CPP Conference on Public Policy & Management kicks off with pre-conference lecture on ‘Understanding and Harnessing Linkages between Sustainable Transport and Livability for Building Brand Bengaluru’
Prof. M. R. Krishnamurthy Memorial Lecture was led by Prof. Ashish Verma, Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore
26 August, 2024, Bengaluru: The XIX International Conference on Public Policy & Management, to be hosted by the Centre for Public Policy (CPP) at IIM Bangalore from 27 to 29 August 2024, kicked off with the pre-conference Prof. M. R. Krishnamurthy Memorial Lecture on, ‘Understanding and Harnessing Linkages between Sustainable Transport and Livability for Building Brand Bengaluru’, held earlier today at IIMB. The lecture was led by Prof. Ashish Verma, Transportation Systems Engineering (TSE), Convenor, IISc Sustainable Transportation Lab (IST Lab), Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore.
Dr. Gopal Naik, Senior Fellow, Chairperson and Jal Jeevan Mission Chair Professor at the Centre for Public Policy, IIM Bangalore, delivered the welcome address and introduced the speaker, adding, “Prof. Ashish Verma provides a 360-degree solution to issues relating to transport management.” Dr. Naik also moderated the session and delivered the vote of thanks.
The Memorial Lecture Series is in honour of Prof. M. R. Krishnamurthy of Sri Krishnarajendra Silver Jubilee Technological Institute (SKSJTI), an educational institution which was among the first to focus on management of the textile industry. The theme of the lecture series is Bangalore centric, focused on the city and its myriad opportunities, strengths, contributions and issues.
‘Brand Bengaluru’ as ‘Sustainable and Liveable Bengaluru’
During his talk, Prof. Ashish Verma discussed the challenges of travel in Bengaluru, the larger development goals for the city including quality of life – all through the lens of transport. The talk delved into the interventions that can harness the linkages of sustainable transport and liveability, through various research studies carried out at the IISc Sustainable Transportation Lab, to achieve a true and holistic vision of ‘Brand Bengaluru’ as ‘Sustainable and Liveable Bengaluru’.
He provided a roadmap to come out of the vicious circle of congestion that the city faces. “Discourage ownership of cars through taxes, etc., reduce usage of cars, reduce investing in road infrastructure, and give priority to modes of transport which are sustainable. But we must also remember that people will use sustainable modes of transport only when they become an attractive option.”
He added, “Mobility is not a buffet meal, where you can provide enough choices to keep everyone satisfied. It is about reaching an equilibrium where everyone’s travel needs are satisfied with reasonable levels of service. For commuters, this includes utility, seamless travel, optimizing complete origin to destination travel time, etc.”
Pointing out that transportation planning should no more be about removing congestion points only, he added that it was also about reducing total distance travelled by motorized mode as well as dependence on fossil fuels. “Focus should be on person capacity and not on vehicle capacity. Eventually, this should lead to more liveable Indian cities.”
He summarized the core principles to be followed for sustainable urban mobility for Bengaluru as reducing need and distance to travel, ensuring equal access to all, infusing more infrastructure for sustainable modes, discouraging high space taking and high polluting vehicles, promoting cleaner vehicle technology and fuel, improving disaster resilience of transportation systems, and ensuring seamless and safe travel experience. “We need to ensure these through a bundle of measures – planning, regulatory, economic, technological and a combination of all these.”
Prof. Verma also mentioned two of his initiatives in this area, a journal called, ‘Sustainable Transport and Livability’ and the scheduled First World Symposium on Sustainable Transport and Livability (WSSTL), to be held in June 2025. He ran through some of his research on various modes of travel and transport, and a research on framework for evaluating sustainable transportation measures in terms of quality of life. “We have to decouple political economy from urban transportation projects to achieve sustainable and liveable Bengaluru. We also need to strive to create sustainable positive impact.”
After his talk, Prof. Ashish Verma interacted with the audience during which he stressed on the need to switch to renewable sources and reduce number of personal vehicles, in order to enhance sustainability in transport and liveability, across cities. “Scientific, data driven and unbiased modelling of projects is needed”, he highlighted.
About the 19th CPP Conference on Public Policy & Management
The Prof. M. R. Krishnamurthy Memorial Lecture set the stage for the 19th CPP Conference on Public Policy & Management. The conference is ideal for academicians, students, research scholars, policy practitioners, lawyers, NGO professionals and others with an interest in public policy. The event comprises pre-conference activities, academic sessions, topical policy debates, workshops, panel discussions and practitioner-oriented discussions on contemporary topics in public policy and management. The themes for the 2024 conference include: Emerging Technologies and Policy Implications; Policies on Climate Change and Sustainability in Industry and Agriculture; Policy Challenges in Gig and Platform Economy, and Innovations in Public Policy.
Pre-conference workshop
The Prof. M. R. Krishnamurthy Memorial Lecture followed a pre-conference workshop on, ‘Research Using Spatial Data’, led by Prof. Arpit Shah, faculty of the Public Policy area of IIMB.
What is in store
On Day One of the conference, Mr. Suman Bery, Vice Chairperson, NITI Aayog, will deliver the inaugural address on, ‘Reaping India's Demographic Dividend’, while Shri Parameswaran Iyer, Executive Director, World Bank, will conduct a plenary session on, ‘Public Policy: The Challenges of Implementation and Approaches to Address Them’.
Day Two will see V Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India, conducting a plenary session on, ‘Challenges in Generating High Employment in the Era of Rapid Technology Development’.
The conference will conclude with Prof. David Van Slyke, Dean of Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University, conducting a plenary session on, ‘Partnership and Relational Contracting: Rethinking the Governance of Innovation’. S. Mahendra Dev, Editor, Economic and Political Weekly, will deliver the valedictory address on, ‘Future of India: Challenges and Policies for Growth, Inclusion and Sustainability’.
For registration and other details of this year’s conference, please visit: https://www.iimb.ac.in/CPP-XIX-2024/
To register for individual sessions, please click: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/
For a detailed schedule of the conference, please click here.