IIT Kharagpur, National Institute of Urban Affairs collaborates to build safe, inclusive & accessible Indian cities

The pact aims at developing a framework for universal city planning which would be more accessible and inclusive for various sections of the community with age-friendly disabled-friendly measures.

IIT Kharagpur signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) for ‘Building Accessible Safe and Inclusive Indian Cities’ (BASIIC). According to the reports, the pact aims at developing a framework for universal city planning which would be more accessible and inclusive for various sections of the community with age-friendly disabled-friendly measures. Talking about the collaboration, IIT Kgp director, Professor Virendra K Tewari said, “India is a young country with a population growth rate of 1% as of 2019. Such a growth figure along with the current status will create a dynamic need for housing and urban planning in India. Further, under the new leadership as we move towards a more inclusive approach it is crucial to develop novel designs, frameworks, guidelines for cities covering larger demographics and people with varied needs.”

Official reports suggest that the proposed framework will be instrumental for sector-wise assessment of the existing cities in terms of safety, accessibility and inclusivity as well as planning of Greenfield cities. Sections on (i) Infrastructure, amenities and services including water, electricity, sanitation and solid waste (ii) Outdoor environment, (iii) Livelihood, (iv) Urban mobility and public transport, (v) IT connectivity, digitalization and citizen’s participation(vi) Tourism and recreation will be included in the framework.