Imagine living in a city where your home, office, shops and leisure spaces are all built around a high-speed transit station. That is the vision behind the proposed ‘Namo Cities’ in the NCR. Under the Regional Plan-2041, four semi-greenfield cities are proposed to come up around existing and upcoming stations on the Namo Bharat network. Planned as transit-oriented developments (TOD), these cities would bring homes, offices, commercial centres and recreational spaces together in one area, with Namo Bharat stations at the heart of the development.
Location of the proposed cities
The NCR covers Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan. The locations for the proposed cities will be chosen through a competitive process among these states.To support the project, a performance-linked incentive of Rs 5,000 crore has been proposed. This includes a Rs 1,000 crore grant. The financial support would be provided through a mix of grants, loans and guarantees.Speaking about the proposed cities, Union housing and urban affairs minister Manohar Lal said that a sub-city could be developed on vacant land on the outskirts of Delhi.Uttar Pradesh urban development minister AK Sharma also said that the state has proposed Noida, Dadri, Jewar and Bulandshahr as possible locations for the project. Rajasthan is also expected to submit its proposals soon.
NCR regional plan 2041
The NCR region spans 27 districts across Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, and contributes around 8% to India’s GDP. With its population of 7.86 crore expected to nearly double by 2041, the region faces growing infrastructure and urban development challenges.To prepare for this growth, the Regional Plan 2041 focuses on building technology-driven, environmentally friendly and citizen-centric infrastructure, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.Since December 2021, the draft of RP-2041 has been extensively reviewed by state and central governments and will be officially notified after issues raised in the 42nd meeting of the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) are examined, and the remaining administrative requirements are met.The proposed Namo cities will be developed along the Namo Bharat Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS), a high-speed regional transport network planned across the NCR.Under Phase 1, the network includes corridors connecting Delhi to Meerut via Ghaziabad, Delhi to Alwar in Rajasthan via Gurugram, and Delhi to Karnal in Haryana via Panipat.
