India of 2030 has to be rebuilt completely: Hardeep Puri

Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Puri, who is faces the daunting challenge of overseeing housing sector besides civil aviation, shares his views on green technologies, and the redevelopment plan of Central Vista in an interview with BusinessLine. Excerpts:

In the coming days, more and more green technologies which are of global standard will have to be adopted in India. The traditional use of building material such as brick and mortar is adding to the toxicity. It’s not only about providing homes to everyone but care has to be taken to ensure it is done in an environment-friendly manner.

At this point of time, urbanisation needs to factor in both the challenges that the urban landscape is currently facing and the challenges which are going to arise between now and 2030 when around 600 million people would be living in urban India. India of 2030 has to be rebuilt completely.

All over India, land prices have been shooting up for several years except in Jammu and Kashmir. It is the only place where there was not enough money within the State to invest in the real estate projects nor anyone was allowed from outside to do it. Now, the Centre can step in for the development of the region.

What is the status on the redevelopment plan of Central Vista — three km patch from Rashtrapathi Bhawan to India Gate?

Presentations have been made by six architectural firms and the selection process of the company is going to happen soon. The selected firm will then give the suggestions on the redevelopment of Central Vista, Parliament and construction of a new central Secretariat.

We will continue to persuade the State. In urban areas, all the States have been declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) except 52 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) of West Bengal. The schemes such as Swachh Bharat are for the people and they should avail it. However, positive changes are happening there even if they are happening at a slower pace.