India’s Urban Scenario

Contrary to popular concepts of a predominantly rural India, an increasingly larger percentage of Indian population today lives in the urban areas. India's urban population is now second largest in the world after China, and is higher than the total urban population of all countries put together barring China, USA and Russia. Over the last fifty years, while the country's population has grown by 2.5 times, in the urban areas it has grown by five times.

In 1947, only 60 million people (15 per cent of the total population at that time) lived in urban areas. India’s urban population grew from the 290 million reported in the 2001 Census to an estimated 340 million in 2008 (30 percent of the total population) and it could soar to 590 million plus (40 percent of the population) by 2030. This urban expansion will happen at a speed quite unlike anything India has seen before. The steep growth in number of people living is partly due to the skewed development that has led to proliferation of commercial activities, and greater job opportunities in towns and cities. Facilities like health and education, and infrastructure like roadways, telecommunication, airports, railways and ports are also many times better in urban areas.

In spite of its prominent role in Indian economy, urban India faces serious problems due to population pressure, deterioration in the physical environment and quality of life. According to estimates, nearly one third of the urban India lives below poverty line. About 15 percent of the urbanites do not have access to safe drinking water and about 50 percent are not covered by sanitary facilities.

Traffic congestion has assumed critical dimensions in many metropolitan cities due to massive increase in the number of personal vehicles, inadequate road space and lack of public transport. There is a huge and widening gap between demand and supply of essential services and infrastructure. Urban poor in India are forced to live under unhygienic conditions in slums, lacking in basic amenities. Slums have grown in almost all major cities due to inability of major chunks of population to afford accommodation in planned areas of the cities.

The five fold explosive growth in urban India has resulted in serious infrastructure constraints. Water, transport, housing, electricity, health and sanitation are some of the areas of concern. Infrastructure to meet these requirements calls for huge investments.

The Central Public Health Engineering (CPHEEO) has estimated the requirement of funds for 100 percent coverage of the urban population under safe water supply and sanitation services by the year 2021 at Rs 172,905 crores. Estimates by Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES) indicate that the amount required for urban transport infrastructure investment in cities with population 100,000 or more during the next 20 years would be of the order of Rs. 207,000 crore.

The speed of urbanization poses an unprecedented managerial and policy challenge, says the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) report. Unfortunately, India has not even started to engage in a national discussion on how to effectively handle the seismic shift in the demographic make-up of the country.

Unlike many countries that are grappling with aging population, India has a young and rapidly growing population—a potential demographic dividend. But, India needs thriving cities if that dividend is to pay out. New research by the MGI estimates that cities could generate 70 percent of new jobs created in 2030, produce more than 70 percent of Indian GDP, and drive a near four-fold increase in per capita incomes across the nation.

It is estimated that in terms of both population and GDP many Indian cities will become larger than many countries today. The GDP of Mumbai Metropolitan Region is projected to reach $265 billion by 2030, larger that the GDP of countries like Portugal, Colombia and Malaysia.

Besides, as India’s cities will expand, the economic make-up will also change. In 1995, India’s GDP split almost evenly between its urban and rural economies. In 2008, urban GDP accounted for 58 percent of overall GDP. By 2030, as per the MGI report, urban India will generate nearly 70 percent of country’s GDP.

Cities offer the promise of a higher quality of life for a large number of Indians. They are also vital for funding the development because they generate 80-85 percent of tax revenue. As per the MGI report, cities benefit beyond their own boundaries. Rural populations adjoining urban centres have been found to have an estimated 10 to 20 percent higher monthly incomes than the rural average.

Lack of vision among the political class and administrators is leading the Indian cities towards decay and gridlock. The MGI report believes that the “lack of serious policies to manage urbanization could jeopardize even the GDP growth rate (as projected by economic planners).”

Urban India is today failing many of its citizens. Across all major quality-of-life indicators, cities of India fall much short of delivering even a basic standard of living to the residents. As per the MGI report, if India continues to invest in urban infrastructure at its current rate—very low by international standards—in 20 years’ time the urban infrastructure will fall woefully short of what is necessary to sustain prosperous cities.

Life of the city dweller would become a lot tougher. Water shortage will result in a large section of the population having no access to potable water. More than 70 percent of the sewage will remain untreated, causing serious health problems. Increasing number of private vehicles and shortcomings in the public transportation infrastructure would create urban gridlock—similar to the acute congestion that cripples some Latin American cities.

In per capita terms, India’s annual capital spending on urban infrastructure and services of $17 is only 14 percent of China’s $116 and 4 percent of UK’s $391. The MGI report estimates that India needs to invest $1.2 trillion (Rs 53.1 trillion) just on capital expenditure in its cities over the next 20 years, equivalent to $134 per capita per year. That is almost eight times the current level of spending.

International experience has shown that cities can be turned around in about ten years or even less. UK, China and South Africa have done it. As per the MGI report, the planners have to work on five dimensions for effective result: funding, governance, planning, sectoral policies and shape.

Funding: The MGI report suggests four sources of funding that India should tap into—monetizing land assets, collecting higher property taxes and user charges that reflect costs, debt and public-private partnerships, and formula-based government funding.

Governance: India’s large cities are still governed by bureaucrats who can be transferred out of office at a short notice. This is in sharp contrast to large cities world-wide where the mayors have been empowered with long tenures and clear accountability. According to the MGI report, fully formed metropolitan authorities with clearly defined roles are absolutely essential for the successful management of large cities.

Planning: India’s urban planning is in very poor state. There are urban plans but they are not practical, are rarely followed and are riddled with exemptions. As per the MGI report, central to planning in any city is the optimal allocation of space, especially land use and Floor Area Ratio (FAR) planning. These plans need to be detailed, comprehensive and enforceable, and exemptions should be rare.

Sectoral policies: All good cities have policies in critical areas like job creation, affordable housing for low-income groups, public transportation and climate-change mitigation. As per the MGI report, India has largely failed to embrace the need for dedicated policy attention within cities. In the absence of policy to meet the housing needs of low-income group, Indian cities will continue to be effected by the slum menace.

Shape: India has to aim for a distributed model of urbanization to ensure its federal structure as also to ensure that migration flows are not unbalanced towards a particular city or cities. MGI report concludes that India should build at least 25 new satellite cities near today’s Tier 1 and 2 cities to accommodate populations in each of up to one million people. Such an effort, despite being more expensive than renewing existing cities, will act as a benchmark and a model for well-planned, environmentally sustainable world-class cities, while helping ease of the strains of rapid urbanization.

Integrated townships
Typically, an integrated township has the following key characteristics and elements:

Social infrastructure:
School: A quality school with education up to at least 10thstandard is set up within the township, reducing the travelling time between home and school and in turn providing the children with more time for play and studies.
Medicare: A good healthcare facility with at least 50-plus beds and an emergency care is set up within the township, thereby facilitating residents.
Recreation: Adequate space for basic sports such as football, cricket, tennis and badminton, fitness facilities including a gymnasium and swimming pools are set up within the township to enhance social lifestyle.
Community centre: A spacious, well-decorated community centre with a club house and a function hall is set up within the township.

Infrastructure and services:
Road network: A well-planned road network both within the township and connecting to the nearest highway or main road is built, thereby easing communication.
Water supply and management: A well-planned and sustainable water management system is built within the township, providing round the clock water supply to residents as well as treating the waste water generated within the township and recycling it. This also reduces dependence on municipal water supply.
Electricity supply and management: Although an integrated township depends on a public or private utility supplier for basic power supply, it has adequate, if not abundant, back-up power for both homes and common areas during temporary or scheduled power cuts or disruptions by the utility supplier.
Communication infrastructure: Good quality telecom services are also made available within the township and nearby.

Estate management:
Garbage and waste management: Good garbage collection, aggregation, treatment and disposal system is a must for a healthier and eco-friendly township.
Infrastructure maintenance: Proper and regular maintenance of roads, pathways, parks, electrical and plumbing infrastructure, children play areas and common areas including community centre is essential for a well-developed integrated township.
Security: Superior estate security and safety for all residents is a critical element of an integrated township.

Shopping and entertainment:
Entertainment: Quality cinema or multiplex, popular games and kid entertainment facilities should be established within the township.
Shopping: Well-stocked grocery stores as well as shopping centres including branded garment stores, electronic goods should be established within the township.
Food courts: Good quality and hygienic food courts with ample menu options should be established within the townships to cater to the taste buds of all types of residents.

Proximity to workplace:
While the intent of an integrated township is always to have the workplace and the residential dwelling in close proximity, in the current context of double-income families, it is practically impossible to achieve this objective fully. However, it can establish adequate, well-equipped office space infrastructure and offer lower rentals to attract companies, banks and corporate houses and create ample opportunities for residents. Apart from this, to smoothen communication between the township and the workplace for rest of the residents, the location of the township should be such that it is easily accessible from various parts of the city.

Constitution (Seventy-Fourth Amendment) Act 1992
This is a revolutionary piece of legislation by which Constitution of India was amended to incorporate a separate Chapter on urban local bodies, which seeks to redefine their role, power, function and finances. The salient features of this Act are:
Urban local bodies, to be known as Municipal Corporations, Municipal Councils and Nagar Panchayat depending on the population shall be constituted through universal adult franchise in each notified urban area of the country.

These shall be constituted for a period of five years and if dissolved earlier, an election to reconstitute it shall be completed before the expiration of a period of six months from the date of its dissolution.

Not less than one-third of total number of seats in each urban local body shall be reserved for women.

The Legislature of a State may by law entrust on these bodies such power and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as institution of local self government, including those listed in the Twelfth Schedule.

The Twelfth Schedule of the Constitution— has listed the following functions of the urban local bodies:
—Urban Planning including town planning.
—Regulation of land-use and construction of buildings.
—Planning for economic and social development.
—Roads and bridges.
—Water supply for domestic, industrial and commercial purposes.
—Public health, sanitation, conservancy and solid waste management.
—Fire services.
—Urban forestry, protection of the environment and promotion of ecological aspects.
—Safeguarding the interests of weaker sections of society, including the handicapped and mentally retarded.
—Slum improvement and up-gradation.
—Urban poverty alleviation.
—Provision of Urban amenities and facilities such as parks, gardens, playgrounds.
—Promotion of cultural, educational and aesthetic aspects.
—Burials and burial grounds; cremations, cremation grounds and electric crematoriums.
—Cattle pounds; prevention of cruelty to animals.
—Vital statistics including registration of births and deaths.
—Public amenities including street lighting, parking lots, bus stops and public conveniences.
—Regulation of slaughter houses and tanneries.

In order that the urban local bodies can perform the functions assigned to them, the Legislature of a State shall assign them specific taxes, duties, tolls and levies and authorise them to impose, collect and appropriate the same.

Each State shall also constitute a Finance Commission which shall review the financial position of the urban local bodies and recommend the principles which should govern the devolution of resources, including grant-in-aid from the Consolidated Fund of the State of these bodies.

The superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to the urban local bodies shall vest in the State Election Commission.

In each district a District Planning Committee shall be constituted to consolidate the plan prepared by the urban and rural local bodies.

Similarly for each metropolitan area a Metropolitan Planning Committee shall be constituted to prepare a development plan for the metropolitan area a whole.

Constitution (74th Amendment) Act 1992 has made the urban local bodies into vibrant self governing institutions. This has ushered in a new era of urban governance and urban management in India.