The concept of blue-green corridors/ urban development offers the cities and towns of Jammu and Kashmir an opportunity to make climate-resilient urban plans by harnessing the hydrological resources and traditional constructs such as the neglected and eroded khuls, irrigation, and natural drainage systems that once sustained J&K’s agriculture, drainage, and groundwater. The city of Srinagar is now highly and rapidly urbanized and its ecology has been compromised as a result. In particular, the natural drainage systems that once helped the city to naturally manage seasonal flows of water are now overwhelmed and prone to flooding due to urban encroachment. The transition from traditional drainage practices to water-sensitive urban planning is necessary. A drainage system that focuses on quickly moving rainwater away is ill-suited to deal with a changing climate and urbanized environment. Water-sensitive planning will instead see water being stored, absorbed, and filtered in the urban environment, not funneled away immediately. The traditional systems can be reimagined as blue-green corridors that serve to both manage agricultural water needs and climate change challenges. These corridors offer multifunctional solutions that can be used to manage current and future flooding challenges while adapting to a drier climate. Nallahs should be transformed from eyesores into natural conduits that can manage varying levels of water flow: storing and filtering water during flood periods, and providing habitat and recreation during droughts. It is important to note that small seasonal streams are also valuable flood control systems that should be maintained and restored to store rainwater before it can enter larger waterways or the city’s drainage system. The Kashmir Himalayas are highly susceptible to floods, glacial lake outburst floods, climate change and alterations in river patterns due to geological instability, aggravated by climate change, increasing the flood risk in the region. Historically, Srinagar and surroundings had been bestowed by nature the geomorphic configuration with well-articulated drainage system including the Jhelum basin, Dhoodhganga river, river Sindh and a well-functioning network of khuls, nallahs, irrigation channels which played an important role in draining of natural drainage. However, most of these natural water channels have either been closed or encroached which has increased the flooding, flashfloods, water accumulation, water pollution and climate change vulnerability.

Urban Development Based on Blue- Green Infra

In designing water-sensitive infrastructure, it is important to plan drainage systems in a hierarchical manner. Rooftop runoff should be stored and treated before joining larger conduits such as the khuls and Jhelum river, with appropriate structures built to store and filter water at each level. Even small interventions like rain gardens and bio-swales can make a huge difference by reducing the amount of water that enters the drainage system at a given time. These interventions can be implemented at a community level, where each will contribute to the larger effort to manage storm water runoff. Floodable parks are an excellent example of a multifunctional park that serves to both entertain and manage stormwater runoff. Restoring the khuls can ensure groundwater recharge to store and utilize the surplus water in times of need. It is critical to restore wetlands as part of water-sensitive planning, as they are natural flood control systems, as well as nurseries for biodiversity.
The Jhelum should be seen as the linchpin of a larger interconnected blue-green network that will utilize all interconnected water bodies such as tributaries, wetlands, and flood storage areas. Viewing the wetlands, nallahs/khuls, and the Jhelum as interconnected will help to restore them as a single cohesive system that aids in groundwater recharge, storm water management, and flood control. By thinking in terms of interconnected systems, planners can ensure that urban development in Kashmir is climate resilient. The Jhelum is the lifeline of Kashmir, and its role as the pillar of the region’s blue-green network will ensure connectivity in the network of water bodies. The network will see interconnected wetlands, flood storage, and irrigation sites, and will utilize the traditional water bodies and khuls as a conduit to connect to the Jhelum. To actualize this plan, it will be important to separate sewage from the storm water management system. The blue-green corridors cannot include open sewers, as those undermine ecological and hydrological integrity. Separate sewage treatment infrastructure needs to be constructed, while natural treatment systems such as wetlands and phytoremediation can supplement it. A good first step towards actualizing this plan is compiling a Kashmir Blue Green Infrastructure Atlas, which will detail the current state of natural streams and water bodies, traditional khuls, irrigation, and wetlands within urban and peri-urban ecosystems. This information will be vital in developing this plan, as well as future projects. The next step will be incorporating blue-green infrastructure into urban planning. It will be important to work with formal planning processes and consult with the relevant stakeholders. Blue-green infrastructure should inform master planning and zoning regulations at the municipal level. Wetlands and other natural water bodies should be incorporated as blue corridors, with development guided accordingly. Infrastructure development proposals will need to consider storm water management as part of the development, not an afterthought. Development should be reimagined in terms of the existing hydrological infrastructure, as the natural water bodies and khuls dictate the development rather than the other way around. Greenways can be built along the water bodies, parks can be constructed on natural flood plains and in wetlands, and peri-urban agriculture can be developed on flood storage areas, with a natural infrastructure development plan tying it together. Overall, urban development in its entirety needs to harmonize physical disposition of khuls and nallahs as vital urban infrastructure and make it a inseparable ingredient of the whole urban planning process to actualize the benefits and lend cities and town the much needed sustainability and livability.

Need for Water-Sensitive Urban Planning

It is important to remember that grey infrastructure has an important role to play in water management. Natural storm water management infrastructure can be supplemented by grey infrastructure such as bridges, levees, and pumps wherever and whenever necessary. The development of a mixed infrastructure of natural and grey materials will see the strengths of both being utilized to create a robust storm water management system. As climate change impacts urban centers, planners will need to anticipate and prepare for changes in rainfall patterns. With the increased risk of extreme weather events, it will be important to make sure that the water management infrastructure is adaptable and can handle extreme amounts of rainfall. Planning will need to consider future climate projections, particularly in relation to water, with major restoration projects informed by hydrological and hydraulic modeling.
There is an institutional vacuum when it comes to urban water management in Kashmir at the moment. It will be important to establish institutional linkages and structures that can facilitate urban water management and actualize these plans. A Kashmir Urban Blue Green Infrastructure Mission can be established to coordinate the efforts of the various agencies and jurisdictions that are responsible for water management, and can work alongside communities on initiatives related to water management. The responsibilities of these agencies should be clearly defined, so as to avoid duplication of efforts, as well as apathy fostered by lack of responsibility.

Khuls/Nallahs as Blue Infrastructure

Restoring community ownership of water management will also be vital to actualizing sustainable solutions. Local communities can play a role in ensuring the protection of the water bodies and the integrity of the infrastructure built around it. Community members can look out for encroachment or pollution that will affect the natural capacity of the water bodies and infrastructure to manage stormwater and prevent contamination of water sources. It will be important to begin the process in Srinagar, where pilot interventions can be carried out before attempting to scale up efforts. Some of the khuls and nallahs in Srinagar can be restored to showcase the potential of the proposed interventions, and the performance of different interventions will inform future implementations elsewhere.

Adaptation to Climate Change

The investment in blue-green infrastructure is an investment that will reap exponential rewards for the urban centers of J&K. Not only does it ensure that development is sustainable and climate-resilient, but it also has tremendous economic potential, as well as creating new spaces for leisure and recreation by repurposing drainage infrastructure. By turning traditional water management infrastructure into multifunctional spaces that provide multiple benefits, the region will realize far more value from its investment.
The planning behind traditional water management infrastructure such as the khuls/nallahs provides a useful lesson on the importance of working with traditional wisdom and natural systems. The utilization of natural resources such as the local environment to construct irrigation systems that have lasted for centuries is a lesson that should inspire planners to develop a blueprint that utilizes and works with existing natural systems, making the best use of available resources. The development of a natural water management infrastructure utilizing both natural and grey infrastructure is essential for a region looking to adapt to climate change. The use of technology to identify and map existing water management infrastructure and resources will be vital in these efforts.

Future Pathway

Jammu and Kashmir is at a critical intersection with respect to its urban development trajectory, and it is essential to think beyond merely building drainage systems and by exploring and probing cognitive planning in tune with the way the city interacts with its natural environment. Planning traditional drainage infrastructure was a necessity during a period of need, but the lessons of the past need to be pragmatic to current challenges to ensure that Jammu and Kashmir’s cities and towns are equipped for the future challenges. Water bodies such as the Jhelum, local rivers, and irrigation systems should instead be thought of as part of a connected blue-green network of water management infrastructure that shall function in tandem with drainage system of urban centers. The khuls and nallahs have to be reimagined and revitalized as ecological corridors, while the city/town development needs has to be restructured around them. The small rivulets that dot the city and the valley can be thought of as natural flood management systems for the neighborhoods they pass through, while wetlands serve as reservoirs, and urban parks/water parks can provide storage space for floodwater/flashfloods. Everything needs to be connected to the larger Jhelum, and serve to create a storm water management system that is part of a sustainable urban development plan and would consider both the natural and built environment. Srinagar and the other cities in the Jammu and Kashmir region need to move away from a drain-centric approach to development, climate-resilient and water-sensitive alternatives. The question is whether the region is ready to invest in the restoration of its water bodies, nallahs, and khuls, and consider water as a precious resource that needs to be integrated into urban development planning. Thus, for the growing vulnerability to erratic precipitation patterns, frequent flash floods, cloudbursts, deluges and rising impact of the climate change, pathway to urban development has to progress and evolve around blue-green infrastructure to bestow it the resilience and sustainability in forerunner of the future.

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