Chennai's third master plan to go beyond mere land use, to prioritise economic development and sustainability

CHENNAI: Chennai’s newly unveiled third master plan marks a significant shift in urban planning by prioritizing the integration of economic strategies over traditional land use regulations.

According to a report in The Times of India, the plan which is the brainchild of 25 comprehensive studies, was unveiled at the Tamil Nadu Land Use 2025 international conference. The project reimagines urban development by clubbing together economic growth, housing, transportation and environmental sustainability to create an efficient city model.

One of the main vision of the master plan is to map industrial clusters and labor markets to drive economic vitality. Experts at the conference emphasized on the need for the city to concentrate on jobs and housing along metro, rail and road corridors.

The approach would greatly help in decreasing travel time which is currently up by 12 percent since 2019 and also help reduce carbon emissions by promoting public transport, which accounts for under 30% of travel.

The plan also calls for embedding blue-green assets like water bodies and green spaces directly into the city’s framework to ensure sustainable growth. Experts at the debunked the myth that urbanization leads to environmental harm and pointed out the real reason behind this was poor planning and unchecked development.

Kicking off the two-day conference, senior government officials emphasized on the state's motive to position TN as a leading hub for research and development and also integrate a sustainable urban design as a major part of the master plan.