Ahead of the formulation of an urban policy for Kerala, as proposed in the State Budget this year, the Local Self-Government department and the Kerala Institute of Local Administration (KILA) are set to kick off a series of sessions titled ‘Kerala Urban Dialogues’ in association with experts and institutes from the field to generate ideas and a pathway for policy formulation.
The Budget had also proposed the setting up of a State Urban Commission, which will provide the overall guidance for the dialogues. Policy framers had pointed out that the direction of urbanisation needs to be determined considering the unique socio-economic conditions of Kerala. Further urbanisation in the State would lead to greater demand for spatially enabled and agile governance as well as inclusive planning, which will open up prospects for interdisciplinary and cross-cultural discourses.
“The dialogues are being organised with a purpose oriented towards the urban policy formulation. While going ahead with the policy formulation, we have to structure the available knowledge in the field and refine the various ideas that come up. Urban development should be carried out in such a manner that we don’t lose the unique characters of each region. The format of the dialogues, in collaboration with institutes and global policy partners, with events in various locations outside Kerala too, is aimed at letting the world know about what Kerala is doing in this direction, as well as to attract funding agencies,” said Ajith Kaliyath, Urban Chair Professor, KILA.
