KARACHI: Master plans with local approach stressed
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Aug 20: Speakers at a seminar stressed the need for the town planning that could cater not only to the needs for infrastructural development, but also address the social, economic and environmental issues being faced by the urban population.
The seminar on Urban and Regional Planning was organized by the architecture and planning department of the NED University on its campus. About 20 delegates from different local and foreign universities participated in the seminar.
Speaking as chief guest at the inaugural session, State Bank Governor Dr Ishrat Hussain observed that in a situation where every body was working disorderly in the absence of any standards for building and construction in the big cities, there was a dire need of an integrated and consistent planning and its implementation.
He said that a master plan or urban plan would work provided that it was prepared after consulting all stakeholders. However, he warned, any uncaring or inconsiderate replication of western model and standards would not work and, as such, there was a need to be attentive to the basic necessities of people.
Holding universities and research institutions in high esteem, the SBP governor said that they should undertake independent research in the spheres of town planning and urbanization.
Dr Hussain also suggested that medium term planning be undertaken as the world was changing very fast and the long-term planning for transport, water and sanitation would hardly sustain, particularly in a situation where cities were being constantly affected in terms of quality of life, as well as infrastructure, while on the other hand, capacity of the institutions concerned was on the decline.
An architect and town planner, Arif Hasan, highlighted various aspects of urban and regional planning in developed and developing countries. He noted that the elite institutions of planning had not been able to handle the massive urbanization which had taken place in the ’60s and ’70s in various Asian, central Asian and Middle Eastern countries.
He said that master plans, somehow developed in the ’70s, had failed to have any impact as they ignored the economic and social aspects of urban life and appeared limited to physical structures only.
Mr Hasan emphasized that the issues should be addressed in an objective manner in order to develop and implement appropriately some workable solutions to urban issues, which included rational use of land, transport, employment and social security.
In the technical session, Prof Shabihul Hasan Zaidi, Dean of the University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore, attributed the uncontrolled growth of cities, hyper-urbanization, unwanted use of land and invasion of industries in industrial areas to the failure in implementing master plans.
He pointed out that there was no comprehensive town planning law in the country and as a result there were piecemeal and fragmented efforts towards town planning in the form of some regional plans and a few master plans for large cities.
Prof Zaidi said that common man was the stakeholder in the urban development activities because all plans and development actions would affect the life of common man who, therefore, must be consulted before evolving any policy.
Vice-chancellor of the NED University Abul Kalam said that no plan had ever proved perfect and there was always a room for improvement. He hoped that academicians and professional would come up with practical solutions to the issues.
