In a landmark move aimed at tackling its persistent civic woes, Bengaluru is set to formally appoint urban designers and planners within its administrative framework for the very first time. The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) has announced the creation of specialised Urban Design Cells, signalling a fundamental shift in how India's tech capital plans and builds its roads, public spaces, and mobility networks.
A Structural Shift to Address Longstanding Problems
For decades, the city's infamous challenges—from potholes and flooding to chaotic streets and poor footpaths—were often attributed to municipal inefficiency. However, officials and urban experts have consistently highlighted a deeper, structural flaw: the absence of professionally trained urban designers and planners embedded within the GBA system. This led to an engineering-dominated approach where projects were executed without integrated design expertise, resulting in short-term fixes and inconsistent standards across the city.
A senior GBA official explained that by bringing in qualified professionals skilled in urban design, mobility planning, transport engineering, and spatial analysis, the authority aims to inject a long-overdue design rigour into infrastructure projects. These new teams will focus on critical areas where Bengaluru has historically struggled due to fragmented planning, including streetscapes, pedestrian and cycling infrastructure, comprehensive mobility plans, GIS mapping, public realm upgrades, and policy documentation.
Watershed Moment for Civic Infrastructure
The initiative has been welcomed by urban practitioners and civic activists as a potential watershed moment. They have long argued that without building institutional design capacity, no city can hope to deliver world-class, sustainable infrastructure or solve the systemic issues that frustrate residents on a daily basis.
The GBA has now officially invited applications from experienced urban designers and planners. This offers young professionals a rare chance to work directly with the government and contribute to the structural transformation of one of the world's fastest-growing megacities. The deadline for submitting applications is December 15.
Major White-Topping Project Also Underway
Parallel to this administrative overhaul, the GBA is advancing a significant road infrastructure plan. The authority is preparing a proposal to undertake white-topping on a massive 488 kilometres of roads between 2025 and 2028, according to Raghavendra Prasad, chief engineer of Bengaluru Smart Infrastructure Ltd (B-SMILE).
Prasad acknowledged that delays in obtaining traffic police permissions and the shifting of underground utilities have slowed white-topping work across Bengaluru. However, he stated that ongoing projects within GBA limits have been accelerated following instructions from Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar.
Currently, work covering a total of 161.8 kilometres is underway at a cost of Rs 1,700 crore. This funding includes Rs 800 crore from state government grants and Rs 900 crore sourced from escrow funds. The active work involves 104 roads spanning 145.7 kilometres across 14 packages, costing Rs 1,487 crore.
Historically, between 2016 and 2023, white-topping was completed on 47 roads covering approximately 124.2 kilometres, as per GBA's data. The new push for both professional urban design and extensive road concreting marks a dual-pronged effort to fundamentally rebuild Bengaluru's crumbling urban fabric.
