Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Request for suggestions to the Master Plan 2035 To BDA

"We request you not to miss this opportunity to voice your views to BDA.  Together we can ensure that we all play a collaborative role in determining the destiny of Bangalore."

Do you have suggestions that can help make Bangalore a better place? 
Please spend a few minutes to read the message below. You may then send your suggestions directly as mentioned below.

Message from Namma Bengaluru Foundation

Dear Bengalurean,

Greetings from Namma Bengaluru Foundation.
 
BDA has sent out a public notice for Revision of Master Plan 2015
(http://www.bdabangalore.org/RMP-2015%20Public%20notice.pdf) for which citizens can give inputs/suggestions in writing to BDA by July 7, 2012. This is a statutory requirement starting the process to define and guide how Bengaluru needs to develop till 2035. The document that will finally result from this exercise is Revised Master Plan (RMP) 2035.
 
We request all Bengalureans, resident welfare groups, NGOs, industry associations, social groups to take this opportunity to send their suggestions to BDA as soon as possible. In asking for citizen inputs ahead of the process to construct RMP 2035, BDA is being sensitive to the views of citizens. We welcome it and hope to catalyse citizens inputs for Master Plan 2035.
 
You could choose one of two ways to participate in this exercise:

 ·         Write directly to BDA to the Office of the Town Planning Section of Bangalore Development Authority, T. Chowdaiah Road, Kumarapark (West), Bangalore-560020.

You could consider copying us at Namma Bengaluru Foundation at # 3J, NA Chambers, 7th 'C' Main, 3rd Cross, 3rd Block, Koramangala, Bangalore - 560 034 or email copy to us at NBF@namma-Bengaluru.org. In our consolidated submission to BDA we will be referencing your inputs.

·         Write or email us directly at the above addresses of NBF – we will consolidate and send it across to BDA.  Please ensure you give us your name, address and Organization name if applicable when you send us email or postal mail directly.
We request you not to miss this opportunity to voice your views to BDA.  Together we can ensure that we all play a collaborative role in determining the destiny of Bangalore. We at NBF in consultation with interested, knowledgeable citizens have been articulating a few generic views about RMP 2035 with the BDA which we reiterate below: ·         RMP 2035 must emanate from a grounds up exercise involving citizens and agency stakeholders. Widespread public and inter agency consultations should be held throughout the process.
·         In phasing the activities leading to the final notification of RMP 2035, a visioning exercise about the future of Bangalore needs to be the starting point. All other activities must flow from the overarching vision and guiding principles for the development of Bengaluru city which is developed in a consultative manner.
·         For RMP 2035 to be successful, alignment across multiple government agencies is critical. For starters, the BMRDA regional plan and BDA RMP 2035 needs to be in sync and developed simultaneously. Secondly, the various civic agencies (BBMP, BWSSB, BESCOM, KPTCL, BMTC, BMRCL, DULT, RTO, Police, etc.) need to be an integral part of the emerging vision and more importantly, adhere to the guiding principles of RMP 2035 as they go about their plan implementation – we are essentially asking BDA and the State Government to ensure that this alignment happens between the agency plans and RMP 2035.

·         We advocate the setting up of a Bangalore Spatial Information Centre (BASIC). We need one agency that is the custodian of the base map for Bangalore and keeps it continuously updated. Other civic agencies can build application layers for their use around this base map. Spatial planning has to become an integral part of RMP 2035.

.         We need a 'As is' mapping of the current ground realities followed by thoughts about what the 'Should be' state of Bangalore. And RMP 2035 should set out a road map to get from 'As is' to 'Should be' that is achievable in practice. The 'As is' exercise would also help identify the deficits existing on the ground across planning districts and fixing them planning district by district should be part of the details of RMP 2035.

·         There is the issue of the 74th Constitutional amendment that requires planning to be the role of the locally elected local government (BBMP in our case). In principle, we believe this is the right way to go about it but there is a need for the State Government to enable the local government to play this role. Till this happens, we believe we ought to work with the existing structural arrangements in place – in this case it is to ensure that the RMP 2035 driven by the BDA is a robust document built with citizen and civic stakeholder inputs.
 
The time is short but this is only the beginning of the RMP 2035 process. Let us use this opportunity to get engaged by sending our views to the BDA. 
 
Yours sincerely, 
Sudhakar Varanasi
CEO
Namma Bengaluru Foundation

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