Parliamentary panel flags delay in nod for Regional Plan 2041 for NCR

The reminder came in the latest report of the standing committee on transport, tourism and culture, submitted to the Lok Sabha speaker on May 29

A parliamentary committee has raised concern over the inordinate delay—now stretching to four years—in the approval of the Regional Plan 2041 for the National Capital Region (NCR) by the Union ministry of housing and urban affairs (MoHUA), warning that the hold-up is stalling key transport and infrastructure planning vital to economic growth.

The report, titled “Regional Rapid Transit System and Role of NCRTC”, was tabled in the Rajya Sabha on April 4 but made public earlier this week. (AP)

The reminder came in the latest report of the department-related standing committee on transport, tourism and culture, submitted to the Lok Sabha speaker on May 29. The report, titled “Regional Rapid Transit System and Role of NCRTC”, was tabled in the Rajya Sabha on April 4 but made public earlier this week.

The long-pending plan’s approval is seen as critical to enabling other functional blueprints—including transport, which has significant multiplier effects on economic activity across NCR. “Due to the delay, various functional plans are stuck in limbo,” said the panel, chaired by Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MP Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy.

Notably, the Master Plan for Delhi 2041—though not mentioned in the report—is also awaiting approval from MoHUA.

The committee urged the Centre to play a more proactive role in regional planning rather than limit its involvement to financial assistance. It recommended expanding the mandate of the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) beyond NCR to develop similar integrated, multi-modal suburban transport systems in other urban regions. This, it suggested, would require an appropriate legislative framework.

The panel also recommended multimodal integration of the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) with both Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi and Jewar Airport in Noida. It said MoHUA should coordinate with the ministries of civil aviation, railways and state governments to facilitate seamless interchange points with luggage check-in, linking railways, airports and interstate bus terminals.

Citing “very little progress” on the Delhi-Gurugram-SNB and Delhi-Panipat corridors of RRTS, the committee called for urgent intervention to push these projects forward. It also flagged the need for sound barriers along the Delhi-Meerut RRTS corridor, which passes through dense residential and institutional areas.

To strengthen last-mile connectivity, the panel recommended feeder and shuttle bus services, e-rickshaws, taxis and bike taxis to RRTS stations, which it noted had been designed with adequate parking and drop-off infrastructure.

Calling transport infrastructure the backbone of Viksit Bharat 2047, the report argued that efficient systems to move people and goods would be fundamental to achieving India’s development goals.

The committee also urged state governments to establish Unified Metropolitan Transport Authorities (UMTAs) for integrated planning and management of urban mobility and advocated faster rollout of transit-oriented development along RRTS corridors.

Looking beyond NCR, the panel recommended initiating similar regional-level planning for other high-density metro cities such as Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. “With projected population increases, infrastructure strain, congestion and pollution, these cities must be planned in a regional context to promote sustainable, balanced development,” the report concluded.