Noida Dialogue
An initiative of Democratic Outreach for Social Transformation, DOST
About Noida
Gautam Buddh Nagar is one of the five districts of Meerut Division of U.P. State in northern India. It was formed vide Government Notification dated 6 May 1997, by combining parts of Ghaziabad and Bulandshahr districts. The total area of the district is 1442 sq. km. and its population is more than 16 Lakhs (as per 2011 Census). The district includes areas under the jurisdiction of Noida, Greater Noida, Dadri and Yamuna Expressway Authority (YEA).
Gautam Buddh Nagar Lok Sabha Constituency (GBN) comprises of five assembly segments, out of which Noida, Dadri and Jewar come under Gautam Buddh Nagar district and Khurja and Sikandrabad come under Bulandshahr district.
Noida and Greater Noida predate the creation of Gautam Buddh Nagar District. On April 17, 1976 the Government of Uttar Pradesh notified 36 villages of “Yamuna- Hindon-Delhi Border Regulated Area” as New Okhla Industrial Development Area wide a notification under the provisions of U.P. Industrial Development Act, 1976. The State Government also constituted a new statutory body, namely, the New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (NOIDA) to ensure planned development of the area for industrial and allied uses. Greater Noida was set-up in January 1991 under the U.P. Industrial Area Development Act, 1976.
Large parts of GBN are upcoming planned regions. Its relevance further gets emphasized by being a part of or due to their proximity to National Capital Region. It is also evident that areas like Noida and Greater Noida are no longer areas that serve to decongest Delhi but have become vibrant cities with a life of their own. Keeping this in mind, we as residents need to chart out a roadmap for the future development of Gautam Buddh Nagar so that it becomes one of the most livable cities of the world.
For development of any region, clear identified goals have to be kept in mind. This helps in aligning policies to the overall objective of all round and equitable growth. If the objective is to make Gautam Buddh Nagar the best and safest place to live, we too need to come up with certain goals for it. Public health, good quality of water and sanitation, inclusive and equitable education, clean environment and quality infrastructure are some of the important aspect of achieving better quality of life for human beings.
As per globally accepted indices, cities are generally appraised across nine dimensions of: human capital, social cohesion, vibrant economy, clean environment, good governance, urban planning, international outreach, technology, mobility and transportation. We can work along these dimensions to improve GBN. We also have an example of Surat City before us. It has ranked 4th in 2018 under Smart City Mission of the Government of India. It could achieve this by adopting “The Surat Resilience Strategy’ which is organized around seven key pillars and contains 20 goals and 63 actionable initiatives. We can form similar strategy for GBN.