'Our cities need diversity in housing stock, more open space'

With more than half of its people projected to live in urban areas by 2050, India faces the challenge of planning and managing this high-stakes transition over the coming decades. This will also determine how the country optimises the promise of economic growth, jobs, and a better quality of life for its citizens while making it environmentally sustainable. Hindustan Times spoke with Parul Agarwala, country programme manager, India, at UN-Habitat (United Nations Human Settlements Programme) and formerly a planner in New York City’s planning department, to understand the challenges and opportunities in India’s urban journey and the course ahead. Edited excerpts:

Net loss: Surviving in an NCR city without mobile internet

On the sweltering afternoon of August 2, 40-year-old Faridabad resident stepped out of her home to walk to her local vegetable vendor. It was a path she had walked many times before , yet on this day, there was a little trepidation.

Police station of family reunions

On June 19, a sixyear-old Class 2 student, Rubiya, from Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh reached India Gate with her family to enjoy an evening on the lawns. After spending a few hours, the family-comprising the girl's parents and relatives - boarded two separate auto-rickshaws and left for their place of stay in Bhajanpura, only to find that Rubiya was missing.

Portion of mazar, temple razed for road widening

The outer wall of a mazar (shrine) and a Hanuman temple were removed by the Public Works Department (PWD) from Rani Jhansi Road in Jhandewalan as part of a road-widening work early Sunday morning.

Police pull the plug on meet over Nuh in Delhi after hate speeches

Alleged hate speeches against Muslims and remarks provoking Hindus against the minority community were made by speakers at the Hindu Mahapanchayat organised at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Sunday to discuss the July 31 communal violence in Nuh, police officers aware of the matter said.

Life skills find place in UGC's revised syllabus

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has released revised guidelines for the introduction of life skills courses for undergraduate students, covering new modules such as social media, cyber security, cognitive and non-cognitive skills, managing personal finance, constitutional values, and patriotism.

Gang using reptiles to rob terrorised motorists busted in Gurugram, snake charmers arrested

Two snake charmers were arrested for allegedly posing as priests and shoving snakes through car windows and auto rickshaws at traffic signals to rob terrorised commuters travelling to Gurugram from Delhi, police said on Sunday.

Bimaru no more: Shah lauds MP's governance

Union home minister Amit Shah on Sunday said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government’s development work helped pull Madhya Pradesh out of the “Bimaru” states list, which was a “legacy” of the Congress regime.

Cong expands CWC, adds ex-'G23' rebels

In a significant reshuffle of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), party chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday inducted at least 20 new faces including parliamentarians Shashi Tharoor, Gaurav Gogoi and Manish Tewari, and former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot in the top executive body ahead of key assembly polls and the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Chandrayaan steady as Russia exits moon race

The second and final adjustment to Chandrayaan-3’s lunar lander has been successfully carried out and the space craft is now in a smaller orbit, the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) said in a statement on Sunday, and added that the touchdown will be at 6.04pm on August 23.

Pan-India films cant guarantee success: Vishal

Actor Vishal Krishna, all geared up for the release of his pan-India film, Mark Antony, feels not all projects can thrive in this format.

Britney breaks silence on divorce: Couldn't take the pain

THE DIVORCE PETITION, FILED BY SAM ASGHARI EARLIER THIS WEEK, MENTIONS 'IRRECONCILABLE DIFFERENCES' AS THE REASON FOR THE SPLIT

'I have not relied on reviews or awards for a while now'

Riding on the success of her OTT debut Dahaad and looking forward to her next, film maker Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Heeramandi, actor Sonakshi Sinha has seen enough highs and lows to take everything with a pinch of salt.

Pragg survives battle of nerves

The 18-year-old Indian GM, playing with black, held the world No.2 to a draw in the first of the two classical games in the semi-final in Baku

Between solid and spectacular

First title beckons for a resolute England and flamboyant Spain as the two European heavyweights clash in the World Cup final

California prepares for floods from hurricane

Hurricane Hilary is expected to bring with it potentially \"catastrophic\" flooding, as residents prepare for heavy rain, high winds and dangerous tides

Doctors' unease about nurse went unheeded

Investigation into the neonatal nurse Lucy Letby, who was found guilty on Friday of killing seven babies and trying to kill six others in England, shows that hospital executives failed to investigate allegations against Letby for months and tried to silence doctors.

'Took my signature on blank paper': Victim of train killer's hate rants, abuse and threats

Wahid Khan, the 45-year-old auto driver in Ujjain who was harassed and assaulted by Railway Protection Force (RPF) constable Chetan Singh in 2016 and 2017, said that Singh forcefully took his signature on a blank paper in August 2017 and could use it to get away from any tough action on his complaint.

G20 reaffirms resolve to strengthen health architecture, bring in equity

The Group of 20 (G20) nations said they are committed to strengthening the global health architecture and that they had arrived at a consensus to build more \"resilient, equitable, sustainable and inclusive health systems,\" in an outcome document and chair summary following the ministerial-level meeting on health.

4 held for Bihar journalist's murder, 2 absconding: Cops

Four people have been arrested in connection with the murder of a journalist in Araria district of Bihar, police familiar with the matter said on Saturday, adding that two more accused were already lodged in jail in another case.

Kejriwal unveils poll guarantees in Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh

Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday announced a list of \"guarantees\" for the Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh ahead of the upcoming state elections and said that unlike others, his assurances were not empty promises made in a \"fake manifesto\".

Cong's Raj poll panel holds first meeting, Gehlot targets BJP

Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seemed to have accepted defeat even before the assembly elections are held, as the opposition party does not have a face in its state leadership.

BJP holds meet in K'taka as buzz over MLA switching sides grows

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader CT Ravi on Saturday held a meeting with party legislator ST Somashekar, amid speculation of the latter switching over to the Congress, and warned the ruling party in Karnataka of strong retaliation if it tried any \"misadventure\".

Yogi takes stock of Ram temple's construction

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday conducted a review meeting of ongoing development works in Ayodhya at a hotel and discussed the progress of construction projects with senior officials.

ED names 2 C'garh Cong MLAs, IAS officer in 2nd charge sheet

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has named two Congress legislators and an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer in its second charge sheet as part of its money laundering probe related to an alleged coal levy scam in Chhattisgarh.

Organisers allege attempts to shut event over G20

The Delhi Police on Saturday said that they asked the organisers of the We20 event, which was being held at Harkishan Singh Surjeet Bhawan at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg in central Delhi, to not proceed with it as they did not take permission for gathering at a \"sensitive zone\".

Lodhi-era turret gets facelift ahead of G20

A Lodhi-era turret is the latest historical structure in the city to get a facelift ahead of the G20 Summit scheduled to be held in the Capital on September 9 and 10.

Shorebird not often seen in NCR spotted in Gurugram

Birders in Gurugram spotted a large resident shorebird the great thick-knee (Esacus recurvirostris) which was seen in the National Capital Region (NCR) after nearly 20 years, according to experts.

Burst of rain triggers woes for Gurugram... yet again

Severe traffic congestion and waterlogging inconvenienced residents after heavy rain lashed Gurugram on Saturday morning.

Snatchers on stabbing spree murder 32-year-old, injure 2

Three robbers on motorcycles went on a spree of stabbings in northeast Delhi late on Friday, killing one man and injuring two in a rampage that lasted roughly two hours, said police officers investigating the matter, detailing what is the second such set of attacks in less than a fortnight.