POLICY

Drones have tremendous potential for important applications in areas like mapping, agriculture, logistics, healthcare and others. Here’s what the Draft Drone Rules 2021 say about their use.

For the older generation, many of them tradesmen, smart city is about a lot more than “chowk redevelopment.” For the youth, ‘Jalandhar ka kuch nahi ho sakta’ appears to be the dominant sentiment. The smart citizen they say is one who is successful in his efforts to emigrate.

Is there any scarce resource that we can enjoy for free or for a fixed sum, irrespective of the amounts we consume or use? If that’s not true for anything, why should it be so for water? As Indian cities stand perilously close to running dry, a look at whether water metering can help the cause of conservation

In 2018, pedestrians comprised more than 50% fatalities on Mumbai streets; the numbers for Delhi and Bangalore stood at 44% and 40%. Our streets have turned into a battlefield between cars and citizens, and citizens almost always lose.

Ask Shimla, Mussoorie, Leh or any other Himalayan town and they will relate the woes arising from unplanned urbanisation, irresponsible tourism and an unsustainable model of growth followed by the state. A ‘green bonus’ or a separate ministry may not be enough to reverse the damage being done.

Thanks to lack of political will and unfortunate US-style aspiration, we have arrived at a sad state of affairs as far as urban mobility is concerned. In this first of a four-part series, the author explains the latent inequality and hierarchy in our city streets.

Land is a critical resource and under pressure from humans and climate change, but it could also be a part of the solution, says latest IPCC report.

The push from the government for electrification of mobility in our cities has been unmistakable, and several cities/states have started deploying EVs in public transport services. But to scale up the adoption of EVs across the board, some more action is needed on these fronts.

For many Mumbaikars, ‘air pollution’ is a Delhi or at most a North Indian problem. Yet, Mumbai air itself says otherwise on many a day. But are city authorities really aware and equipped to take the steps they need to?

The roll out of the Real Estate Regulation Act (RERA) has anyway been lacklustre; now, there are fears that it may be amended to make it more builder friendly, rather than home buyer friendly.

Over a hundred shops belonging to small traders and even some homes have been demolished in Aligarh with little prior warning and no compensation, as smart city protocols were initiated in the ciity with zero or minimal planning.

Amid the din of the Lok Sabha election campaigns, Delhi witnessed a silent but significant change of baton at the post of three mayors of the South, East and North municipal corporations. However, given the power dynamics in the capital, the road ahead for city administration under the new leaders hardly looks promising.