- Why in news
- On 20 August 2026, Union Minister Manohar Lal unveiled the Delhi Master Plan 2047 (MPD-2047) in the presence of the Delhi Lieutenant Governor and Chief Minister.
- What it is
- A Master Plan is the statutory long-term land-use and development plan for Delhi, prepared by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) with the Union housing ministry. It guides housing, transport, industry, heritage and green areas. MPD-2047 is the new plan for the city up to 2047, replacing the earlier plan.
- Housing target
- The plan envisages about 40 lakh new affordable housing units to meet future housing needs.
- Two planning approaches
- Area-based redevelopment is used for existing brownfield areas, and ROW-based planning for greenfield areas.
- Unauthorised colonies
- Residential buildings in 1,511 unauthorised colonies are to be regularised on an 'as is where is' basis, with no layout plan needed.
- Transport body
- A Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority is proposed as a single authority for planning, development and enforcement of integrated transport.
- Heritage
- About 1,500 heritage assets are to get Cultural Resource Management Plans, and a heritage TDR incentive is introduced for the first time.
Don’t confuse with Brownfield vs greenfield: Brownfield means already built-up areas to be redeveloped; greenfield means new areas developed from undeveloped land, here through land pooling.
Don’t confuse with Land pooling vs low-density areas: Land pooling areas are for planned urban expansion with new homes and roads; low-density areas are about 150 sq km on the periphery under a separate regulated framework.
Why it matters
- Gives a statutory framework to address housing shortage, slums and unauthorised colonies in the national capital.
- Links land use with transit corridors, which can cut congestion and pollution.
Problems
- Higher FAR and denser redevelopment may strain water, sewerage, roads and green space.
- Land pooling and floodplain protection depend on landowner consent, coordination among agencies and enforcement.
Way forward
- Build infrastructure ahead of density and monitor delivery using GIS-based platforms.
- Coordinate DDA, Delhi government, municipal bodies and NCR neighbours so that transport and housing plans are carried out together.
Put in your answer
Transit-Oriented Development: About 18 lakh affordable houses are planned in TOD zones along metro corridors.
Land pooling: Nearly 200 sq km of planned expansion is to create about 12 lakh homes, with a 600 km road network.
Slum rehabilitation: The plan targets more than 17 lakh jhuggi dwellers for permanent housing.
- 2019Mains GS2 · Q16Discuss multi-level planning under neo-liberal development planning paradigm, its cost-effectiveness and implementation
- 2014Mains GS3 · Q8Critically discuss success of strategies under National Urban Transport Policy's 'moving people' emphasis
- 2016Mains GS2 · Q1Essentials of 69th Amendment and Delhi LG-elected government conflicts; implications for federalism
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Lasting urban planning document, but the release gives few testable facts and places rarely reach Mains.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.