Abstract:
Planned cities, like Navi Mumbai, have the potential to integrate elements of sustainability in their
zoning and other components of city development plans. But sustainability cannot be restricted to
environmental considerations only. Sustainability is a multi-dimensional concept that should
incorporate social sustainability in form of equal opportunity and access for poor and marginalized
communities. In a planned city this is possible because of the discretion and authority held by the
planners. It is in this regard, that a study was conducted to understand how a planned city treats its
poor and marginalized communities. The node of Kharghar, located in the planned city of Navi
Mumbai, was selected for the study. A field survey was conducted to understand whether the poor
and marginalized communities get equal opportunity and access to basic amenities in the city.
The study found that there are highly vulnerable communities that are living without the basic
amenities. The paper provides a comprehensive profile and analysis of the life of these communities.
These communities engage in informal labour and thereby contribute to the economy of the city but
they are not easily integrated and assimilated as formal citizens of the city. This shows a lack of
integration of the development needs of these communities in the city planning and execution. The
paper thereby challenges the sustainability of such a planned city and highlights the need for
integration of social sustainability.
