Urban Planning Definitions Flipbook – 100 Core Terms (Part 1 of 3)
A. Core Concepts & Types of Plans (T1–T10)
Basic ideas, levels of planning and key plan types used in Indian planning practice.
Urban planning is the process of guiding the physical, social and economic development of towns and cities through plans, policies, regulations and design so that growth is orderly, efficient and sustainable.
Regional planning deals with planning for a larger area that includes several settlements and rural hinterland, aiming to reduce regional imbalance and coordinate development of transport, economy and resources across the region.
A settlement is any inhabited place where people live in a cluster—such as a hamlet, village, town or city—characterised by built-up area, population and economic activities.
Hierarchy of settlements is the ordering of villages, towns, cities and metros by size and functions, used to distribute services and facilities in a balanced way across a region.
Urbanisation is the process by which an increasing share of population comes to live in towns and cities, usually accompanied by changes in economy, land use and lifestyle.
Urban agglomeration is a continuous urban spread consisting of a core city and its adjoining urban outgrowths or towns that are physically contiguous and functionally linked.
Metropolitan region is a large urbanised area comprising a main city and surrounding towns and rural areas that are socio-economically and functionally integrated with it.
A master or development plan is a long-term statutory plan, usually for 20–25 years, that allocates land uses, prescribes development controls and proposes transport and infrastructure networks for a city or town.
Structure plan is a strategic spatial plan that sets out broad patterns of land use, transport corridors and major infrastructure, without detailed plot-level zoning for every parcel.
Zonal development plan is a detailed plan for a specific zone of the city, translating the master plan into fine-grained land use zoning, local street network and development control parameters for that zone.
B. Land Use, Density & Urban Form (T11–T20)
How land is allocated, intensity of development and shape of the city.
Land use is the functional utilisation of land parcels—such as residential, commercial, industrial, recreational or transportation—as designated in plans and zoning maps.
Land use zoning is a regulatory tool that divides urban land into zones and specifies permitted, conditionally permitted and prohibited uses in each, along with FAR and height controls.
Mixed use development allows more than one compatible use (for example, housing over shops, offices with retail) in the same building or area to create vibrant, walkable neighbourhoods and reduce travel distances.
Floor area ratio is the ratio of total built-up floor area on all floors to the plot area, used to regulate intensity of development and relate built form to infrastructure capacity.
Ground coverage is the percentage of plot area covered by the building footprint at ground level, excluding open-to-sky areas such as setbacks and internal courtyards.
Setback is the minimum clear distance required between the building line and the plot boundary on each side, provided for light, ventilation, privacy and emergency access like fire tender movement.
Building line is an imaginary line fixed at a certain distance from the street or plot boundary beyond which the external wall of a building cannot project, except for permitted projections in bye-laws.
Net residential density is the number of persons or dwelling units per hectare of land used only for residential plots and internal access roads, excluding schools, parks and other non-residential uses.
Gross density is the number of persons or dwelling units per hectare calculated over the entire neighbourhood or sector area including roads, parks and community facilities.
Compact city is an urban form characterised by relatively high densities, mixed uses and good public transport, aimed at reducing travel distances and protecting open land around the city.
C. Development Control & Legal Tools (T21–T30)
Regulations, permissions and legal instruments that guide development.
Building bye-laws are legally enforceable rules that govern construction of buildings, covering aspects such as site requirements, structural safety, fire safety, height, setbacks and provision of services.
Development control regulations are a set of planning and building rules that specify allowable uses, FAR/FSI, coverage, height limits, setbacks, parking norms and other controls to regulate development in a planning area.
Development permission is the formal approval granted by the planning or local authority for carrying out development, including construction, change of land use, subdivision or amalgamation of plots.
Building permit is the written permission issued by the competent authority allowing the owner to start construction or reconstruction of a building according to approved plans and bye-laws.
Completion certificate is issued by the authority after inspecting that the building has been constructed as per the sanctioned plan, structural safety norms and relevant bye-laws.
Occupancy certificate is the final approval allowing the building to be occupied, certifying that it is fit for use and that necessary services (water, sanitation, fire safety) are in place as per norms.
Unauthorised construction is any development carried out without obtaining required permissions or in violation of sanctioned plans and regulations, liable for penalties, sealing or demolition.
Change of land use is the process of allowing a plot or area to be used for a different land use than that specified in the approved plan, subject to prescribed procedures, fees and planning considerations.
Transferable development rights are rights given to landowners in the form of additional FAR/FSI that can be used on another plot or sold, typically granted when land is surrendered for public purposes such as roads or open spaces.
Land pooling or land readjustment is a mechanism where landowners pool their land, which is then re-planned with roads and amenities, and re-allotted as smaller serviced plots, while part of the land is used for public purposes and cost recovery.
D. Transport Planning (T31–T40)
Movement of people and goods, networks and public transport concepts.
Transport planning is the process of analysing travel demand and designing transport systems—roads, public transport, walking and cycling—to move people and goods safely, efficiently and sustainably.
Trip generation estimates how many trips are produced and attracted by different land uses (like residential, commercial, schools), forming the first step of the four-stage transport model.
Modal split is the proportion of total trips made by different modes of transport—such as walking, cycling, bus, metro, two-wheeler, car—and is important for sustainable mobility planning.
Traffic assignment is the process of loading origin–destination trips onto road or transit networks to estimate traffic volumes on each link and evaluate congestion, delays and network performance.
Arterial road is a major city road that carries large traffic volumes over longer distances, connecting important activity centres and forming the backbone of the urban road network.
Collector street is a road that collects traffic from local streets and distributes it to arterial or sub-arterial roads, balancing access to properties with movement function.
Local street primarily provides direct access to individual plots and buildings, with low traffic volumes and speeds, and is not intended for through traffic across neighbourhoods.
Right of way is the total width of land reserved for a road, including carriageway, footpaths, cycle tracks, medians, shoulders and utilities, measured between property lines on both sides.
Transit oriented development is a compact, mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly form of development located around high-quality public transport nodes and corridors, designed to reduce dependence on private vehicles.
Bus rapid transit is a high-quality bus-based transit system that uses dedicated lanes, priority at junctions and improved stations to offer faster, more reliable service similar to rail-based systems.
E. Housing & Slums (T41–T50)
Key ideas around housing need, informal settlements and renewal.
Housing shortage is the gap between the number of households and the number of acceptable housing units, taking into account congestion, obsolescence and homelessness as per defined norms.
Affordable housing refers to housing units that are financially accessible to lower- and middle-income households, usually defined as not exceeding a certain share of household income for housing cost.
Social housing is housing developed by public agencies, co-operatives or non-profits, often subsidised, targeted at low-income or vulnerable groups who cannot access housing at market rates.
Sites-and-services scheme provides households with a serviced plot (with basic infrastructure and tenure security) instead of a complete house, allowing them to build and expand dwelling units incrementally over time.
Incremental housing is an approach where families build their houses step by step as resources become available, often supported by secure tenure, core units or technical assistance from planning agencies.
A slum is a densely populated urban area with substandard housing, inadequate access to basic services and insecure tenure, often recognised by government notifications or surveys.
In-situ slum redevelopment means upgrading or redeveloping a slum on the same site, providing improved housing and services without displacing residents to distant relocation sites.
Tenure security is the confidence that a household will not be arbitrarily evicted from their home or land, encouraging investment in housing improvement and enabling access to formal services and credit.
Urban renewal is planned improvement of older, deteriorated parts of a city through interventions such as infrastructure upgrading, redevelopment, conservation and public space enhancement.
Gentrification is a process where previously low-income neighbourhoods experience investment and physical improvement, leading to rising rents and displacement pressure on original lower-income residents.
F. Environment, Green Space & Infrastructure (T51–T60)
Environmental concerns, open spaces and basic urban services.
Environmental planning integrates environmental considerations—such as resource conservation, pollution control and ecosystem protection—into land use and infrastructure planning decisions.
Carrying capacity is the maximum level of population, built-up area or activity that an urban environment can support without serious degradation of resources, infrastructure or environmental quality.
Urban green space includes parks, playgrounds, gardens, green belts and other vegetated areas within a city that provide recreation, ecological and health benefits to residents.
Neighbourhood park is a small open space primarily serving residents within walking distance (typically 300–500 m), providing basic recreation facilities such as play areas and seating.
Green belt is a continuous stretch of open land around or within a city where development is restricted to limit sprawl, protect agriculture and maintain ecological balance.
Urban heat island is a phenomenon where urban areas are significantly warmer than surrounding rural areas due to built-up surfaces, waste heat and lack of vegetation, affecting comfort and energy use.
Stormwater drainage is the system of natural and constructed channels, pipes and structures that collect and safely convey rainwater runoff to avoid flooding and waterlogging in urban areas.
Rainwater harvesting is the collection and storage of rainwater from roofs or open areas for reuse or groundwater recharge, reducing pressure on conventional water supply systems.
Solid waste management covers the collection, segregation, transport, processing and disposal of municipal solid waste in a manner that is environmentally sound and socially acceptable.
Sanitary landfill is an engineered facility for final disposal of solid waste, where waste is spread in layers, compacted and covered with soil, with systems for leachate and gas management to protect the environment.
G. Social & Community Planning (T61–T70)
Facilities, inclusion and social aspects of planning.
Social infrastructure comprises facilities such as schools, health centres, community halls, libraries and recreation centres that support education, health and social well-being of the community.
Community facility is a building or space used for collective activities and services such as community halls, anganwadi centres, youth clubs or religious institutions within neighbourhoods.
Catchment area is the geographical area from which a facility draws its users, often defined by walking distance or travel time (for example, primary school catchment of about 1 km radius).
Service radius is the maximum desirable distance from a facility to its users, used in planning norms—for example, a neighbourhood park within 300–500 m of residences.
Child-friendly city ensures that children’s rights and needs are considered in planning, providing safe play spaces, walkable environments, access to services and opportunities for participation in decisions affecting them.
Gender-sensitive planning recognises different needs, roles and safety concerns of women, men and gender-diverse people and incorporates these into the design of transport, public spaces and facilities.
Universal design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialised design, including persons with disabilities.
Informal sector consists of small-scale, unregistered economic activities such as street vending, home-based work and casual labour, often with low job security and limited social protection.
Street vendor zone is a designated space or corridor where vending is formally allowed and organised with basic infrastructure, following the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act.
Urban poverty line is the threshold of per capita consumption or income below which an urban person is considered poor, used to identify beneficiaries for urban poverty alleviation programmes.
H. Acts, Governance & Institutions (T71–T80)
Key laws, committees and institutions shaping planning.
State Town and Country Planning Act is legislation that provides the legal framework for preparation of development plans, declaration of controlled areas and functioning of planning authorities within the state.
Municipal Act is a state law that defines the powers, functions, financial resources and structure of urban local bodies such as municipal corporations, councils and nagar panchayats.
The 74th Constitutional Amendment Act inserted Part IXA in the Constitution, providing constitutional status to urban local bodies, listing their functions (12th Schedule) and mandating regular elections and devolution of powers.
Urban local body is a municipal corporation, council or nagar panchayat responsible for local-level planning, service delivery, taxation and implementation of many central and state schemes within its jurisdiction.
Development authority is a statutory body created under a state TCP or special Act to prepare and implement master plans, acquire land, undertake development schemes and regulate development in a notified area.
Metropolitan planning committee is a constitutional body envisaged under the 74th CAA to prepare a draft development plan for the metropolitan area, consolidating plans of municipalities and panchayats in that area.
District planning committee is a district-level body mandated to consolidate plans prepared by panchayats and municipalities and prepare a draft district development plan for integrated rural–urban development.
Parastatal agencies are state-controlled but semi-autonomous bodies (for example, housing boards, water boards, development authorities) that provide specific urban services or development functions parallel to ULBs.
Urban and Regional Development Plans Formulation and Implementation (URDPFI) Guidelines are national guidelines issued by the Government of India to standardise methodologies, plan contents and norms for urban and regional plans.
National Urban Transport Policy emphasises moving people rather than vehicles, promoting public transport, non-motorised transport, integrated land use–transport planning and sustainable urban mobility.
I. Methods, Models & Statistics (T81–T90)
Key analytical tools and models for planning decisions.
Population projection is the estimation of future population of an area based on assumptions about fertility, mortality and migration, using methods such as arithmetic, geometric or cohort-survival approaches.
Arithmetic increase method assumes that the population increases by a constant absolute number each decade, calculated from past census data, and adds this to project future population.
Geometric increase method assumes that population grows at a constant percentage rate per decade, so each future population is obtained by multiplying the present population by (1 + growth rate) raised to the number of decades.
Logistic curve method assumes that population growth follows an S-shaped curve with an upper carrying capacity, where growth is rapid initially, then slows as population approaches a saturation level.
Gravity model estimates interaction (such as trips or trade) between two places as directly proportional to their “masses” (population, size) and inversely proportional to some function of distance or travel cost between them.
The four-stage model consists of trip generation, trip distribution, modal split and traffic assignment, used to forecast future traffic flows and evaluate transport networks and policies.
Accessibility index is a quantitative measure of how easily people can reach opportunities (jobs, services, parks) from a given location, often based on travel time, distance or generalised cost-based metrics.
Gini coefficient is a numerical measure of inequality derived from the Lorenz curve, with 0 representing perfect equality and 1 representing maximum inequality in distribution (for example, income or landholding).
Location quotient is a ratio that compares the share of a sector in a region’s economy with its share at a larger scale (state or nation) to identify specialised or base activities in regional planning.
Scenario planning is a method of exploring alternative futures by combining different assumptions (for example, high/low growth, high/low public transport investment) to create multiple scenarios for testing strategies and policies.
J. GIS, Mapping & Spatial Data (T91–T100)
Core geo-spatial concepts used in planning practice.
GIS is a computer-based system for capturing, storing, managing, analysing and displaying geographically referenced data, used extensively in urban and regional planning for mapping and analysis.
Remote sensing is the science of acquiring information about the Earth’s surface without physical contact, using sensors on satellites or aircraft that detect reflected or emitted electromagnetic radiation.
Spatial resolution refers to the size of the smallest object that can be detected by a sensor, usually expressed as the ground dimension of each pixel (for example, 30 m, 5 m, 1 m).
Digital elevation model is a digital representation of terrain elevations at regularly spaced grid points, used for slope analysis, drainage modelling, visibility analysis and flood studies in planning.
Raster data represents space as a grid of cells (pixels), each with a value (for example, elevation, land cover, population density), useful for continuous phenomena and image-based analysis.
Vector data represents features as points, lines and polygons (for example, wells, roads, plots) with attached attribute tables, suitable for precise mapping of discrete objects and boundaries.
Buffer analysis creates zones of a specified distance around points, lines or polygons (for example, 500 m buffer around schools) to analyse proximity and impact in planning decisions.
Overlay analysis superimposes multiple spatial layers (such as land use, slope, flood zones) to derive new information or suitability maps for site selection and planning analysis.
Network analysis examines movement through a connected network (roads, pipes), used for shortest path, service area, routing, logistics and emergency response planning.
Geocoding is the process of converting address or place-name information into geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude) so that locations can be mapped and analysed in GIS.
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