WORLD CITIES DAY 2026
Urban regeneration should bring benefits not just to developers but to existing residents
Cities of India have started growing not only in height but also in width and adopting the digital technology at a fast speed. Flyovers, metros, skyscrapers, and other smart infrastructures are indicators of the ambitions of the country that is rapidly becoming more urbanised. Yet, beneath this image of progress lies an uncomfortable reality: building collapses, major fires, accidents, and floods continue to occur across India from time to time. These events bring forward a very basic question — are we constructing modern cities or safe and resilient cities?
While the world celebrates World Cities Day on October 31, 2026, with the theme of “Regenerating the City: Adequate Housing for All”, India has an opportunity to construct safe, sustainable and inclusive cities.
Urban growth turning into sources of vulnerability
Cities have been known as the places where economic growth, jobs creation and transformation take place. Nonetheless, the poorly controlled urbanisation may lead to an environment that turns hazards into major disasters. The issues of dense population, poor construction, insufficient infrastructure and lack of control may turn an accident into disaster.
The fire that occurred at a residential building in the Palam area of Delhi in March 2026, which took nine lives, including those of children, made it clear that there was a need for better fire safety and emergency services in place. Similarly, building collapses bring into focus issues related to the stability of buildings, their quality of construction, aging structures, unauthorized modifications, and lack of regulation. Road accidents have similar implications.
Moreover, road accidents reflect the issues of hazardous road infrastructure, speeding, inadequate facilities for pedestrians and control. Such incidents cannot be considered as unfortunate accidents. They require investigations and measures to be taken. Moreover, these examples should lead the authorities to identify possible sources of vulnerability in time.
Climate change and the crisis of planning
Urban flooding is an ongoing phenomenon for some cities in India. For instance, the 2026 floods in Gurugram city revealed how heavy rainfall, poor drainage, and unplanned development could even paralyze big economic hubs.
Climate change is increasing the risks posed by extreme weather events, while urbanization often exacerbates their impact. Wetlands, ponds, encroachments into drainage systems, floodplain development, and reduced vegetative cover undermine the ability of cities to cope with excessive amounts of rainfall.
However, the problem is not only about urban flooding. Heat waves, high temperatures, air pollution, and shortage of water supplies affect public health, especially that of children, elderly people, workers, and poor populations. High-density built environment without adequate vegetation coverage may increase the urban heat-island effect.
Clearly, the solution to the problem is to consider climate risks and vulnerabilities in the context of urbanization. Disasters prevention and reduction should no longer be separated from the planning process but rather incorporated into it.
From smart cities to safe and resilient cities
The use of digital technology has great potential for the improvement of urban management, but technology alone cannot make a city resilient, as this will not be achieved through the installation of surveillance cameras, sensors of traffic and digital command centres. The technology should have a clear public purpose: to protect the lives, reduce risks, and improve the quality of services provided.
Every city should have an integrated, GIS-based map of multihazard risks that identify vulnerable buildings, fire risks, flood risks, critical infrastructure, evacuation routes and locations of emergency services. This information should form the basis of the master planning, permissions for building constructions and investments into the infrastructure.
Meteorological forecasts, flood sensors, alerts on mobile devices, and digital dashboards may be useful for the anticipation of emergencies and coordinated response. But such systems should be accompanied by good data, competent personnel, well-functioning equipment and the system of duties.
Inspections of buildings, structural evaluation, fire-safety inspections and road safety engineering are equally important. Access of emergency vehicles to densely populated areas should be guaranteed; fire-fighting services should have the necessary equipment and regularly carry out fire prevention measures.
Nature-based approaches for sustainable urbanisation
It is impossible to create resilience in an urban area using engineering alone. There are many functions performed by nature that need to be protected and restored.
The urban lakes, wetlands, river courses and natural drainage channels play a role in regulating the flow of water. The parks, urban forest, roadside tree plantations and greenery help shade urban residents from high temperatures.
India needs to incorporate such measures in urban planning through nature-based approaches led by forestry.
This will require collaboration of municipal authorities, development organizations and forest departments to increase urban green cover and restore degraded eco-systems.
Nature-based solutions do not substitute for engineering infrastructure for drainage and flooding prevention. Nature-based approaches go hand-in-hand with engineering solutions to enhance sustainability. They offer maximum benefits when ecological restoration precedes development which destroys natural buffers.
Urban rejuvenation will have to restore the link between urban areas and their surrounding landscape rather than letting concrete development destroy every available piece of land.
Adequate housing also needs to be safe housing
The theme for World Cities Day in 2026, “Regenerating the City: Adequate Housing for All,” underscores one of the key aspects of urban resilience - that is, the safety and dignity of urban inhabitants.
Not only does adequate housing mean having somewhere to live, but it also implies that houses need to be safe from an infrastructure standpoint, be fire-resistant and withstand the climatic risks and potential disasters that the city is faced with. Affordable housing situated in places subject to flooding or in remote locations without access to jobs and transportation can create new risks rather than address old ones.
The urban regeneration agenda needs to focus on the upgrade of the most vulnerable settlements through safe housing, better drainage, sanitation systems, access to electricity, roads and emergency services. Urban residents should be involved in identifying risks and determining ways of improving their neighbourhoods.
It is important for redevelopment projects to prevent involuntary displacement and high costs of housing. Urban regeneration should bring benefits not just to developers but to existing residents who should remain in the city close to their employment, educational and health care facilities.
Linkages between governance and community involvement
The safety of any city requires efficient coordination of various municipal bodies, development authorities, fire brigades, the police, utility departments, and disaster management authorities. The absence of clear demarcation of responsibilities and poor enforcement mechanisms can make even the best-laid plans ineffective.
There should be a regularly updated plan for disaster management of every large urban area. There needs to be an allocation of responsibilities, consistent enforcement of rules for safety, and regular audit of critical infrastructure. Lessons learned after every significant event can be used to formulate new plans.
Community involvement is another important component. Resident welfare associations, markets committees, schools, hospitals, and volunteers need training for fire evacuation, first aid, flood preparedness, and emergency communications. Network at the level of wards can help identify vulnerable groups of persons that include the elderly and disabled.
Hazards information and emergency contacts can be disseminated through the media in urban areas. Awareness campaigns, investigation, and accountability of officials can result in developing a culture where safety is everyone’s responsibility.
Putting people before concrete
The future of Indian cities would depend not only on how fast they grow but how well they grow. Economic development, modern infrastructure, and technology are important but do not help overcome the lack of safety of buildings, inefficient sewage, environmental degradation, and poor preparation for any disaster.
World Cities Day should inspire a shift from construction-led urbanisation to people-centred, risk-informed development. Disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation, restoration of the environment, affordable housing, and good governance must become an integral part of urbanization planning.
The issue at hand is not the creation of new cities or making already existing smart cities. The issue at hand is to make sure that each neighbourhood provides its residents with safe houses, efficient utilities, public space, and disaster risk reduction.
The true greatness of any city is not measured by its tall buildings or wide roads, but in its capacity to ensure that human life is secure, nature is preserved, and dignity, safety, and quality of life is assured for all its citizens. The real strength of urban growth in India can only be achieved when our cities are safe and green.
Solid Waste Management
A smart city is one which manages its solid waste efficiently and recycles most of it, converting it into energy, leaving the city clean and tidy
Green spaces
People need not just building to work and live, they need green spaces for breathing clean air, to exercise and mingle with their friends
Public transport
Cities must have reliable transit systems to address space limitations, environmental pressures, and social equity
Clean energy
Smart cities need clean energy to power their digital systems sustainably & lower massive urban carbon footprints
Adopting the best practices: What India’s cities can learn from the world
Five ideas India should seriously consider
The 15-minute neighbourhood: Ensure that residents can access schools, healthcare, grocery stores, parks and other essential facilities within a short walk or cycle ride.
The sponge city: Restore lakes, wetlands, ponds and natural drainage channels. Build parks and public spaces that can absorb excess rainwater.
The green mobility revolution: Give pedestrians and cyclists safe, continuous infrastructure. Integrate buses, metro systems and last-mile connectivity.
Housing with dignity: Make affordable housing an integral part of urban planning, with sanitation, healthcare, schools, transport and employment opportunities nearby.
Nature before concrete: Protect urban forests, tree cover, water bodies and open spaces. Make environmental impact a fundamental consideration in every major development project.
Urban challenge
City offering a useful model
Principal intervention
Affordable housing
Singapore
Large-scale public housing
Traffic congestion
Copenhagen
Cycling and public transport
Loss of natural spaces
Seoul
Restoration of urban waterways
Urban flooding
Rotterdam
Water squares and sponge-city planning
Rapid urban expansion
Curitiba
Integrated transport and land-use planning
Waste management
Amsterdam
Circular economy
Air pollution and lack of open spaces
Barcelona
Pedestrian-first superblocks
Disaster vulnerability
Tokyo
Earthquake-resistant construction and preparedness
The writer, an IFS, is Former Executive Director, National Institute of Disaster Management, and Director, SAARC Disaster Management Centre; Views presented are personal.