KHONSA, Jun 26: In a significant move for sustainable urban development, the Khonsa Planning Authority (KPA) on Wednesday held a meeting of the Local Planning Authority (LPA) at the DC’s conference hall to review the Draft GIS-Based Master Plan-2051 for Khonsa under the AMRUT Scheme 2.0.
The meeting, chaired by Deputy Commissioner-cum-Chairman KPA Techu Aran, deliberated on the roadmap for planned urban growth, infrastructure development and fixation of Local Planning Authority boundaries.
Addressing the meeting, Town Planner-cum-Member Secretary KPA Dacha Bagang highlighted the significance of the GIS-Based Master Plan as a long-term blueprint for the planned development of Khonsa over the next 25 years. He urged all stakeholder departments to contribute constructive suggestions and submit short-, medium- and long-term developmental proposals for incorporation into the vision document.
The meeting was attended by the ADC-cum-DPDO, Superintendent of Police, senior officers from PWD, PHED, Power Department, APEDA, district administration, and representatives of the consultant agency, M/s Remote Sensing Instruments (RSI), Hyderabad.
Following a detailed presentation by the consultant on the Draft Khonsa Master Plan-2051, hard and soft copies of the draft were distributed to all stakeholders for public inspection, comments and suggestions.
During the deliberations, ADC-cum-DPDO Namneet Singh observed that Khonsa town has reached a stage where the availability of government land for expansion is extremely limited. He stressed the need for a detailed assessment of existing land use, removal of encroachments on roads and drains, improvement of electrical infrastructure within the notified Right of Way (RoW), and a greater focus on redevelopment and optimisation of the existing township rather than expansion towards peripheral areas.
The Executive Engineer, PWD, emphasised the need to upgrade Khonsa’s road network, drainage and sewerage infrastructure, while recommending a sector-wise survey of road RoW for better planning. The Executive Engineer, PHED, suggested reviewing the town's water supply system based on actual source capacity and future demand to ensure sustainable water management.
Summing up the deliberations, the DC directed that all observations and recommendations made by the members be incorporated into the Draft Khonsa Master Plan-2051 to prepare a comprehensive and practical roadmap for the town’s future growth. He underscored the importance of coordinated planning among all departments to ensure balanced and sustainable urban development.
The meeting unanimously deferred approval of the draft plan and resolved that all Heads of Departments would submit authenticated data, observations and departmental feedback to the consultant within the prescribed timelines.
It was further decided that the consultant would revise and compile the Draft Master Plan based on the inputs received and submit the updated document within 60 days. The next meeting of the Local Planning Authority will be convened after two months to review the revised draft for consideration and approval. (DIPRO)