Land surface is under various natural geographical features. All human activities also occur over the land surface. Since land is the basis for many things and is needed for various purposes, it is essential that the surface is optimally utilised. The increasing pressure on land due to high demand and inefficiencies in land use planning and management by the state is adversely affecting the environment and society.

This publication aims to build knowledge of the best ways to utilise land through spatial planning on a broader scale, i.e., district or region. It comprises twelve chapters written by Indian scholars and professionals, who describe the role regional spatial planning can play in overcoming India’s social, economic, environmental, and infrastructure challenges. The contributing authors discuss various issues of regional significance, and offer ideas to overcome the problems.

The editors conclude that regional plans should be prepared based on a thorough understanding of regional issues, and even the best-designed regional plans will be difficult to implement unless the responsible agencies at the state and local levels are prepared to handle their tasks professionally.

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Acknowledgements

1. Introduction
Rumi Aijaz and Felix Knopf

I. REGIONAL ISSUES

2. An Assessment of Regional Disparities in Karnataka
Ashok D. Hanjagi

3. Regional Diversity and Planning in India: Issues around the Upliftment of Tribal Communities
V. Srinivasa Rao

4. Sustaining Nature-based Tourism: Spatial Planning Challenges in Tamil Nadu
Sugato Dutt

5. Development Discourse for an Inundated Space: The Case of a Disaster-Affected Region
Vinita Yadav

6. Role of Small and Medium Towns in Regional Development: The Case of Northeast India
Benjamin L. Saitluanga

7. Role of Small Towns in Regional Development:Lessons from South Africa
Tathagata Chatterji

8. Development, Commuting and Regional Planning: Inferences from the Census of India, 2011
Sabiha Baig

II. REGIONAL PLANNING APPROACHES

9. Geography and Planning: An Alternate Development Discourse
Aparna Phadke

10. Planning for City-Regions: Emerging Geographies, Missing Hierarchies
Anjali Karol Mohan

11. Planning and Development of the National Capital Region of Delhi: Issues and Challenges
Rajeev Malhotra

12. Environmentally Sustainable and Participatory Regional Planning in India: The Goa Model
S. T. Puttaraju and Deepika Chauhan

13. Mainstreaming District Spatial Planning in India: Lessons from the Studio on Participatory District Planning in Ganjam, Odisha
Saswat Bandyopadhyay and Prasenjit Shukla

• Urbanisation
• Sustainable Development
• India

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