Why Sri Lankan Public Transport Fails?

The Sri Lanka Mainly in Urban Area peoples are using public Transport as their Main transportation method. Because of vehicle prices are not affordable with common people average income. Higher middle income people can manage and purchase a vehicle in their income range but they cannot fuel it with in their budget. For these reason 90% of peoples are using public transport to their day to day activity.

But the Question is Peoples actually like the Public Transport Services??

The Straight answer of whole public is “NO” Because of following Reasons;

Unexpected Travel Time

The Buses are consume more time in roads, For Example If we take 154 Bus route; Its waiting on Bambalapitya, Dorington, Borella etc, without collecting passenger. Why? The Bus Service providers expecting some more passengers will come and they can pick up them also. It is hesitating who are staying inside of Bus. Further this delay, disturbing the vehicle flow of the road. Due to delaying some buses at bus halt will create difficult to other Buses to stop at bus bay. Then they stopping on carriage way, it is create unnecessary traffic or bottle neck issues.

Improper Timing

Buses are Not Available in proper timing. In a busy City, Most of the Bus routes the service is not available in 21.00 to 06:00 in Colombo City. Is it acceptable? The Next is If the Buses does not fixed time schedule delaying somewhere and cover up that in some places its mean Unnecessary delay or below the average speed in some roads and Speed up in some roads are create a difficult situation for unique time management or travel time expectation of passenger as well as disturbing vehicle flow of the road.

Crowd

The Sri Lankan rules and regulation is not allowing to carry a passenger in standing position. But in present?? Most of the buses carrying passengers more than their capacity for carrying in standing form also. Why this Situation arise? Simple answer is less no of Buses? Due to resource allocation or resource management shortcoming.

Quality of Bus

No any Comfortable buses are available in city limit. Presently using bus models are designed for hard terrain rural area. The height of bus and Entrance exit door of buses are not in for passenger friendly manner. The seating arrangement (five seats in a row) is make difficulty for interior passenger navigation. Further Most of the bus windows cannot close or Glasses are full of dust and High Noise Radio and Television also hesitate the passengers.

Customer Handling of Staffs

The Shouting, Using slang in front of public, chewing the beetle, without proper dressing (Cleanness of dress) are keep distance between passengers and Staffs. Most of the Drivers and Conductors never think about passengers respect, their mentality is If passengers wish to travel can travel otherwise doesn’t care.  

Different Time Schedule for Public and Private Bus Services.

Due to this no frequent buses, The Public bus and private buses schedule is approximate same time, No one will ready to mitigate this issue. Due to the same route time, Run and chase scenario will arrive and finally road safety ??

Distinct Bus stands for Private and Public Bus services.

Passengers push to travel here and there for services. If passenger does not known the time schedule the he/she want to expend more time in one of bus stands.

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Coast Conservation and Coastal Resource Management Act - Summary

An act to make provision for survey of the coastal zone and the preparation of the coastal zone management plan to regulate and control development activities within the coastal zone, to make provision for the formulation and executing of the schemes of work for coast conservation and coastal resource management with in the coastal zone; to make consequential amendment to certain written laws and to provide for matters connected there with or incidental thereto.

Coastal Zone :

Coastal zone is 300 m from the High tidal line to land and 1 km towards sea.

Under the is act the Coastal Conservation Department was established. duties  and functions of the director general of this department is described below;

• for the administration and the implementation of the provisions of the act.
• for the formulation and executing of schemes of work flow coast conservation and coastal resource management within the coastal zone.
• for the coordination of the activities of other departments institutions and agencies in connecting with activities being carried out within the coastal zone
• for the preparation and implementation of the coastal zone management plan prepared under section 12
• for the dissemination of the information on coast conservation and coastal resource management to the public and to other departments, agencies and institutions and where necessary to tender advice and guidance.
• for the contact of the research and collaboration with other departments agencies and institutions for the purpose of ensuring effective coast conservation and coastal resource management.
• for the implementation of the coast conservation and coastal resource management programmes specify in the national fisheries policy.

Coast Conservation and Coastal Resource Advisory Council was established under this act with respective Secretaries of ministries and director general of departments (refer Part 1 section 06). Key functions of the councils.

1. advise the minister on all development activities proposed to be commenced in the coastal zone
2. review for the coastal zone management plan prepared in accordance with the provision of part II of this act and furnish recommendations, if any there on to the director general
3. review the EIA furnished to the DG in connections with applications for permits under section 14 and make comments. if any thereon DG.

The act is expected from DG, Survey of the resources with in the coastal zone and Coastal zone and coastal resource management plan based on the survey.  The plan should consists the proposals of land use, transport facilities, Preservation and management of the scenic and other natural resources, recreation and tourism, availability of coastal resources, coastal water quality etc.

Issuing the Permits:

the provision any other law no persons shall engage in any development activity other than prescribed development activity within the coastal zone except under the authority of the permit issued in the behalf by the DG.

the minister may “having regard to the effect of those development activities on the long term stability, productivity and environmental qualities of the coastal zone, prescribed the categories of the development activity which may be engaged in with the coastal zone without the permit issued under sub section.

In this act requires EIA or Initial Environmental report from the applicant to get the permit for development project within the coastal area zone. 

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Landmark Events of Town Planning Profession in Sri Lanka

Introduction:

The town Planning was practiced in Sri Lanka since the ancient time of Human Settlement of Sri Lanka. However its came ass profession in mid of colonial era (late British ruling period). Anyhow when  the academic (post graduate and undergraduate) courses started in university of Moratuwa, it became popular in Sri Lanka.

Every profession development have several milestones / landmark events on their history of development. those can be divided as Legal, Educational, Institutionalization and Key achievement development Landmarks. In the Town Planning Profession of Sri Lanka also have those kind of Landmark events in their history.

legal landmarks:

a.       Housing and Town Improvement Ordinance

b.      Town and Country Planning Ordinance

c.       Urban Development Authority Act

Education / Profession Development Landmark:

a.       M.Sc in Town and Country Planning (University of Moratuwa)

b.      B.Sc in Town and Country Planning (University of Moratuwa)

Institutional Landmark:

a.       Establishment of Institute of Town Planners Sri Lanka.

In addition of these Some of the events have historical value due to their occurrence may change the path of profession development. In that category some of key city plans also have importance when we are speak about the Town planning profession of Sri Lanka.

Landmark Events of Town Planning Profession in Sri Lanka

Housing and Town Improvement (H&TI) Ordinance of 1915

This ordinance has been enacted in 1915 when Sri Lanka was a colony under the British rule. The H&TI Ordinance has been the oldest as well as basis for all subsequent laws of urban planning and development. As stated in the ordinance, the purpose of it was to provide for better housing of the people and improvement of towns. It was expected to deal with existing problems of insanitary conditions and urban overcrowding as well as to prevent such conditions in the future. As the economic situation of most industrial countries during this period is based on the free enterprises, the state control on urban development was minimum. Most legal provisions were enabling legislations for the local authorities to manage insanitary and overcrowding situation with private sector and other civil society organizations. The ordinance had been enacted to empower the urban local authorities that included municipal, urban and town councils. It had given powers to these local authorities for the implementation of H&TI Ordinance in addition to any powers of such local authority under any other enactment.

Impact on the Profession:

It is a first legal step for Town Planning profession in Sri Lanka. Due to this ordinance ensure presence of Town Planners. anyhow the ordinance not mention directly about town planning profession but when implementing of the law is required town planning profession skills.

Patrick Geddes Plan - 1921

Physical plans have been prepared for Colombo since colonial times. The first attempt was made by Sir Patrick Geddes in 1921, confining the planning area to Colombo City Boundaries. The main concept of the Plan was to make the City of Colombo "The Garden City of the East". The tree lined streets (Bauddhaloka Mawatha) and the grid system of roads in Cinnamon Gardens are legacies of the Geddes Plan which still provide the most sought after residential areas in the city.

Impact on the Profession:

it is first comprehensive city plan in modern era of Sri Lanka and in history involvement of town planner in the development of a city. This event create a step forward of Town planning profession.

Anuradapura Town Plan

The Anuradhapura Preservation Ordinance of 1942 was indeed a historic piece of legislation in the annals of town planning history not only for Sri Lanka but also for the world; for it was the first legislation ever in the modern times to concern itself with the preservation of an area of historical, archaeological and religious significance. It predated the Venice Charter of UNESCO, considered as setting a new approach in conservation of historic monuments and sites by well over 22 years. The person whom the late Hon.S.W.R.D.Bandaranaike, the then Minister of Local Government selected to implement the provisions of the Ordinance was an architect-planner who was in the United Kingdom at that time, the late Oliver Weerasinghe. He was invited to return to Sri Lanka and undertake the task and was offered the position of Government Town Planner.

Impact on the Profession:

In this Anuradhapura Sacred area plan created a chance of the Government Employment for Town planners in Sri Lanka. Due to the Tilted issued for late Oliver Weerasinge as a Government Town Planner.

Patrick Abercrombie Plan – 1948

In 1948 Patrick Abercrombie developed a plan which was approved by the Central Planning Commission in March 1949. The Plan focused on the City of Colombo and the surrounding region covering nearly 220 sq. miles which extended up to Ja-Ela in the North, Moratuwa in the South and 14 miles inland to the East. The main problems highlighted in the Abercrombie Plan were the high concentration of economic, trade and port related activities in the city and their effects. Decentralization of activities was one of the main objectives of the Plan. The introduction of Satellite Towns in Ratmalana, Homagama and Ragama were based on the proposal made in the Plan. Zoning Proposals were introduced in the Plan including Character Zoning and Density Zoning.

Impact on the Profession:

The plan of Patrick Abercrombie, is more than a city plan; it is a kind of regional plan. due to the studies of Economic, trade & etc. development of new satellite cities. So we can category this is a developed a regional planning activity.

Town and Country Planning Ordinance

Town and Country Planning Ordinance came into effect in 1946. The purpose of the ordinance as cited in the ordinance itself is.

“ To authorize the making of schemes with respect to the planning and development of land in Ceylon, to provide for the protection of buildings and objects of interest or beauty to facilitate the acquisition of land for the purpose of giving effects to such schemes and to provide for matters incidental to or connected with the matters aforesaid.”

In order to achieve the above objectives, a national level consultative body known as ‘Central Planning Commission’ was established to provide advice to the minister who is in charge of planning and development of land in the country. Most important outcome of the ordinance was the creation of the Department of Town and Country Planning and the appointment of the Government Town Planner as the head of the department. The function of the department was to prepare planning schemes and to act as technical agency to provide technical assistance to prepare town-planning schemes for every

municipality and every town within the meaning of the Urban Council Ordinance.  As per the ordinance, the Department was responsible for the preparation of three types of planning schemes:

                       I. Regional Planning Schemes

                     II. Detailed Planning Schemes

                     III. Outline Planning Schemes

Due to the limitations of financial resources and manpower, many local authorities had been unable to prepare Town Planning Schemes for their respective towns. Some towns in the country were important due to their history and location architecturally prominent and important religious structures. Under this law, the Minister in-charge of the subject of town and country planning can declare such towns or areas to be developed as special projects or planned towns. 

The Department in collaboration with the respective local authority carries out Planning and implementation of new towns development.   Important feature of the ordinance was that the urban local authorities remained as the planning and executive authority of planning schemes. Attempts have been made through this Ordinance to improve the technical capacity of urban local authorities for the preparation of planning schemes as well as implementation of preventive and remedial measures entrusted to local bodies under the Housing and Town Improvement Ordinance of 1915.

The ordinance has been amended in several time as follows purpose of the practice of the planning and the policy implementation as well as budget allocation and project prioritizations. 

No 49 of year 2000 amendment is an important amendment of this ordinance. under this amendment National Physical Planning Department was established for National Physical Planning Policy plan.

Impact on the Profession:

Every profession needs statutory power to long term survive of the profession. This is a key statutory for Town Planning profession in Sri Lanka. This Ordinance gives powers to Town Planners to prepare local or Regional Plans for the country. Otherwise the profession cannot be survive in this country

MSc in Town and Country Planning Programme in University of Moratuwa

The Department of Town and Country planning was established in October 1973 at the University of Moratuwa, then known as the Katubedde Campus of the University of Sri Lanka. It is presently, one of the Departments in the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka

The Department was entrusted with the task of organizing and commencing postgraduate courses in Town and Country Planning, both by full-time instruction and by research. It commenced its first Course leading to the M.Sc. (Town and Country Planning) Degree in July 1975. It was a landmark event in planning profession development in Sri Lanka. Because the Educational development in the profession is very important to successfully survive of the profession in this country.

Impact on the Profession:

The Development of profession is depend on Carrier development academic courses. When the University of Moratuwa was started the post graduate of town and Country planning its support to involve much of other professionals in to planning.

Urban Development Authority Law

Urban Development Authority (UDA) was established on first of Oct. 1978 ,under Urban development Authority Law No. 41 Of 1978 as an "authority to promote integrated planning and, implementation of economic, social and physical development in certain areas".

Unlike any other public agency which are conferred with authority to deal with a subject specific area, UDA’s operational area cannot be demarcated single subject wise. For instance in case of subject agencies such as irrigation or power supply, area of operation is the District, or the Division Local Authorities which are charged with the administration of regulation and control of thoroughfares, and public utilities at Local Level, have their areas of operation fixed under Local Government enactment’s and leads to no problems in their operations within such areas. Local authority areas though entrusted with multiple duties, have been prescribed with clearly identifiable functions related to public health, and welfare. Generally a Local Authority has the responsibility to be charged with streets, drains, sewerage systems, lavatories, conservancy and cleanliness, public markets, cemeteries, prevention of nuisance, removal of insanitary, overcrowded and ruinous buildings and construction of buildings. They are all directly related to public health, comfort and convenience.

Impact on the Profession:

UDA Act provide chance to  planners involved in private practices like land subdivision and confirm the survey plans etc. due to this the planning professional requirement is involved with property development and real estate business of Sri Lanka like civil engineers and architects.

Establishment of Institute of Town Planners Sri Lanka (ITPSL)

ITPSL is playing a vital role in the sphere of physical planning and development of this country with an integration to economic, social and environmental aspects of land. Accordingly, the professional functions of the Town Planners in the urban, and also in the agriculturally predominant areas (so-called rural) with an integrated spatial development approach. They are employed in planning and development of the central, provincial and local government institutions. ITPSL was established as an incorporated body by the Act of Parliament No. 23 of 1986. Its preamble states that WHEREAS and Institute called and known as the "Institute of Town Planners, Sri Lanka", has heretofore been established in Sri Lanka for the purpose of effectually carrying out and transacting all objects and matters connected with the said Institute according to the rules agreed to by its members: This profession is actively engaged in all development matters pertaining to Planning, design and management of land and human settlements.

Impact on the Profession:

The institutionalization of profession is facilitate to survive the profession in long-term and its guide the professionals to work with professional ethics. The ITPSL is grading the professionals based on their membership levels; this is help to identify the right professional to public. further it will help to Planning Professionals to face the issues from outside with cooperate mentality

BSc in Town and Country Planning Programme in University of Moratuwa

Bachelors Degree in town and country planning was stated in University of Moratuwa under the Department of Town and Country Planning in 2003. In taking Approx. 50 students per year according to the Advanced level examination.

Impact on the Profession:

This multi-disciplinary course directly accepted Students from Advance level. Hence it provide chance to enter the fresher’s to the planning profession arena. further it produce certain number of planning professionals in every year. It will help to make a voice for planning profession and ensure popularity of the profession

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Contemporary Planning Practices in Sri Lanka

When we talk about contemporary town planning practices its mean after the independence period. according to the different type of political manifesto leads to the country during this period; Close Economy, open economy based political manifesto. 

in early post-independence period the British developed Town and Country Planning ordinance play vital role of town planning practices in Sri Lanka. It is completely British Administrative Structure and planning practices; like Municipal councils, Town councils and village councils and they prepare their own town plans for their area. During that time the Theme of Comprehensive plan was practiced in rest of world. that kind of planning practices also held in Sri Lanka.

Comprehensive Plan

Comprehensive planning is a process that determines community goals and aspirations in terms of community development. The outcome of comprehensive planning is the Comprehensive Plan which dictates public policy in terms of transportation, utilities, land use, recreation, and housing. Comprehensive plans typically encompass large geographical areas, a broad range of topics, and cover a long-term time horizon.

For example of that the Patric Abacombe Colombo Plan (1948); it is a comprehensive Plan prepared for Colombo soon after the Independence from British ruling. However the plan is not implemented. When the plan prepared time Sri Lanka under the British ruling and Colombo Municipal council was interested in Colombo city development. When the plan prepared the nation’s political was changed. locally elected government is most interested in rural area development rather than Urban area development.

After that ­­­­the world trend also moved towards the Structural Planning concept. The United nations development programme (UNDP) was brought that concept to Sri Lanka in 1974. The Colombo Master Plan was prepared with UNDP assistance. This Plan itself called “Master Plan” anyhow it have characteristics of “Structural Plan” (Munasinge, 2014)

 Structure Plan:

A Structure Plan is a long term (ten to fifteen years) statutory framework used to guide the development or redevelopment of land. It is used to define; future development and land use patterns; the layout of trunk (primary distribution networks) infrastructure and main transportation routes, including terminals; conservation and protected areas; and other key features for managing the direction of development.

The Colombo Master Plan was prepared under the frame work of Town and Country Planning ordinance (1946); it not implemented. Due to the Town and Country Planning Department does not have enough powers to implement the plan.

Soon after that the government policy also changed to pro capitalize from socialist policy. the initiate Urban Development Authority (UDA) to Implement Development plans with enough powers and functionality.

UDA prepared different Structural Plans for declared areas. However the UDA also preparing action plans to implement of those structure plans. Those action plans can be categorized as Strategic Plans.

Scenario after the NPPD Establishment

Anyhow in these days (after 2010) in Sri Lanka two major planning bodies are playing vital role in preparing physical plans in Sri Lanka.

National Physical Planning department and Urban Development Authorities have legal power to prepare physical plans in Sri Lanka. According to the Sri Lankan Law and order, National Physical Planning Department have powers to prepare the National Physical Plan, Regional Development Plan and Local Town Plans. Further Urban Development Authority (UDA) have legitimate power to prepare plan and implement which are the area declared area. these bodies are preparing following Plans;

a.       National Physical plan

b.      Regional Physical Plan

c.       Local Plan

d.      Development Plan

 National Physical Plan

National Physical Plan prepared by the National Physical Planning Department, It is a policy level plan. The President of the Country have power to approve this plan. Under the Town and Country Planning Ordinance 1946, Amendment of No 46 of 2000 is the legal base for prepare the plan

2.      Regional Physical Plan.

Regional Physical Plans are made for the request of subject Minister. Town and Country Planning ordinance providing the power to Regional planning committee to prepare the plan however the Subject minister need to be approve the plan. The regional plans are not in first time in Sri Lanka. However the in the declaration of Region not like the British administration division.

Regional Plan should be prepared by the Regional Planning Committee but in practically National Physical Planning Department preparing the plan under the regional planning committee consultation.

The Regional Plan is a structural plan; it should be adopt the national physical plan. anyhow the regional development structural plan may have some action projects to implementation of that plan.

3.      Local Plan

Local Plan is prepared by local authority under the provision of Town and Country Planning Ordinance and its amendments; but in practice National Physical Planning Department is preparing the plan with consultation of Local Authority.

Mostly the Local Plan can be categorized as structure plan; the local plan should be adopt with Regional and National Physical Plan.

The Approval of the plan according to the Town and Country Planning ordinance and it amendment, The Minister have Rights to approve and gazette the plan.

 Development Plan

Development plans are made by UDA which are the area declared as Urban Area under the Urban Development Authority Act of 1978. When we look up the development plan it is a zoning plan for landuse; and its can be categorized as structural plan with lot of Action plans. the action plans can be categorized as strategic plans. those can be adopt the present neo-liberal era.

The development plans have the guide line for building land subdivision and accessibility. these regulating guidelines well play for promoting and controlling the development according to the development plans.

Conclusion

 The world trend in planning practice has been changed in last few decades from Comprehensive planning to Strategic Planning. but Sri Lankan planning practices did not adopt the changes of rest of the world. it is more or less practice the structural Planning practice which were introduced by United Nations Development programe. The UDA still adopting the Zoning planning for the regulating land use.  

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Urbanization offer opportunities, specialization and production of good and services in a country - Sittuation of Sri Lanka

Urban Area:

An urban area is a location characterized by high human population density and vast human-built features in comparison to the areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.

Urbanization

Urbanization is the societal trend where the proportion of people living in cities increases while the proportion of people living in the country side diminishes. Urban refers to the geographic territory within or close to a city. The governments of the world define urban in different ways, but it is safe to assume that between 2-5,000 inhabitants in a city is the minimum required to call a geographic territory urban. Some urban areas such as Tokyo, New York, Mexico City, Shanghai, and Lima range from 35 million down to 7 million people living in those cities (Retrieved 23 May, 2014)

Impacts of Urbanization:

Urbanization and growth go together: no country has ever reached middle income status without a significant population shift into cities. Urbanization is necessary to sustain (though not necessarily drive) growth in developing countries, and it yields other benefits as well. But it is not painless or always welcomed by policymakers or the general public. Managing urbanization is an important part of nurturing growth; neglecting cities— even in countries in which the level of urbanization is low—can impose heavy costs. In terms of development and growth theory, urbanization occupies a puzzling position. On the one hand, it is recognized as fundamental to the multidimensional structural transformation that low-income rural societies undergo to modernize and to join the ranks of middle- and high-income countries. Some models, explicitly consider how urbanization affects the growth process (primarily through the enhanced flow of ideas and knowledge attributable to agglomeration in cities. In a more historical treatment, Landes (1969, cited in Williamson 1987, p. 6) situates urbanization as an essential ingredient in modernization:

Industrialization . . . is at the heart of a larger, more complex process often designated as modernization. Modernization comprises such developments as urbanization . . . ; the so-called demographic transition; the establishment of an effective, fairly centralized bureaucratic government; the creation of an educational system capable of training and socializing the children of a society . . . ; and of course, the acquisition of the ability and means to use an up-to-date technology.

On the other hand, urbanization is a relatively little-studied area of development economics and policy, as Burgess and Venables (2004, p. 4) note:

Spatial concentration is most dramatically demonstrated by the role of urbanization, and of mega-cities, in development. . . . despite the massive diseconomies associated with developing country mega-cities, there are even more powerful economies of scale making it worthwhile for firms to locate in these cities. Urbanization is one of the clearest features of the development of manufacturing and service activity in developing countries, yet discussion of urbanization is strangely absent from economic analyses of growth and development.

Due to the Urbanization population is accumulated In certain regions Hence, The labor force incentive will be increase in that area. The increased labor force is a driving power for Industrial activity and production.

Why the Urban Environment Facilitate Rapidly Growing Sectors – Global Context

Industry and services are concentrated in cities. These sectors grow more rapidly than other sectors, so cities must be important to growth. But there is more to this relation. A large body of literature explains why industry and services locate in cities.

the fundamental question in urban economics is why people voluntarily live in close proximity to one another when there are costs to competing for land. The simple answer has two parts: efficiency gains and consumption benefits. Recent theoretical and empirical work provides a sense of the nature and significance of these gains. The earliest concept of efficiency gain was geographical. Cities have long tended to locate around waterways to exploit transportation cost advantages. In the United States and Western Europe, for example, cities on the coasts, major rivers, or the Great Lakes were vital to industrial development. During the postwar period, coastal megacities have dominated most Asian economies (an exception is India). In Japan urban and industrial growth concentrated in the Tokkaido coastal corridor (Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka). The concentration of producers and suppliers in this area enabled innovations such as just-in-time production techniques. Industrial development concentrated in the Seoul/Pusan region of the Republic of Korea and in the Taipei/Kaoshing region of Taiwan (China). In Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, growth concentrated in export-oriented labor intensive industries in the metropolitan megacities of Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, and Bangkok. In China development has concentrated in Shanghai and the Pearl River Delta (Mohan 2006; Yusuf, Evenett, and Wu 2001). As the Asian megacity complexes have shown, location effects driven by transportation costs also tend to cumulate into other advantages, a process Burgess and Venables (2004) describe in detail.

Economies of scale offer both efficiency and consumption advantages to urban economies, manifested in several ways. Process industries, such as chemicals, steel, and automobiles, operate more effectively at higher volumes; for this reason they have traditionally been established in urban areas. Economies of scale in input markets affect a wide range of industries. Specialized services—such as accounting, tax advice, and intellectual property management—are easier to obtain in large cities. Specialization among input producers may also allow cost reductions, making local purchasers of their inputs more productive. Public services such as hospitals, theaters, orchestras, and sports stadiums require a critical mass of consumers to make them economically viable. The density of urban areas increases the range of such amenities.

Economies of scale in cities also reduce transaction costs. High densities in cities allow both workers with differentiated skills and firms with specific needs to reduce their search costs. This effect can operate even if all producers operate at constant returns to scale and there are no technological externalities (Acemoglu 1996). Operating in a dense urban environment offers efficiencies through the impact of large numbers on risks of fluctuating demands for both labor and products. If these fluctuations are imperfectly correlated across firms, both firms and individuals benefit from locating in cities. Spells of unemployment can be shorter and demand shocks and inventory costs lower in such environments. Agglomeration effects in cities affect knowledge sharing. By bringing together large numbers of people, cities facilitate the kinds of face to face interactions needed to generate, diffuse, and accumulate knowledge, especially in industries that experience rapid technological change. This aspect of urban agglomeration economies has received less theoretical and empirical attention, but it has promise to be one of the more significant drivers behind dynamic growth in developing country cities. The theoretical advantages of cities are not limited to high-income countries. Jane Jacobs put this simply and eloquently, noting, “Cities, not countries, are the constituent elements of a developing economy and have been so from the dawn of civilization” (1984, p. 32). In developing countries poor transportation and communication infrastructure tend to magnify the advantages of cities over the countryside. Location advantages can thus be even more valuable there than in developed countries. As developing countries seek to compete in increasingly integrated world markets, even static advantages conferred by cities help firms penetrate export markets. The report by the Commission on Growth and Development (2008) underscores the significance of penetrating export markets as one of the key elements of sustained, rapid growth. Weak infrastructure could heighten the congestion disadvantages of cities as well, which may affect the optimal size of developing country cities.

Henderson’s (1986) work on Brazil and the United States finds that agglomeration effects tend to affect industries concentrated in a city (localization economies) more than all industries (urbanization economies). The effects in Brazil were broadly comparable with those in the United States. Within-industry agglomeration effects were such that without any other increases in inputs, productivity increased roughly 1 percent for every 10 percent increase in the number of workers employed in an industry in a given city. While this effect may seem small, it implies that by moving from a city with 1,000 workers to one with 10,000 workers, a firm would increase its productivity by a factor of 90. Overman and Venables (2005) summarize the results of studies on urbanization and localization economies in a variety of developing countries. Apart from one anomalous study that indicates localization diseconomies in India, the results, including those of other studies for India, are broadly the same. As in developed countries, evidence of localization economies in developing countries is somewhat stronger than for urbanization economies. One significant exception is high-tech industries in Korea, where a one standard deviation increase in the index of city diversity increases productivity 60 percent (Henderson, Lee, and Lee 2001). This finding is particularly interesting because Korea has had very strong growth performance even after reaching middle-income status. These findings on localization economies in developing economies are reinforced by case studies on spatial clusters of firms (Overman and Venables 2005). The importance of the informal sector may distinguish cities in developing countries from those in developed countries. Some critics argue that informality is unproductive and raises the costs to the formal sector, crowding out agglomeration economies. In fact, the little evidence available on agglomeration economies in the informal sector suggests that it also benefits from agglomeration and that informal operators generally have a positive impact on their formal sector counterparts.

Studies on developed countries have tried to pinpoint the distance over which agglomeration economies affect productivity. The evidence points to rapid geographical attenuation of localization economies— beyond 5 miles in some studies, beyond 50 kilometers in others—with the distance varying by industry. Different types of agglomeration economies, such as knowledge spillovers and labor market pooling, have different geographic scopes. These narrow geographic agglomeration effects help explain why dense urban areas emerge in spite of congestion costs and why there is so much spatial concentration of economic activities. In the continental United States, for example, only 2 percent of the land area is covered by the urban built environment, home to 75 percent of the population (Henderson 2005; Rosenthal and Strange 2004).

Cities offer productivity advantages that are both static and dynamic. Hence it makes little sense to discourage or try to reverse urbanization. Rural development cannot be a substitute for healthy urbanization. Indeed, it is hard to imagine that much rural-based industry could thrive for export in today’s competitive trade environment. The rapid urbanization and growth of large cities in developing countries show that, on balance, the powerful economies of scale and other agglomeration effects at work outweigh the very substantial diseconomies associated with developing country megacities. The urbanization process needs support to help reduce congestion costs. Focusing on making urbanization work would be more productive than trying to stop it.

The productivity advantages of cities are driven largely by externalities. As a result, market outcomes may be productive, but the size distribution of cities is likely to be inefficient, as the clustering effects described above drive cities to become too large. Unfortunately, in practice, little is known about either the costs of excessive city size or what does and does not work to encourage development of more-efficient new cities. Some interesting research on China (Au and Henderson 2006a, 2006b) suggests that from an economic viewpoint, it is much more costly to be undersized than oversized. This work indicates that real output per worker is quite flat at sizes larger than the optimum city size, so that the costs of a given population reduction below the optimum are nearly three times higher than the cost of adding that same population above the optimum.

Caution is in order when seeking to decentralize productive activities from large cities. a neutral stance that avoids favoring the main city and possibly a policy that signals to private investors the desired location for a new city. This approach may not fully address important practical issues for policymakers. When capacity, both financial and technical, is scarce, governments have to make choices about where to locate infrastructure investments and where to improve services. Many efforts to develop secondary cities have been wasteful. In contrast, China’s strategy of favoring coastal cities in the early reform phase reaped rich growth rewards. Because part of the special privileges accorded those cities included the means to finance infrastructure improvements, the worst congestion costs were avoided more successfully than in many other countries (Peterson 2005). Without more research and a more systematic understanding of experience, the danger of cities becoming too large remains difficult to document. Identifying effective policy instruments to address it is thus problematic. If concerns about primacy or cities being too large become an excuse for neglecting necessary urban infrastructure investments, such policies will be very costly.

The realization of agglomeration economies in fast-growing cities is likely to give rise to very significant spatial inequalities in productivity and income, across regions and cities, between rural and urban areas, and within cities. As a result, policymakers will face important noneconomic concerns, such as political and ethnic tensions, which must be balanced against the economic benefits of productive cities.

Sri Lankan Context:

The Kandy-Colombo-Galle urbanization belt generates more than 80 percent of national output and is the area that possesses the highest economic potential in the country. Although poverty rates are higher in eastern and northern parts of the country, the majority of both the population that lives below the national poverty line and the vulnerable “bottom 40 percent” of the population live adjacent to the Kandy-Colombo-Galle urbanization belt — nearly 50 percent and 75 percent of these populations live within 30 km and 60 km of this urbanization belt respectively. This spatial transformation process has profound implications for both economic growth and alleviating poverty and vulnerability. Key challenges are how to manage the growth of the Kandy-Colombo-Galle region, in particular, the Metropolitan Colombo Region, and how to enhance connectivity of other single-city agglomerations with the Kandy-Colombo-Galle region so as realize their potential for economic growth and poverty alleviation.

To better tap into the economic potential that urbanization offers, the report recommends actions at two levels – the institutional level and the policy level.  At the institutional level, the region would benefit from improvements in the ways in which towns and cities are governed and financed. Specifically, the report identified three areas where reform could address fundamental deficits – in empowerment, resources, and accountability:

• ·         Improving intergovernmental fiscal relations to address empowerment.
• ·         Identifying practical ways to increase the resources available to local governments to allow   them to perform their mandated functions.
• ·         Strengthening mechanisms to hold local governments accountable for their actions.

While a necessary pre-condition for meaningful progress, these reforms by themselves will not, according to the report, suffice.  To bring about lasting improvements in both prosperity and livability, policy changes could also improve the ways in which cities are connected and planned, the working of land and housing markets, and cities’ resilience to natural disasters and the effects of climate change.

Conclusion:

The Urban Area Create a positive Environment for Industrial and Service Activity development through Agglomeration and Scale of Economy. The Urbanization is facilitated to develop urban area and increase the extent of urban area. Specially in Sri Lanka developing the medium and small cities accelerate this process and its ready to facilitate the small and medium level industries. Hence the urbanization process is help to national economic growth in positive way.

Further these Small and medium level cities motivate or attract local Entrepreneurs to invest in Industrial or Service sector due to location advantage, Developed infrastructure and Increased demand of manufacturing products.

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Is allowing private medical colleges a correct decision?

Currently in Sri Lanka the government universities only produce the Medical Doctors. the Intake mechanism of the Government universities is not a acceptable manner. Because its have a quota system; due to that most of the talented peoples also outside. Hence we cannot argue all of the university entrants are talented peoples. Because in Colombo district even 2A B is not enough to enter the Medical faculty but in Nuwerelliya or some other district 3B is enough. So the Education system should be allow that talented peoples also get there medical degree. 

But providing free Degree for all is not a possible according to the Sri Lankan National economy strength. then we need to think about the second option; presently its Educational Migration. 

Most of the students flying to Russia, China and several other countries to completing their medical degree dream. 

According to the statistics it is around 1500 students per year. each of student spending More than 6 million for their education course fee and another 4 million to their living expenses and so on without any income. Due to this Sri Lanka looses 15,000 million rupees foreign currency in every year. 

If we provide these degrees in Sri Lanka, We can save this foreign currency and Create different kind of Employment opportunities also. Further Foreign students may be interested and following their degrees in Sri Lanka is also possible. When that kind of Educational system developed several amenities may be developed with that; like hotel industry, tourism and transport. Its leads to us to achieve the vision of Wonder of Asia.

Why Present Medical Faculty Students opposite to this?

The fear if the number of Doctors is increased their demand will be reduce and may be loose their income. So they protest to this Private Educational System without point out their Economic issue, try to convert as social issue. If promoting the 

Private education its leads to chance for reduce the quality of Medical degree and Non Qualified persons may become a Doctor. 

However its a pointless argument; because Sri Lanka have good monitoring system for Quality assurance. If anyone in Sri Lanka want to practice the profession of medicine they should be have the membership of Sri Lanka Medical Council. So entrance of less qualified doctors is impossible.

Sri Lanka's Doctors : Patient ratio still higher than world health organization standards. Due to that we need more doctors to serve the country. How to Increase that? Population increasing every year. but the Intake of Universities is not increased and Professional migration is high so how to solve these? We cannot increase the intake due resource limits of government universities; Then the only solution is we need Private Medical colleges to increase the quantity of doctors. 

Sri Lankan doctors says; The Private Medical Colleges promoting chance to get the Title of Doctor for only Who have richest people  of the society.

Yes its may true. Now also the richest people can get the title. because of the foreign universities. So it is also point less. If we developed Private Medical Colleges with in Sri Lanka its may help to middle class people to get the title of Doctor. because the cost of course fee should be less than present foreign degree cost.

Other professions allow to people study in externally and serve the country So Why Doctors Cannot Allow?

Many private universities are providing 

• 1. Engineering degrees in Civil, Electronics, Computer Science and etc. 
• 2. Accounting Degrees
• 3. Law and legal degrees

So what is the Issue for Doctors?

Due to Sri Lankan Culture Doctors have good social prestige. If the no of peoples with the Title of Doctors its should be reduce so the present doctors does not like to loose their prestige. 

They Not Worry about Peoples, Nations Sustainability and Development of Country 

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