What’s in Today’s Article?

• Background (Context of the Article)
• Challenges in Himalayan Towns (Examples, Reasons, Suggestions, etc.)

Background:

• The Indian Himalayan Region is spread across 13 Indian States/Union Territories (namely Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Assam and West Bengal), stretching across 2500 km.
• Nearly 50 million people reside in this region, which is characterized by a diverse demographic, and versatile economic, environmental, social and political systems.
• Towns have expanded, and more urban settlements are developing.
• However, Himalayan towns require a different definition of urbanisation.

Challenges in Himalayan Towns:

• Himalayan towns, including key state capitals, face significant civic management challenges.
• For instance, cities such as Srinagar, Guwahati, Shillong, and Shimla, along with smaller towns, are grappling with issues related to sanitation, solid and liquid waste management, and water supply.
• The root cause lies in the reliance on planning models designed for plains, which are ill-suited for the unique geographical and environmental conditions of the Himalayas.
• Additionally, city governments are severely understaffed, operating at just 25% of their required human resource capacity.
• For example, in the Kashmir Valley, excluding the Srinagar Municipal Corporation, there are only 15 executive officers managing over 40 urban local bodies.

Uncontrolled Urban Expansion:

• Urban expansion into peripheral areas is a growing concern. Cities like Srinagar and Guwahati are encroaching on village commons, leading to the depletion of open spaces, forest lands, and watersheds.
• In Srinagar, from 2000 to 2020, there was a 75.58% increase in built-up real estate, while water bodies shrank by nearly 25%.
• Moreover, almost 90% of liquid waste in these areas is discharged into water bodies without any treatment, exacerbating environmental degradation.

Underlying Causes:

• The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) is under immense pressure from rapid urbanisation and development, compounded by high-intensity tourism, unsustainable infrastructure practices, and irresponsible resource use, particularly land and water.
• These issues are further aggravated by climate change impacts such as changing precipitation patterns and rising temperatures, leading to water scarcity, deforestation, land degradation, biodiversity loss, and increased pollution, including plastic waste.
• These pressures threaten to disrupt the socio-ecological fabric of the Himalayas, with potentially devastating consequences for local communities and ecosystems.
• Tourism in the IHR has expanded significantly, with an average annual growth rate of 7.9% from 2013 to 2023.
• However, this growth has often resulted in the replacement of eco-friendly infrastructure with inappropriate and unsafe constructions, poorly designed roads, and inadequate waste management systems.
• This has led to the depletion of natural resources, damaging biodiversity and essential ecosystem services.
• For long-term sustainability, a shift towards ecotourism, which prioritises environmentally friendly practices, is urgently needed.

Strategic Recommendations:

• Mapping and Vulnerability Assessment:
  • Planning institutions in IHR cities must shift from traditional land-use principles to more comprehensive approaches that incorporate geological and hydrological vulnerabilities.
  • Every town should be mapped to identify these risks, and planning processes should involve local communities in a bottom-up approach.
• Climate-Resilient Urban Design:
  • Consultant-driven urban planning, which often fails to address the unique challenges of Himalayan towns, should be replaced with urban designs focused on climate resilience.
• Urban Financing for IHR:
  • None of the cities in the IHR have the financial capacity to support their infrastructure needs.
  • The Finance Commission should include a separate chapter on urban financing for the IHR, recognising the high costs of urban services and the absence of industrial corridors.
  • Current intergovernmental transfers from the central government to urban local bodies account for only 0.5% of GDP; this should be increased to at least 1%.
• Focus on Sustainability:
  • Himalayan towns must engage in broader discussions about sustainability, with a focus on creating urban futures through robust, eco-centric planning processes that actively involve public participation.