Planning for Gender Based Cities- Spacing Women in Urban Planning, Development and Governance

Abstract

Despite constituting about half of the  human  population,  living on planet earth, and having distinct qualities of;  commitment, empathy, productivity,integrity,teamwork etc, still role of and relevance of women, as an  active and equal partner, in the urban planning, development and management, remains muted and marginalized. The reason for such marginalisation   has genesis in the fact that, Urban planning in India remains largely gender biased, favoring males at the cost of females. Majority of urban problems facing urban areas, has genesis in limited understanding and appreciation of  the capacity, capability, skill and understanding of  the  critical role  of  the women, in making cities better places to live and work. Based on the study made and analysis carried out of the  need and importance of involving women, identifying existing roadblocks hampering their participation,  paper suggests options, for  involving women as  equal partners and  making them integral part of city planning, development and management process,  so as to  make cities  more safe,  sustainable,  inclusive , liveable,   productive , and  efficient for everyone.