NEW DELHI: The Delhi Development Authority has envisioned a “sustainable” capital that is a “24-hour city” with an active nightlife and in the same league as other global megacities.
Economy, the environment and affordable housing are the main focuses of the draft Delhi-2041 Master Plan, which was made public by the DDA for 45 days to invite objections and suggestions from the public. The vision for MPD-2041 is to “promote sustainable, livable and vibrant Delhi by 2041”.
In a paradigm shift, draft MPD-2041 envisages that the private sector will lead the housing supply scenario through development and renovation over the next 20 years. DDA would play the role of an “intermediary” making business easier while maintaining a regulatory environment.
MPD 2041 wants to cater to the needs of students and migrants
And finally, Delhi is ready to experience a vibrant nightlife. Streets with a high concentration of heritage and central business districts are preferred for the establishment of nightlife routes. Hotels, restaurants, and entertainment destinations on these routes will have extended times and dedicated metro and bus connections. With special 24-hour activities, these areas are safe and secure. In the meantime, more public space hubs are being created around the waterfront city, forest areas, parks, transit hotspots and other popular public spaces. 
In another major change in policy, MPD-2041 plans to address the housing needs of students, single workers, migrants, etc. through affordable housing in the form of rental apartments and small format apartments such as studio apartments, serviced apartments, hostels and dormitories.
While the central parts of the city are densified through traffic-oriented development and urban renewal, there would be large-scale development of sectors on the city’s greenfields with the land pooling policy, which, according to the DDA, has the potential to produce 17-20 lakh housing units. In the outskirts of the city, residential areas with low density and low FAR are being developed within a “Green Development Area”.
A large number of residential areas developed between the 1940s and 1970s are likely to be redeveloped using a differentiated strategy based on the needs of each location. With this urban renewal, an improvement of the stock and the creation of new units through densification is expected. Since the permissible residential FAR has doubled since the first MPD in 1962, this renewal would be further intensified through the reconstruction of land.
According to the vision document, although Delhi is a logistics and trade center, it has not yet fully recognized its niche role and potential as a business hub. The MPD-2041 focuses on sectors such as health specialties, tourism and higher education, apart from promoting clean production, start-ups, innovation and cyber-economies, by offering entrepreneurs a variety of flexible and shared spaces in addition to opportunities and good working conditions . A more pragmatic land use is planned for existing industrial areas with a focus on the service sector, IT, tourism and hospitality.
Delhi is also a capital of culture and has a large number of cultural assets which are examined for conservation and “adaptive reuse” in MPD-2041 draft to prevent the degradation and loss of historical assets and substances.
In addition to promoting development, the document also attaches importance to tackling the persistent high levels of air, water and noise pollution in the city, which not only threatens environmental assets and local biodiversity, but also the health of its citizens, the draft says .