A two day visit was made to Nashik by the ICLEI South Asia team for the project Nashik Sustainable Urban Habitat Action Plan (SUHAP) to validate on the ground the information on energy consumption and critical issues regarding water supply, sewerage, solid waste etc. that had been collected through stakeholder dialogues and from different departments of Nashik Municipal Corporation. The visit was also an opportunity for the team to directly interact with the city residents. As part of this two day trip, the team visited the various divisions of the Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) and a few wards in the area. 

The discussion with NMC and ward representatives brought to light some critical issues that needed to be addressed, such as:

• Faulty drainage system.
• Unaccounted water supply.
• Open defecation and open dumping of solid waste due to lack of awareness about hygiene and sanitation.
• Increasing number of illegal constructions.
• Parking problems and other traffic issues.

The discussions with ward level representatives have also helped ICLEI South Asia in arriving at a number of measures that would help NMC overcome these issues and make the city of Nashik more sustainable:

• Making the use of solar power mandatory in residential areas
• Increasing use of rain water harvesting
• Designing a multi-level parking 
• Organising awareness-raising campaigns for about solid waste management
• Metering of water used for municipal purposes
• Designing and implementing an energy efficient system of street lighting
• Regular maintenance of sewerage lines and drains
• Creating vehicle-free zones

Mr. Gulzar Kokani, corporator, Ward 39 A, when asked about the issues prevalent in his area, commented, “The issues of urban governance and associated carbon footprints can be sorted out to a great extent if the citizens are made aware of the environmental impacts of their activities. I believe that the SUHAP project sponsored by GIZ and implemented by ICLEI South Asia will help in achieving success in addressing these issues. Effective policies at the central level and public awareness at the local level is the key to success. I thank GIZ and ICLEI South Asia to have been working in this direction.” 

Nashik is the first city where SUHAP is being pilot tested following the guidelines of Government of India’s National Mission on Sustainable Habitat (NMSH). GIZ-IGEP and ICLEI South Asia are providing technical assistance to Nashik Municipal Corporation and other relevant departments for the preparation of SUHAP, which will address both issues of mitigation and adaptation. The key activities involve identification and formation of a core team at the state and city level, preparation of baseline GHG emissions inventory, climate impacts and vulnerability assessments, identification and development of mitigation and adaptation actions and capacity building for the identified institutions to replicate the entire process.

To know more about the project and its initiatives, visit:

http://southasia.iclei.org/our-goals/resilient-city/nashik-sustainable-urban-habitat-action-plan/