Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan urges tailored urban plans, revival of water bodies to shape future cities

KOCHI: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday emphasised that Kerala must move away from a one-size-fits-all model of urban planning, calling for distinct approaches for megacities and satellite towns while making the revival of water bodies a central theme for the states future development. Inaugurating the two-day Kerala Urban Conclave 2025 in Kochi, Vijayan said: Each will need a separate outlook and planning framework. Their requirements, challenges, and opportunities are different. Unless we tailor our approaches, the future of Keralas urban development will not be sustainable. The Chief Minister underlined that urban flooding and water management must now take centre stage in Keralas planning discourse. Despite the state being rich in rivers, lakes, canals, and backwaters, he warned that many of these water bodies today remain unutilised. He called for a roadmap to revive and reuse them as part of climate-resilient strategies. Kerala is water-rich, but unless we rejuvenate our water resources and put them to productive use, the state will face serious challenges in the future. Urban planning must now include detailed strategies for reviving water bodies, ensuring urban resilience against flooding, and enabling equitable water use, Vijayan said. He urged experts and policymakers at the conclave to focus on actionable steps in this direction. The Chief Minister also addressed the rise of the gig economy and the changing nature of work. The nature of employment itself is changing. With gig work expanding, how do we ensure the rights, welfare, and sustainability of gig workers? This must be a part of our planning, he said. Highlighting how work-from-home, work-away-from-home, and hybrid models are reshaping the very concept of work, Vijayan noted that cities must adapt by strengthening digital infrastructure, creating co-working hubs, and adopting flexible residential models to support these new work cultures. He further highlighted the growing role of artificial intelligence in urban governance. AI-based traffic systems and energy distribution models are becoming widespread. Kerala must explore how to adapt these technologies to improve efficiency and quality of life in our cities, he said, calling for forward-looking discussions at the conclave. Linking the states urban agenda to broader developmental initiatives, the Chief Minister referred to the Nava Kerala Mission and flagship programmes launched since 2016, including the LIFE Mission for housing, Aardram for healthcare, Haritha Kerala for environmental rejuvenation, and the Public Education Rejuvenation campaign. He pointed to large-scale projects such as the Kochi Metro, Water Metro, Vizhinjam port, national highway upgrades, the GAIL pipeline, and the K-Fon connectivity project as examples of progress in both physical and digital infrastructure. Grassroots interventions, he said, had also played a major role. The states waste management campaign now includes over 20,000 mini material collection facilities and more than 1,400 material collection centres, supported by 40,000 Green Kerala volunteers. Nearly five lakh houses have been delivered under the LIFE Mission, while education and healthcare infrastructure have been upgraded in both urban and semi-urban areas. Vijayan stressed that the conclave was not merely an academic exercise but a platform to frame practical solutions. He urged experts to consider Keralas unique pattern of urbanisation, driven not only by industrialisation but also by social and economic factors, and to design models that take into account its density, geography, and developmental priorities. Kerala is already one of Indias most urbanised states. By 2035, over 90% of our people will live in urban areas. We must prepare now to manage this transformation in a sustainable, equitable, and inclusive manner, he said. Declaring the conclave open, Vijayan expressed confidence that discussions over the next two days would result in bold ideas, collaborative actions, and enduring partnerships to shape the states urban future.