2Plan Formulation

Spatial development planning is a continuous, time-oriented, cyclic process and should be seen and practised as a process where planning, implementation, monitoring, review and plan updating go on as a dynamic process. In this process, the decision to prepare a plan is outside the cycle of planning process. The following diagram portrays the general process of planning.

Following are the stages of planning process:

■ Determination of Aims and Objectives

■ Identification of site needs

■ Identification of projected needs

■ Plan formulation

■ Inclusive planning

■ Statutory obligations

■ Decentralisation of plan approval process

People's participation

■ Plan modification

■ Review and revision of plans.

The aim of the plan is a broad and general statement indicating the decisions of the policy makers, aspirations of the people and needs of the community. For example, ‘To provide job opportunities for all’ is a statement of aims.

Objectives are specific statements indicating the ways and means of achieving the set aims taking into account the potentials. For example, for the aim related to job opportunities, the objectives could be:

■ Provision of jobs through development of industries / commerce or trade;

■ Provision of incentives and inducements (specific) to industries;

■ Provisions of informal sector economic activity sites as part of commercial areas, and such others.

The aims and objectives formulation exercise comprises the following steps:

1. Identification of values cherished by and needs of various stakeholders including citizens, administrators, professionals, politicians, and other group of people.

2. Identification of aims incorporating the values.

3. Identification of criteria that further defines each aim to form basis for formulation of objectives.

4. Formulation of objectives, which could be further defined as design objectives and implementation objectives.