Urban Development
The mandates of Urban Development Department is primarily to facilitate smooth transition of urban growth through preparation of Development plans/Master Plans etc. and to implement various schemes and programmes with the aims and objectives of achieving future liveability in the urban areas. Owing to the fast urban population growth of the State back in 1984, the Department was created under the nomenclature of Town and Country Planning Organization (TCPO) functioning under the Planning and Coordination Department achieved full-fledged Department with separate administrative head as Town Planning Department and later the nomenclature was changed to that of Urban Development Department in the year 2008.
From the Department a separate Cell (Municipal Affairs Cell) was created during 2011 which has attained its Directorate and Department status in 2015, specifically to look after the Urban Local Bodies mainly to embarked upon the implementations of various schemes and programmes that has increased in the course of time with the shift of activities of the Ministry of Urban Development towards urban areas through flagship programmes. With the amalgamation of MoUD and MoHUPA to Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) at the Centre in 2017, the scope of Urban Development functions will increase to manifold in the near future.
While considering the decadal urban growth rates of the State in the past and taking into consideration the latest 2011 census count of 66.70% urban growth rate, recording highest urban growth rate at the national level, it has become even more imperative for the department as well as policy makers of the state to channelize Nagaland Urban growth towards sustainability and liability of its citizens.
Today the urban population of the state compromises 29%concentrating in 32 statutory towns and 6 census towns of Nagaland while the National level is at 31.16 percent. Taking into account the fast urban growth of 66.70% of the State is expected to cross above national rate which has propelled from 28.53% during 2001 to 31.16% during 2011 census count within 2.33% growth rate.
With the concern towards healthy growth of urban areas of the State, the department has been taking up various activities in all the Urban Areas and Rurban Areas (which are outside the municipal limits yet are not covered by the rural activities) in both statutory as well as non-statutory towns of the State. However, with the drastic reduction of fund allocation in the last couple of years, the Department is unable to achieve its aims and objectives as anticipated. Therefore, adequate funding is of paramount importance to achieve liveable urban growth by providing infrastructures such as town roads, proper storm water drainages, protection and soil stability measures, natural drainages, children’s parks , parking lot and recreational centres.