Integrating urban land use and infrastructure for sustainable development

The urban growth trends of the key metropolitan cities of India ,in the post economic reforms era beginning 1991, are characterized by a multitude of problems associated with low density, low rise and unregulated sprawl without adequate infrastructure, leading to loss of fertile agricultural lands and other phenomenon of unsustainable urban development. The paper, after discussing the present pattern of urban growth, outlines the issues and challenges of Indian urban development for the 21^st century and presents an approach to sustainable urban development in terms of integrating high density mixed land use development with public transport and ICET systems to achieve resource conservation and improved quality of life . The relevant urban development guidelines and planning standards of constituent aspects of a city, including the infrastructure of public transport have been evolved and these are validated in the cases of (i) a new city and (ii) proposed development of an existing city.