation of these fancy master plans.

The latest action by CBN sarkar asking ASCI to scout for International Consultants to do the Master Planning for the New capital of AP will be another exercise in futility.

Home-grown town planners have not been given the opportunity to plan and design for our cities and towns. Are they lacking in talent? Not at all! Somebody who is external to the city or town comes and plans, imposing the alien concepts and cultures, and in the process killing the home-grown talent and domain knowledge. This is leading to home grown planners becoming only drafting and errand boys for the Corporate consultants. If the same trend continues, then we will be able to find the home grown town planners only in the Salar jung Museum.

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