Less Plans on Paper, More Practical Thinking Needed for Mumbai

Every 20 years, the Municipal Corporation of Great Mumbai (MCGM) publishes a Development Plan. Kristen Teutonico argues that past and current plans have been too grand for implementation and that the City should focus more on smaller-scale projects.

2 minute read

November 11, 2012, 11:00 AM PST

By Jessica Hsu


"The Development Plans always seem to hold the answers for a balanced and socioeconomically rational city," writes Teutonico. "But while they go into great detail on paper, the city never quite follows through on the implementation with equal rigour." Since 1964, the plans have focused on alleviating problems including sprawl, overzoning, inadequate infrastructure, housing, and transportation. "All of which," considers Tuetonico, "as of the end of 2012, are still alarmingly present."

The lack of implementation, argues Teutonico, is due to new plans being developed before old problems can be addressed, a twenty-year lag behind changing conditions, and a government more interested in economic gain from investing in wealthier neighborhoods. Corruption and elitism need to be curbed, believes Teutonico, but "[i]n the meantime, rather than grand abstract plans every twenty years, what the city needs more of are practical and proactive thinking to pinpoint problems and solve them with articulated design solutions that have timelines, budgets and schemes that are easily attained." She mentions increasing public participation, building new public spaces, and establishing new bus routes as three small-scale, but realistic, plans that Mumbai can start.

"Large answers are not always the way to deal with large problems, and the web of tangles in Mumbai is too complex to unravel in one grand sweep," states Tuetonica. "In rethinking the grandiose nature of the Development Plan, perhaps the government can engage in smaller scale implementation ss [sic] and allow new regulations and ideas to take centre stage so that Mumbai can begin to envision its future and move beyond its paper urbanity."

Tuesday, October 30, 2012 in The Global Urbanist

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Green vintage Chicago streetcar from the 1940s parked at the Illinois Railroad Museum in 1988.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails

Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

July 13, 2025 - WTTV

Blue and silver Amtrak train with vibrant green and yellow foliage in background.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail

The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

July 14, 2025 - Smart Cities Dive

Worker in yellow safety vest and hard hat looks up at servers in data center.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power

Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

July 18 - Inside Climate News

Former MARTA CEO Collie Greenwood standing in front of MARTA HQ with blurred MARTA sign visible in background.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns

MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

July 18 - WABE

Rendering of proposed protected bikeway in Santa Clara, California.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant

A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.

July 17 - San José Spotlight