Huge urban waste leakage into water bodies
Indian cities face the risk of being among the top global contributors of waste leakage, mostly untreated municipal solid waste, into aquatic environments. Researchers from the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis estimate that in 2020, municipal solid waste from India contributed to 10% of waste leakage to the world’s rivers.
About 70% of the leakage is from urban areas, due to lack of regulations and implementation, low collection rates, high transportation costs and lack of diversified municipal solid waste technologies, explains the study.
The paper suggests that a global treaty with standardised frameworks for municipal solid waste disposal can be set up. The interconnected nature of waste leakage and its global consequences make a global treaty a more comprehensive and effective solution.
While the government has spent Rs 13,000 crore on cleaning the Ganga river, the results have been negligible. As India does not have a circular waste management system, its contribution to waste leakage into rivers is just increasing. A 2019 assessment by the Quality Council of India found that more than 70% of towns along the Ganga were directly disposing their waste into the river, because they lacked proper municipal waste plants.
Source: Scroll, Mongabay.com
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12 new industrial cities in pipeline
There will be 12 new industrial cities in various states, like the ones developed at Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh and Dholera in Gujarat, to further boost domestic manufacturing, said a senior government official from the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). Two will come up in Andhra Pradesh and one in Bihar. Eight such cities are already under various stages of implementation.
Trunk infrastructure has been created in Dholera (Gujarat), Auric (Maharashtra), Vikram Udyogpuri (Madhya Pradesh) and Krishnapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), while allotment of land plots for industry is also under way. In four cities, the government’s special purpose vehicle is constructing the basic infrastructure like road connectivity, water and power supply.
As eight cities are under the development stage and 12 new cities have been announced in the Budget, the cities’ total count is 20.
Source: Business Standard, Economic Times
Residential sales in 7 cities may shoot up
Residential sales in the top seven cities, that is Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), National Capital Region (NCR), Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai are expected to experience a growth of 10-12% in FY25, according to rating firm, Information and Credit Rating Agency (ICRA).
It would be mainly due to end-user demand and affordability. In spite of the moderation in the sales growth rate, the overall sales velocity, collections and inventory position would be healthy, said the rating firm. Sources said that launches may go up by 12% year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to 767 million square feet (msf) in FY25 on an aggregate basis, due to decadal low inventory, comfortable years-to-sell (YTS), and healthy demand.
The demand for rental housing in FY25 is expected to continue due to decreased inventory for ready to move-in properties. Post pandemic, there has been a sharp hike in rental yields but also an increase in home ownership.
Source: Business Standard, Hindustan Times
Modern cities growing upward
Modern cities are showing vertical growth rather than horizontal, said a study in Nature Cities, conducted by a group of earth scientists, environmental engineers, and geomaticists. It said that the skyline of cities is pushing upward faster than outward.
The shifts in urban development trends and growth dynamics will reshape our use of resources and interaction with our environment. It gives opportunities as well as challenges for urban living. Cities with more than 10 million are tending towards vertical development.
Mumbai’s Lower Parel skyline. Pic: Wikipedia/আজিজ (CC BY-SA 4.0)
China’s urban growth trends are more towards taller buildings, while Europe’s patterns remain mostly unchanged. The upward growth became more rapid in the 1990s and by the 2010s.
While the trend benefits sustainability and resource management, it also indicates accelerated gentrification, further marginalising the poor.
Source: Business Standard, ndtv.com
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Office leasing up in top 6 cities
In the top six cities, office leasing by Global Capability Centres (GCCs) rose by 8% to 11.8 million square feet (MSF) in the first six months this year. It is a rise from 11.1 MSF in the corresponding period last year, said a report by real estate consultancy CBRE and Zyoin. This is reportedly due to a significant talent pool, vibrant start-ups and proactive government policies.
Since 2022, GCCs have leased 53 MSFs, out of which the highest was in Bengaluru, accounting for 40% of the leasing, mainly due to its dominant talent pool, a mature technology ecosystem, a thriving start-up landscape and India’s largest two-million-strong technology workforce. The state government’s upcoming GCC policy is expected to increase the number of these centres.
Hyderabad ranked second, with 21% of the leasing, followed by Chennai at 14%. The report said that Hyderabad is a priority among the GCCs due to its proactive policy framework and efficient urban infrastructure. This is due to the global landscape, human capital and real estate, the foundational pillars of GCC prosperity here. These centres employ 1.66 million.
Technology and BFSI companies have been the primary GCC office space occupiers. However, niche firms, including hedge funds and private equity firms, are also growing. Domestic firms led absorption, comprising 43% of the market, during Jan-Jun ‘24.
Source: Business Standard, Hindustan Times
[Compiled by Revathi Siva Kumar]