Description

Asia is becoming a continent of megacities. In 2000 there are 15 Asian cities amongst the 30 largest cities in the world. By 2015 this number will be 18 with population of 10 million or more in each. Many of these megacities are located in countries with low level of urbanisation. (UN, 1996). One or two cities contain most of urban population. (UNCHS, 1996) A city is an oasis in the desert of rural poverty. These cities have problems of population, poverty and pollution with associated problems in health, hygiene and housing. The Governments are to spend huge amount of money for sanitation, water supply, solid waste disposal and infrastructure development, housing and community facilities. Increasing health hazards, traffic congestion, crime and violence with unemployment have surfaced. In many of these cities 25 to 40 percent of people live in slums and squatter coloneys and there is growing informal sectors of economy. Some megacities have centralised government like Shanghai or Seoul, some have fragmented authorities like Delhi, some have fragmented geographical authorities like Dhaka or Manila, and some have urban development authority like Calcutta or Karachi. Yet there is absence of linkage between planning and development processes, absence of participatory governance, absence of local capital investment plan and lack of technical capacity and implementation of fiscal measures. (Edralin, 1998). In such cities globalisation has come, a section of people belong to "colaberger dot com' society". A review of Brundtland Commission's Report - 10 years says: (Softing, 1998) "Globalisation is a kind of '

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