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Manoj Sharma

Manoj Sharma

Manoj Sharma is Metro Features Editor at Hindustan Times. He likes to pursue stories that otherwise fall through the cracks.

Articles by Manoj Sharma

Not just light on a pole: How street lighting shapes our cities

Spot-checks by HT in Gurugram in May and June found several major roads in darkness. (Parveen Kumar/HT photo)

Updated on Jul 13, 2026 03:23 IST

The gastronomification of urban India: Emergence of food hubs across cities

The number of restaurants and bars in Connaught Place have grown multifold in the past two decades. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

Updated on Jun 29, 2026 03:29 IST

The making of an urban absurdity

The Mira-Bhayandar bridge in Mumbai.

Updated on Jun 8, 2026 02:01 IST

Ahmedabad turns civic systems into start-up lab for urban fixes

the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) last month launched the ‘Ahmedabad Innovation and Startup Policy 2026’. The policy seeks to convert the city’s civic infrastructure. The policy seeks to convert the city’s civic infrastructure into a “living laboratory” for startups. (Shutterstock)

Updated on May 4, 2026 02:45 IST

Parking paradox: Empty lots, choked streets

A multi-level car parking ( MLCP) in GK- 1, Delhi. The average occupancy at MLCPs in Delhi is 40 percent.

Updated on Apr 20, 2026 02:47 IST

Cities across India revive stepwells to fight water crisis

Revived by the World Monuments Fund India (WMFI), Rajaon ki Baoli in Delhi is a flagship project of the Historic Water Systems of India initiative.

Updated on Apr 6, 2026 02:00 IST

Will pod taxi fix Mumbai’s last-mile link?

The system will deploy driverless electric pods seating five to eight passengers.

Updated on Mar 9, 2026 04:36 IST

PMO moves to new address, what happens to South Block on Raisina Hill

"While Lutyens wanted the Secretariat at a lower level, fearing it would obstruct the view of the Viceroy’s residence, Baker insisted on equal prominence, and ultimately prevailed."

Updated on Feb 14, 2026 05:23 IST

Deaths in Delhi, Noida expose civic neglect: Can citizen audits make cities safe

Police retrieve a motorcycle from a large ditch dug by the Delhi Jal Board at Professor Joginder Singh Marg in Janakpuri, where a biker died after falling into the pit. (Vipin Kumar/HT)

Updated on Feb 9, 2026 07:24 IST

India’s urban blind spot: An ungoverned city beneath

The Pragati Maidan tunnel in central Delhi gets waterlogged, leading to traffic jams. (Sanjeev Verma/HT photo)

Updated on Jan 12, 2026 24:32 IST

Can a cooperative model fix public mobility?

The number of public buses per person in India remains among the lowest globally, and even Mumbai and Delhi fall short of recommended fleets. RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO

Updated on Dec 31, 2025 17:45 IST

The megacity dream that isn’t

The merger of 27 urban local bodies has expanded Hyderabad to a whopping 2,000 sqkm, making it India’s largest municipal corporation by area. (Shutterstock)

Updated on Dec 15, 2025 24:34 IST

Inside Vizag’s silent and steady ascent

Beach Road is Visakhapatnam’s social spine, lined with museums, cafés, and seafront hotel. (R Narendra/HT Photo )

Updated on Nov 23, 2025 23:44 IST

The broken promise of India’s heritage

The 110-year-old Butler Palace—built in 1915 for Sir Spencer Harcourt Butler—is being restored by the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) into a cultural hub. (Deepak Gupta/HT Photo)

Updated on Oct 27, 2025 11:17 IST

Why cities struggle to preserve their stories

In a country with few museums dedicated to telling the story of its cities, Mumbai’s Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum, housed in a Victorian building in Byculla, stands apart. (Raju Shinde/HT Photo)

Updated on Sep 29, 2025 11:30 IST

The long road to the runway

Persistent traffic snarls on NH-48, the main road link to Delhi airport has led to a rise in the footfalls on the Metro lines. (Vipin Kumar/HT Photo)

Updated on Sep 1, 2025 09:58 IST

Ring Roads: The allure and cost of asphalt loops

Hyderabad’s 158-km Outer Ring Road, finished in 2018, sparked a real estate boom. (Shutterstock)

Updated on Aug 10, 2025 23:52 IST

Dreams of a midnight metropolis

Indian megacities like Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru have attempted to create a formal night-time economy in other parts of the city — but with little success.

Updated on Jul 28, 2025 01:02 IST

Bengaluru’s bold new blueprint for metropolitan governance

Bengaluru faces several challenges, including traffic congestion, water management, and unplanned growth. (Shutterstock)

Updated on Jul 16, 2025 09:09 IST

Buses vanish, trains overflow: Public transport in India’s cities is buckling

In Mumbai, trains designed for 2,500 passengers routinely carry more than 5,000 during rush hours. (Satish Bate/HT Photo)

Updated on Jun 16, 2025 24:10 IST

Skywalks as social spaces? Rethinking their role in city life

Nehru Place skywalk in Delhi (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

Updated on Jun 2, 2025 24:06 IST

Capital alerts: Delhi’s long tryst with sirens, from World War II to today

An air raid siren was installed at ITO on May 9. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

Updated on May 12, 2025 24:23 IST

‘Homogenisation creates cultural amnesia’

Dikshu C Kukreja is a leading Indian architect and the managing principal at Delhi-based C.P. Kukreja Architects, one of the country’s most reputed architectural firms. (HT Photo)

Updated on May 5, 2025 24:26 IST

The rise of Anywhere City

The late 1990s and early 2000s saw the creation of Special Economic Zones, accelerating the construction of steel-and-glass towers. Mumbai, India’s financial capital, led this transformation. (Raju Shinde/HT Photo)

Updated on May 5, 2025 24:18 IST

Driving urban mobility, hostility: An auto story

Data shows that there are an estimated 1.5–2 million autorickshaws operating across Indian cities. (HT Photo)

Updated on Apr 14, 2025 24:12 IST

Rethinking streets: Why cities need to make room for buskers

Indian performers, in contrast to cities across the world, remain caught in a web of outdated regulations and inconsistent enforcement. Even in Bengaluru, known for its cultural vibrancy, artists struggle to find a place where music and urban life can coexist. (Samir Jana/HT Hindustan Times)

Updated on Apr 7, 2025 24:32 IST

Marking history: How new blue plaques can promote heritage conservation in India

Heritage building plate installed by MCD outside the Hardayal Municipal Heritage Public Library in New Delhi. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

Updated on Mar 9, 2025 23:38 IST

Where’s my bus? Stranded in the transit information void

People wait for buses at a stand in ITO, Delhi, without sufficient information about possible delays. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

Updated on Feb 24, 2025 11:58 IST

Revving Trouble? What India’s two-wheeler boom means for urban mobility

In 2024, Delhi alone added 448,767 two-wheelers, pushing the total number of motorcycles and scooters on the streets of the Capital past 5.7 million, from 5.2 million in 2023, according to official figures. (Raj K Raj/HT Photo)

Updated on Jan 26, 2025 23:58 IST

The names we keep: India’s unchanged urban memory

New Delhi’s colonial-era shopping arcade, Connaught Place, was renamed ‘Rajiv Chowk’, but the name has never caught on, say traders. (Sanchit Khanna/HT)

Updated on Jan 12, 2025 21:30 IST

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