12. Case Study 4: Urban Green Space Analysis and Potential Site Selection for Green Space Expansion in NCT Delhi

Urban green space, a component of green infrastructure, refers to the areas covered with green vegetation including municipal parks, public playgrounds, etc., that are aimed to serve as the sites of recreation and environment enhancers in the city and planning regions. In this study, an urban green space analysis of NCT Delhi has been undertaken to understand its availability and distribution. Using the Sentinel-2A imagery, the existing green spaces of NCT Delhi were identified using the image classification. Vegetation, low vegetation, parks and golf course areas of NCT Delhi were extracted as urban green spaces. Per capita green space of NCT Delhi as a whole and for each district separately was quantified and mapped. According to World Health Organisation (WHO), a minimum of 9.5 m² of green space is required for each person for healthy living in the urban environment. NCT Delhi has per capita green space of 15.93 m²/person, which is greater than the threshold. However, four districts of the study area, i.e. Central Delhi (5.23 m²/person), Northeast Delhi (1.74 m²/person), East Delhi (5.21 m²/person) and West Delhi (5.84 m²/person) showcase acute shortage of green spaces per capita, necessitating the expansion of urban green spaces. Potential site selection for the expansion of the urban green space was carried out by buffering existing green spaces, water bodies and roads as central elements. The buffered areas were assigned weights and combined to generate the suitability map for the development of urban green spaces. The suitability map yields that NCT Delhi has a 47.92 km² area that is highly suitable for the expansion of green spaces and another 320.48 km² area that is moderately suitable for green space expansion.