NCRPB Approves Four Greenfield 'Namo Cities' Under Draft NCR Regional Plan 2041

What was decided

The National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB), meeting for the 42nd time, discussed the long-pending Draft Regional Plan 2041 and decided to develop four semi-greenfield urban centres, one in each NCR-participating state/UT — Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. Under the Regional Plan-2041 for the NCR, four semi-greenfield cities are proposed to be developed as mixed-use TOD at selected existing and proposed stations on the Namo Bharat (RRTS) lines. They would be described as "Namo Cities", and will be identified through a competitive process among the NCR participating states.

This is an in-principle decision on the concept and funding framework, not a final notification of exact city sites. Despite extensive deliberations, the Regional Plan 2041 could not be approved at the NCR Planning Board meeting as participating states failed to reach a consensus on all aspects of the proposal, and a sub-committee comprising senior officials from the Centre and the governments of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi has been constituted, tasked with submitting its final report by August 15.

The deciding body and date

The 42nd meeting of National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) was held on 16.06.2026 in New Delhi, chaired by the Hon'ble Shri Manohar Lal, Union Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs and attended by Hon'ble Chief Minister Haryana, Shri Nayab Singh Saini; Hon'ble Chief Minister NCT of Delhi, Smt. Rekha Gupta; Hon'ble Minister Urban Development Rajasthan, Shri Jhabar Singh Kharra; Hon'ble Minister Urban Development Uttar Pradesh, Shri Arvind Kumar Sharma; Secretaries of MoHUA & MoRTH, and Chief Secretaries of NCR States. The meeting took place at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, per multiple press reports.

Operative details: funding, model and selection

Incentive package. The scheme will include a performance-linked incentive of ₹5,000 Cr as a blend of grant, loan, and guarantee, including a ₹1000 Cr grant, intended to catalyse the growth nodes.

Development model. The cities are planned along the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor and are envisioned as modern, environmentally sustainable and self-reliant urban centres, with each city node functioning as an integrated urban hub with housing, commercial establishments, employment opportunities, healthcare facilities, educational institutions and other essential civic infrastructure.

Selection process. Each state will have to submit three plans for three identified cities, out of which one will be eligible for selection. The locations of the proposed Namo cities are yet to be finalised — a committee has been constituted for the purpose and participating states have been asked to submit their suggestions, with the committee on the four new urban centres expected to submit its report by August 15.

Candidate locations floated by states (not yet finalised)

No sites have been officially notified. States have, however, publicly floated possible locations:

• Uttar Pradesh: Uttar Pradesh has suggested Jewar, Dadri, Khurja, Bulandshahr, and Noida as possible locations. Uttar Pradesh Urban Development Minister AK Sharma proposed the Noida–Dadri–Jewar–Bulandshahr belt as a potential candidate for one of the cities.
• Rajasthan: Rajasthan is examining areas around Alwar and Bharatpur for the proposed city. Rajasthan's Urban Development Minister suggested that Alwar and Bharatpur could emerge as strong contenders given their strategic location and growth potential within the NCR.

Delhi and Haryana had not put forward specific named sites in the reporting reviewed for this record as of the June 2026 meeting.

Related decisions taken at the same meeting

NCR boundary retained. The Board discussed the Regional Plan 2041 in great detail and decided to retain the existing geographical extent of the NCR, with no changes to its current area. All 32 districts currently included within the NCR will continue to remain part of it, a decision that comes despite Haryana's earlier proposal to exclude districts such as Karnal, Jind, Panipat, Mahendragarh and Bhiwani, which the state had argued were burdened by environmental restrictions such as Grap; the Centre opted to maintain the existing boundaries.

Population projections behind the decision. The Board noted that the NCR's population is projected to nearly double from 7.86 crore at present to 14.73 crore by 2041, requiring the region to accommodate almost seven crore additional residents over the next 15 years.

Green cover and other schemes. The Board decided to formulate a scheme that would incentivise state governments to increase green cover across the region, including through the participation of private citizens and companies, and to encourage the use of innovative instruments like green canopy credits and non-financial tools like transferable and saleable Special Development Rights. The Minister also announced that the central government's old bus and truck fleet replacement scheme will be named PARIVARTAN, a time-bound fleet modernization scheme aimed at reducing vehicular pollution by incentivizing replacement of BS-IV and older vehicles with BS-VI, CNG, or EVs.

Consultation history. The Draft RP-2041 was subject to a public notice in December 2021 that drew over 4,500 comments, underwent elaborate state and central government-level discussions and reviews through 2025, and an updated draft was shared with all four constituent States in January 2026, with responses incorporated.

Practical effect and what happens next

This decision does not itself create a legally notified city, allot land, or fix a location — it authorises the concept, sets aside funding, and starts a competitive process among the four states/UT. The announcement came as the NCRPB moved closer to finalising Regional Plan-2041; while the plan was not formally approved at this meeting, officials said broad consensus had been reached on most issues, with the final version expected within the next two months. The committee on the four new urban centres is expected to submit its report by August 15, and the board's 43rd meeting has been proposed for December.

It was also decided that RP-2041 would be notified after examining the issues raised in the meeting and completion of the administrative requirements. For investors and residents, this means: no Namo City site is currently open for land transactions or RERA registration; any project marketed today as a 'Namo City' plot is not tied to an official notified location as of this record.