Narrower Roads, Vanishing Spaces: 186 Public Utility Plots Deleted In Nagpur DP Revision
Nagpur: In a city where even the widest roads now feel choked due to rampant roadside parking, the deletion of 23 reserved parking plots from Nagpur's Development Plan (DP) is raising serious alarm.
The irony runs deeper — as vehicular population surges and traffic congestion worsens, the civic body has quietly erased 186 plots originally earmarked for key public amenities, including those meant to ease urban pressure.
Nearly 25 years after Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT) crafted the 2000 DP to ensure a liveable and well-serviced city, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) is now revising that vision — but not without controversy.
A detailed review of the 2000 DP reveals that reservations for playgrounds, parks, schools, health centres, fire stations, libraries, markets, and even plots for CRPF camps and air cargo hubs have been axed or merged — with little public explanation.
The 2000 DP had earmarked 882 plots specifically for such civic infrastructure. These included 86 land parcels for parking, 166 for playgrounds, 23 for sports activities, 26 for gardens, and 11 for fire stations — reflecting a conscious attempt to create a balanced and accessible urban environment.
However, in the revised draft, only about 696 of these reservations may remain. Over the years, the NMC reportedly deleted the reservations.
Among the most heavily affected are playgrounds (27 deletions), parking lots (23), 13 primary schools, 10 secondary schools, 9 parks, and 8 gardens. Notably, several of these vanished plots were located in newly developing localities — precisely where public infrastructure is urgently needed.
The revised Development Plan is being formulated to earmark land for public amenities such as playgrounds, parking spaces, and schools, based on projected population growth over the next 20 years. However, Nagpur's vehicular population has already crossed 21 lakh, putting immense pressure on the existing infrastructure. In response, NMC has begun designating on-street parking zones across 51 roads in the city, which can collectively accommodate about 17,500 vehicles — including 13,500 two-wheelers and 4,000 four-wheelers.
Urban planners argue this is a reactive move that falls far short of addressing long-term mobility needs in a rapidly growing city.
Urban planners and citizen groups warn the deletions will not only accelerate inequity but also push Nagpur further away from its Smart City goals. "You can build flyovers and lay expressways, but without parks, schools, and clinics, urban life becomes unsustainable," said a former NIT planner who was part of the original DP team.
"By deleting these reservations, we are dismantling the civic architecture of the future.
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Even spaces reserved for the dis-housed, slaughterhouses, and an ambitious air cargo hub near the airport have disappeared from the plan, highlighting a trend where real estate pressures appear to be outweighing public needs.
A former town planner from the NMC admitted that some plots in the 2000 DP may have overlapped with previously allotted residential land, which was challenged in the high court.
"Yes, the earlier DP had its flaws. But it at least acknowledged the city's long-term needs. The new deletions seem less about corrections and more about commercial convenience," he said.
Citizens are now urging the NMC to restore these reservations or provide adequate substitutions. "Once these plots are deregulated, they're lost forever to private developers. No one comes back later and sets up a school or park," said a housing rights activist.
With the draft DP currently open for public suggestions and objections, pressure is mounting on the NMC to clarify its rationale and ensure transparency in the planning process. "City planning isn't just about land use — it's about people's right to a dignified life," said a member of a local civic group. "Those 186 missing plots aren't numbers. They are lost opportunities for a fairer, healthier, and more liveable Nagpur.
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Unless rectified, planners warn, the revised DP could transform Nagpur into a dense, concrete city — efficient in form, but hollow in function.
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