Urban Update January 2023

UrbanUpdate

Cities must tread Cautiously in ‘dangerous deCade’

Cities must tread Cautiously in ‘dangerous deCade’

Quality is just one of our strengths

AIILSG has begun skill development programmes in Rajasthan and Jharkhand. The institute with its 90+ years of experience in the field of capacity building would impart training to youth living in rural areas of these two states to make them employable in various emerging sectorsApparel, Beauty & Wellness, Electronics, Healthcare, IT-ITEs, and Renewable Energy. As per Mou singed, AIILSG will train 16,000 youngsters.

UrbanUpdate

A monthly magazine published by the AIILSG.

Ranjit Chavan

President-AIILSG

Dr Jairaj Phatak

Editor-In-Chief

Director General-AIILSG

Ashok Wankhade

Managing Editor

Abhishek Pandey Editor

Ravi Ranjan Guru

Executive Editor

Ayesha Saeed Reporter

Pushpender Singh

Indrani Priyadarshini

Shashank Garg

Trainee Reporters

Arjun Singh

Digital Marketing Associate

Meenakshi Rajput

Art Director

Volume VIII - Issue IX

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Dr Jairaj Phatak Editor-In-Chief | dg@aiilsg.org

This new year let’s resolve for a sustainable future

As we step into the new year, it is time once again for renewed hopes and plans for a promising future for all. Hopefully, inspite of the recent scare of a surge in our neighbourhood, the COVID pandemic is now behind us and we will be able to pursue our goals with vigour.

Economic growth is now back on the agenda. Public investments, including investment in infrastructure is among the key levers for the Indian Government to push growth higher. Our urban spaces are bound to benefit from this through increased allocations for cities. We are already seeing step up in construction and operationalising of metro services in many cities with new lines being planned to connect suburban areas to main cities. These bode well for large populations in satellite townships enabling them to access opportunities in the main city. There is also a big push for improving the railway network with new connections and faster trains. These will bring the benefits of thriving urban centres to larger populations.

Urban local governments are set to play a key role to catalyse these investments and convert them into benefits for citizens and bring about ease of living. Sustainable, efficient, and affordable mobility will remain an important area. The rapid rollout of metro services will surely be a big step in this direction. Alongside, other options including non- motorised options will play a big role. Efficient first-mile and last-mile connectivity will be necessary to enhance the appeal of mass transit modes like the metro. Here non-motorised modes like cycling and electric 3-wheelers can play useful roles. Electric mobility is making rapid progress and other options such as hydrogen driven vehicles will support the push for low-carbon mobility.

Affordable housing is another key area for policymakers. Improved mass transit must be leveraged to connect far away places (with lower home prices) to the main city. Additionally, rental housing needs to be facilitated to provide flexible alternatives to city-dwellers. Providing services to ever-growing urban populations is already presenting big challenges. Water supply is one. Depleting ground water, limited surface water sources, and unpredictable rainfall make the task of our local governments difficult. In this scenario, measures such as conservation, reuse, and rainwater harvesting need to be vigorously promoted and citizens made aware of the absolute necessity of these measures. Appropriate pricing of water can also help.

These and other issues call for urgent measures in order to enable a sustainable future for our cities. There are several examples of cities around the world and in India which have devised innovative solutions in these areas. It will be useful to study these. Cities and city managers will be called upon to deploy all their resources to solve complex issues of cities in order that we may fulfil the aspirations of the millions of city-dwellers.

Urban Update will continue to bring these issues into focus for debate and deliberation, and thereby play a role in building a sustainable future.

PIN POINT BUZZ

Mike Hudema Climate Campaigner @MikeHudema

The impacts of climate change are often felt through water – more intense and frequent droughts, more extreme flooding, more erratic seasonal rainfall and accelerated melting of glaciers – with cascading effects on economies, ecosystems and all aspects of our daily lives

Petteri Taalas Secretary-General, World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

If the bees disappear off the surface of the globe then man would only have four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man

Mariana Mazzucato UCL Professor @MazzucatoM

Indian cities are committed to climate change stabilization, bringing inclusive economic affluence in urban areas and improvement in the living standards of their citizens. Urban20 series of events will help cities and towns accelerate their actions with collective efforts and greater collaboration at the global level

Hitesh Vaidya Director, National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA)

We share the risks of rising temperatures alongside all countries, and we hear the ambition to make transformational game-changing progress to get ahead of the future

Dr Sultan Al Jaber President-Designate COP28

Urban TRIVIA

Water is a vital element that links to nearly everyone of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals #SDGs. Valuing water as a ‘global common good’ – that it is a common objective for all to secure access to water – is crucial #WaterCommonGood

Amitabh Kant G20 Sherpa @amitabhk87

EV sales touching the one million mark in 2022 is not just a record in itself - it is strong testimony to the fact that the future of mobility will be driven by electric vehicles. They will shape India’s mobility landscape which will be clean, connected, cutting-edge & shared

India builds world’s largest ‘temporary’ megacity every 12 years

Yes, you read it right. It is built every 12 years in Praygraj (earlier known as Allahabad) during Kumbh Mela. It is incredible to witness that a temporary city comes up to cater to around 3-50 million people on different dates. And it stays for a couple of months with temporary bridges, sanitation facilities, hospitals, and police stations, and then space is cleared for other use. Even the world’s largest permanent urban agglomeration has just 37 million people

Ranjit S Chavan President, AIILSG

Cities must tread cautiously in ‘dangerous decade’

The new year will be a year of heightened concerns relating to the impacts of climate change on cities. These concerns are becoming serious by the day. The ongoing decade has been termed the most dangerous decade after World War II. The first couple of years have been telling. The covId-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine War and the impacts of climate change all over the world, and the intensifying economic slowdown are causing concerns. cities need to tread cautiously and take every step judiciously

The beginning years of the ongoing decade have been disastrous for humanity. Cities were at the forefront bearing the brunt and also working on strengthening artillery and ammunition to be better placed in these wars and win.

The year 2023 brings a sliver of hope for Indian cities and provides them with a chance to take a leading position on key urban matters and address concerns with global collaboration. India is hosting the G20 Summit this year. And, the City of Ahmedabad will be the chair of the Urban20 engagement group in which several participating and observer cities of U20 will join urban stakeholders to find practical solutions to serious urban challenges.

India is among the fastest-growing economies in the world. It is important to note that the growth prospect of India’s economy looks brighter even during the gloomy economic situation around the world. India is already risen to become the 5th largest economy in

Tthe world. Despite these impressive economic indicators, India faces significant development challenges, including poverty, malnutrition, and environmental degradation. And, if the nation has to maintain its growth, it has to take some drastic measures in mitigation and adaptation so that the ongoing infrastructure projects and service delivery become more energy efficient and sustainable.

LoCAL ConTexT AnD UrbAn ChALLenGeS

India is now the most populous country in the world, about 18 per cent of the world’s population lives here. Along with multiple urban issues including overburdening on municipal resources and services, many of its cities, like anywhere else, are vulnerable to climate change impacts. Its cities are already feeling the effects of global warming, with temperatures on the rise, water shortages, and air pollution becoming increasingly common.

Cities are particularly vulnerable to climate change due to their high population densities, limited resources, and exposure to extreme weather events. In recent years, several Indian cities have been severely impacted by floods, droughts, and heat waves. Climate change is expected to exacerbate these

extreme weather events in the future, making it even more important for cities to take steps to protect their residents.

India must take urgent action if it is to stand any chance of addressing its climate crisis in the coming years. There are some obvious solutions including enhancing existing infrastructure and efficient urban planning to create resilient communities, promoting public transit, encouraging energy efficiency, and investing in renewable energy sources. These solutions sound simple but aren’t easy to implement for a variety of reasons.

There is no doubt that urban growth will continue. of course, it is important to accelerate the economic growth rate and overall prosperity. but the policymakers need to be mindful that the growth does

not come at a cost of environmental degradation. It is indeed true that the increasing population in urban areas will demand more infrastructural development and rendering of services but it also provides an opportunity for sustainable development in new and existing urban agglomerations. Cities need to learn the means to capitalize on the opportunities. India will need to focus on smart city infrastructure, green technologies, and sustainable development. This includes improving public transport systems, promoting electric vehicles, incentivizing renewable energy sources, and making buildings more energy efficient.

Additionally, cities will need to invest in digital infrastructure such as broadband networks to enhance business efficiency and facilitate the sharing of data between public and private institutions. To ensure access to clean water for all citizens, India will have to use solutions such as rainwater harvesting and wastewater recycling. Finally, urban development initiatives must create jobs and promote social inclusion by empowering marginalised communities.

nATUre-bASeD SoLUTIonS

In addition to technology-based solutions to tackle climate change, another important way cities can fight this war is by investing in green infrastructure. This includes things like planting trees, constructing green roofs, and creating rain gardens. Green infrastructure helps absorb rainfall and reduce runoff, which can help prevent flooding during heavy rains. It also provides much-needed shade and cooling during heat waves in countries like India. other ways could be advocacy of such ways of life among residents. Cities can encourage people to use less polluting transportation options, such as public transit, biking, and walking. This not only reduces emissions from vehicles but also helps improve air quality in urban areas. For this, they have to provide them with convenient options and enabling infrastructure. For example, people need

to feel safe while walking on roads. In cities like Delhi, Mumbai and bengaluru, many incidents are reported regularly that pedestrians and cyclists meet with fatal accidents because walkways and cycle lanes either don’t exist or are encroached upon, forcing people to use roads and endangering themselves being hit by fast-moving vehicles. Certain learnings can be adopted from developing countries such as europe where pedestrians and cyclists have first right on streets and are respected. There is also an issue of enabling a local culture where pedestrians are given priority. Amsterdam, brussels and for that matter, most european cities are good examples.

AGenDA For 2023

From setting new agendas and resolutions, to committing to doing better than yesteryears, there is always so much pressure around starting a new year. India is at a crossroads between the aggressive growth of urbanisation and lacking resources to support it environmentally. The urban development paradigm needs to change from an investment-led approach to one that values service delivery outcomes within a framework that incorporates environmental sustainability, social inclusion and economic development.

In this new year, India has many opportunities to align its urban priorities and also advocate for the same at the global level. The City of Ahmedabad along with many other cities in India will organise a series of events under Urban20. These events can be a platform to bring all local governments together and set a national urban agenda to accelerate local actions on pressing urban challenges and find solutions with global collaborations. The beginning of the series of events is happening with the Sherpa Meeting on February 9-10, 2023 in which several participating and observer cities from around the world will take part. Indian cities must leverage this opportunity for setting their local agenda, prioritise their targets and forge global engagement for benefitting from the experiences of cities which are torchbearers of some great initiatives.

From setting new agendas, and resolutions to committing to doing better than yesteryears, there is always so much pressure around starting a new year. India is at a crossroads between the aggressive growth of urbanisation and lacking resources to support it environmentally. The urban development paradigm needs to change from an investment-led approach to one that values service delivery outcomes within a framework that incorporates environmental sustainability, social inclusion and economic development

Dr Sudhir Krishna Former Secretary Ministry of Housing & Urban Development Government of India

Joshimath Land Subsidence Case A lesson for the Himalayan Cities

Jan interim compensation of `1.50 lakh per family with the assurance of further relief. Meanwhile, news of cracks in houses started coming from Karnaprayag and Chamba as well.

Joshimath is a typical small town in Uttarakhand with a population of just about 25,000 (16,709, as per Census 2011). However, it is prominent as the gateway for further travel to the holy shrines of Badrinath temple and Hemkunt Sahib, besides to the globally famous Auli Skiing Resort and the Valley of Flowers, a world heritage site. Therefore, it attracts a lot of transit visitors. According to State Tourism Department data, in 2021, over 1,65,000 people visited Joshimath town. However, more than half a million tourists went through the town to visit the surrounding famous destinations. Some houses in Joshimath started reporting cracks since early 2022, though there were sporadic cases even earlier too. Since early January 2023, more houses started developing cracks and the number reached close to 600 by January 12. Cracks had appeared in the roads also. The Government of Uttarakhand started shifting people from the cracked houses to safer buildings and also announced

The reason behind this situation was subsidence (sinking) of the land. On January 13, 2023, ISRO’s National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) reported that their satellite imagery had indicated that Joshimath had sunk by 5.4 cms in just 12 days. The subsidence was preceded by and coincided with water gushing out from beneath the earth at various locations.

Land subsidence is noticed in many cities across the world, most notable being Tianjin, China (5.22 cm per year), Semarang, Indonesia (3.96), Jakarta, Indonesia (3.44), Shanghai, China (2.94), etc. Most of these are coastal cities and face subsidence mainly owing to the soil conditions, besides depletion of the subsoil aquifers due to largescale evacuation through borewells for meeting the water needs.

The situation of the sinking in Himalayan towns is somewhat different. The area is geologically unstable and sloping, resulting in landslides. Many such towns, like Joshimath, have come up on the debris of past landslides, resulting in poor load-bearing capacity of the soil. These towns are in seismic zone as well.

These factors call for very frugal level of construction activity. However, RCCbased building construction activities including those having multiple floors, have become popular in the Himalayan region. Such structures induce or accelerate subsidence.

These towns generally have poor drainage system, leading to water seepage, which further weakens the soil. Himalayan region also has widespread prevalence of subsoil water aquifers, embedded precariously amidst relatively loose soils. Blasting activities, which is resorted for clearing boulders, tend to create fractures in the aquifers. Any other means adopted for removal of boulders too leads to the same results. For instance, tunnel boring or drilling for borewells could lead to puncturing the aquifers. The water that gushes out of the aquifers loosens the soil on the surface and the seepage accentuates the instability of the soil beneath. Deforestation is yet another cause for weakening of the soil.

Largescale hydroelectric power generation projects in the Himalayan region induce instability in the land structure of the region, leading, inter alia, to land subsidence. There are concerns that the NTPC’s Tapovan–Vishnugad Hydroelectric Project located close to Joshimath could be a major culprit for the subsidence issue.

Various National and State Highways have been upgraded from time to time, by way of widening of the carriageway. The length of roads in Uttarakhand was reported at 52,848 km for 2018 and increased to 68,727 km in 2019. In the process of road development, mountains are cut by removing boulders and the adjoining soils and debris using detonators which destabilises the mountain slopes and makes them vulnerable to landslides. Construction of retention walls mitigates this problem, but does not resolve it fully and during heavy rains, the retention walls give way to the flowing slurry of debris.

THe wAy FORwARD

The Himalayan region is becoming popular with tourists for its pristine beauty and adventure sports. Recent reports indicate that as many as 10 crore

tourists visited Uttarakhand during 2022 alone! The State and its local bodies welcome visitors with open arms, in the hope of economic gains. However, the experience of the last 75 years has clearly indicated that the strategy for development and management of the Himalayan region cannot be the same as for the other parts of the country, owing to its fragile geology. Some suggestions for ensuring a sustainable growth and development of the Himalayan cities and towns are presented below.

Regional and Local Planning

The state needs to have a 3-tier planning framework, starting with an overarching Development Planning Strategy for the state as a whole based on the core principles indicated under the National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan ecosystem. At the second and third levels, Regional and Local Plans should be prepared. The Local Plans should be microzonation-based with relevant local data and studies. These plans should be vertically integrated and made applicable to all departments/sectors/projects of all State and Central Government Agencies.

Building By-laws

The Building By-Laws 2011 (BBL) need to be revisited, to ensure alignment of its provisions with the Regional and Local Plans. For instance, if a particular piece of land falls in subsidence zone or seismic zone of different levels, the BBL should prescribe specific construction and development norms.

Restriction on the visitors’ numbers

The surging numbers of visitors is detrimental to the sustainability of the Himalayan region. It is necessary to restrict the number of visitors to the various tourism locations. Switzerland, a hill country, has not agreed to host any Olympic Games since 1948, due to its negative impact.

eco-friendly housing

Rather than adopting the RCC structures for housing, the Himalayan Region would be advised to go for light weight earthquake- resilient construction. For

example, the Light Gauge Steel Frame

Structure, where cold-formed steel is used as the primary construction material.

Tree plantation

Deforestation around habitats in hill areas leads to loosening of the soil making it prone to landslides. Therefore, it is necessary to launch tree-planting in and around the towns in Himalayas.

Drainage and sewerage network

Inadequate drainage and sewerage systems are a common feature in most of the smaller and medium towns of the Himalayan Region. Thus, the waste water and the storm water are unable to flow out smoothly, leading to stagnation, which adds to the environment risks of soil subsidence. each Town and Local Area needs to develop drainage and sewerage plans, in line with the Regional and the State Plans.

Collaborative Governance

The Uttarakhand Urban Planning & Development Act 1973 provides exemption to the Central Government’s Projects from its applicability. Therefore, the major projects of the Central Government, such as the National Highways, or the large hydro-electric projects, do not get scrutinised by the Town Planning and other relevant departments of the State Government. It would be desirable to provide joint ownership and control to the Central and State Government for such large projects, on the lines of the Metro Rail Companies of Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai etc.

Strengthening of Local Govt

Many Himalayan Towns have quite small resident population but are host to large floating and visiting population. For instance, Joshimath has a Census population of around 20,000, whereas it receives over 5 lakh visitors every year. However, the staffing pattern of the local bodies and agencies is determined largely based on the resident population. This situation needs a review.

[The views expressed are the author’s own. They do not purport to reflect the views of Urban Update.]

Future Cities

Love, Compassion, & Sustainability must be the guiding Principles

Tcities seen such levels of inequality. This has further widened in recent periods. The transformation in the cities from them being industrial centres to service-dominating economies has further robbed the working people of decent livelihoods.

The city development trajectory in India is at crossroads. The paradigm shift in city development that was envisaged in the 1990s and further impetus since 2014 has led to a situation where neither the desired goals have been achieved nor the cities have become sustainable. The push in the last three decades for attracting capital investments in the cities for infrastructure development, particularly from private capital has not worked well. The whole idea of autonomy to the cities, the thrust of the 74th constitutional amendment has also not been fulfilled. Interestingly, of the 18 subjects that were supposed to be transferred to the cities, including city planning; only 3 have been universally transferred. These include waste management and the issuance of birth and death certificates. The rest of the subjects are handled by parastatals.

The inequality in the cities has grown in geometric progression. Never in the history of urbanisation have the

The planning agencies, all of them being beyond the control of the elected democratic institutions, have belittled the working class in the cities. The housing models in the form of condominiums meant only for the middle class sections has thrown a majority of the people, particularly the migrants out of bounds of these houses. Even the middle class sections have not been able to buy these houses.

Ghettoization in the cities has increased and the polarization in the cities on communal lines has further generated fear among the large sections of working people.

The answer to the urban problems has come in the form of urban renewal missions, initially by the UPA 1 and then Smart Cities Mission models by the NDA since 2014. Both these models, have done this the best; and that is to rotate poverty around. The result has been that nearly 40 per cent of the urban population currently lives in slums. The figure is startling- nearly 250 million people live in slums.

Tikender Singh Panwar Former Deputy Mayor, Shimla

Why hAS All of ThIS hAPPENED?

In the political economy we define the value of the object in two forms: use value and exchange value. Use value is something that is meant for the people for their use. Something that cannot be commoditized. The exchange value of a product is where it becomes a commodity and is saleable. Water, health, education, and likewise other such utilities were considered to be of use value for society and not exchangeable or something that cannot be commoditized. however, the last three decades in urban India have exhibited the worst form of transformation from use value to exchange value of some of the utilities. Take for example water. Water was always considered a right and hence there accrued a relationship between the agencies of the State and the citizens. The State was bound to provide the same to its citizens. But, now water is being transformed into a need and there are various players (including private) in the market, offering water or running water utilities in a city like Delhi. In the guise of nonrevenue water, this important utility is being privatized and people are forced to pay exorbitant prices for the same. likewise, health and education are two important sectors where lots of money is shed by the urban citizens in the absence or withdrawal of State agencies from these areas. This is also linked to the overall planning in the city. Planners would love to mark a space for a multi speciality hospital whilst planning cities, rather than more primary health centres. This has been universalized in recent times.

All of this has contributed to largescale formalization and outright marginalization of the urban working class, thus increasing poverty and homelessness. likewise, the planning agencies have planned the cities in order to attract investments for ameliorating urban problems. large consultant-driven models of city planning were highly exclusionary. Real estate development was one of the areas considered important for attracting investments.

fUTURE CITES

Planners love to get butter paper and design future cities. What is required is not new butter papers for designing more cities. The planners must be equipped to do more of acupuncture and suturing in the current context of ‘future cities’. The present must be improved for a better future. Aya Nagar model, where a planner decided to settle in a slum and transform it into a model town in Delhi is one of the ways of working at it.

The future cities will have to take the following into consideration:

first, the model of top-down planning, and New Delhi deciding even for cities like leh, must be discarded. The planning process has to be highly inclusive, participatory, and bottom–up. The citizens of the cities must decide for themselves. Unlike the current model; some of the worst forms of which we are witnessing in the redevelopment model in Andamans, where the native people are screaming: not to integrate Andamans into the destruction models of New Delhi.

Second, the approach of technology providing solutions to all the answers must be given up. Technology is important but the priority of the cities must be taken into consideration. The capital-intensive technological solutions have further worsened the situation. Take two examples: the push for urban mobility is quite visible in urban India. however, the push should be for the mobility of the people; but what we are witnessing is the mobility of large guzzlers and thus creating large spaces for them in the form of flyovers, widening of roads, etc. Can a nation that imports 80 % of its fossil fuels be boasting of the sale of nearly 4 million cars in a year? Another impetuousness from cities is a bling drive for rail metros in most of the large cities; not realizing that such capital-intensive technologies are not sustainable. The second example is the handling of municipal solid waste in the country. Now once again the push from the centre is for ‘waste to energy plants’; whereas the reality is that none of the existing plants is functional. Instead of decentralized waste

treatment and fixing the responsibility on waste producers who mainly are large corporations (both foreign and domestic), the roadmap calls for installing these large plants, thereby increasing the carbon footprint in the cities and burdening the people in the form of user fees.

Third, for future cities, the governance model has to be completely revisited. We are a country of ‘panch parmeshwar’. Democratizing the model of governance is the answer, along with financially empowering the city governments and the people. The current model of smart city as K C Sivarakrishnan (former bureaucrat and originator of the 74th amendment) used to say “is like writing an obituary of the 74th amendment”. There is already large-scale alienation of people in the cities; what is required is to restrict it and make them part of the decision-making process.

fourth, create a fourth list in the Constitution. Apart from the union, state, and concurrent lists, another list for local bodies is required through a constitutional structural change. Even the implementation of the 74th amendment, if at all that is done, is insufficient for the future cities. Take for example South Africa where the city and national leadership are at par. The functions held by the cities if infringed by their national government can be challenged in a court of law. Unlike in India where cities are more like adjuncts of either state or central governments.

fifth, create a new consciousness of owning the city and creating awareness of climate change. The most forceful impact of climate change is happening in the cities. Behavioural change along with adaptation strategies are a must to ensure minimum damage to people and assets. Green warriors or green soldiers, etc., must be part of the large curriculum in the schools ensuring massive participation of the people, particularly the students.

The future cities must be embedded in the strong footing of sustainability, compassion, love, and decent work.

[The views expressed are the author’s own. They do not purport to reflect the views of Urban Update.]

Tathagata Chatterji Professor and Head of Department Urban Management and Governance School of Human Settlements XIM University, Bhubaneswar

Envisioning a data-driven people-centric urban agenda

By 2023, India is projected to become the most populous country in the world overtaking China, and have the largest working-age population in the world. To leverage the demographic dividends, it is necessary to simultaneously focus on urbanisation and digitalisation – the two megatrends driving India. Indeed, bringing greater synergy between the two mega forces can go a long way in propelling economic growth, generating employment opportunities, improving governance functions and leading to a better quality of life for the burgeoning population.

India is rapidly moving towards an urban future. Between 2022 and 2045, the number of city dwellers is projected to go up by 329 million, which is higher than the entire population of the United States. In the process, around 2047, the centenary year of independence, India is expected to become an urban-majority country. Urbanisation is associated with economic growth, entrepreneurialism,

Band innovations. McKinsey Global Institute research in 2010 suggested that more than 70 per cent of Indian GDP and 70 per cent of new employment by 2030 would be generated from its major urban centres while increasing urbanisation could lead to a four-fold increase in per capita income. According to a study by management consulting firm Ernst and Young, by 2047-48, India may reach developed economy status, with per-capita GDP crossing USD 15,000.

However, reaching these economic milestones largely depends on how India’s urban turn is managed and governed. Negative externalities such as traffic gridlocks, air pollution, and water scarcity can seriously hurt the growth prospects. As Indian cities are facing huge infrastructure deficits, additional population pressure can further worsen the situation. Therefore, it is essential to leverage digital technology to improve urban management capacities. Linking sensors and data with a city’s infrastructure networks can significantly boost their operational efficiency, reduce waste, and improve environmental performance.

India is a global knowledge economy powerhouse. The Information and Communication Technology-enabled service sector is a key driver of India’s economic engine and its associated developmental potential. Indeed, big

data, Internet of Things (IoT), artificial Intelligence, blockchain, and other such digital technology applications are rising in every sphere of the economy. Between 2014 and 2018, the number of smartphones per 100 people increased from 5.4 to 26.2; the number of internet users went up from 239 million to 560 million; the number of cashless transactions per person jumped from 2.2 to 18. Digitalisation is also a key policy priority for the government to achieve various developmental objectives, such as improvement in transparency in public services delivery, facilitation of greater citizen engagement, direct transfer of social welfare benefits to the poor, and augmentation of safety and security of the people. Technology platforms such as Aadhaar, CoWIN, Aarogya Setu, and DigiLocker are redefining the way people engage with the government. In a parallel, technology aggregators are reconfiguring the way people carry out financial transactions (PhonePe, Paytm) travel (Ola, Uber), buy groceries, (Bigbasket, Blinkit) and eat food (Swiggy, Zomato). Indeed, the ‘gig economy’ segment based on flexible working contract has become a key employment generator in Indian cities. According to an Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) report, the gig-economy segment in 2020 was worth USD 1 billion and generated 15 million jobs.

SmarT CITIES & DaTa maNagEmENT

The Smart Cities Mission (SCM) facilitates digital technology applications in the urban context. The Mission sought to bring about a transformative change in how Indian cities are managed and governed by focusing on big data and digital platforms. It is common knowledge that the delivery of public services in Indian cities is frequently impeded due to different agencies working in silos and the inadequacy of granular city-level data. SCM brought out a Data Smart Cities Strategy to meet these challenges.

The Data Smart Cities Strategy aims to reduce gaps between the outcomes and the desired goals in governance systems. The strategy is based on developing well-capacitated institutional structures

across all tiers of governance along with the formation of networks and alliances; process enablers-such as policies and standards; and technology platforms to support the implementation of policy intents. It had laid out the overarching data governance framework and had launched supportive platforms such as India Urban Data Exchange for information dissemination and the National Urban Learning Platform for skill development.

At the city level, implementation responsibility for the Data Smart strategy rests with the Smart City Special Purpose Vehicles (SPV). The national-level Data Smart strategy envisages that each city has its own data policy and a dedicated data governance team. It recommends that a designated city data officer (CDO) should be responsible for data governance at the city level and formulate the City Data Policy. The CDO should be supported by a pool of data champions and coordinators in various city departments and governmental agencies. To measure the performances of cities in implementing the Data Smart strategy, the Smart Cities Mission framed a Data Maturity Assessment Framework.

To facilitate city-level data management, SCM led to the establishment of Integrated Command and Control Centres (ICCC) in all 100 cities. The ICCCs are considered as nerve centres of smart cities and use sensors to combine data from numerous sensors located across the city to deliver actionable information with the help of visualisation tools like GIS. They can facilitate day-to-day urban management and improve inter-agency coordination in running civic operations. At the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, cities such as Bangalore, Surat, Varanasi and Naya Raipur were able to repurpose their ICCCs to perform diverse disaster management functions. Private sector technology vendors and consulting firms played significant roles in planning, designing and operating the ICCCs. Now as the national-level data governance framework is in place and foundations of city-level digital infrastructure had been laid with the operationalisation of the ICCCs in all 100 cities under the SCM, it is important for the cities to take the next step and start framing their own data policies. Digital

technologies are regularly evolving, and there cannot be a definitive end. While the Smart Cities Mission has laid the basic foundations, it is necessary for the cities to build upon it, as digital technology adaptation is a continuous process.

While framing city-level data policies it is necessary for the City SPVs to take into consideration how digital technology can be applied in more people-friendly ways to include all sections of society. It is particularly important to focus on the urban poor in building city-level data sets, as they are often unable to access social welfare programs like the PM SVANidhi scheme Issues of data privacy, security, and digital inclusion also require special attention. While digital technology is often equated with achieving systemic efficiencies, its improper usage can compromise sensitive personal information. It can also perpetuate the digital divide by leaving behind people who are not techno-savvy. The UNHabitat has developed People-centric Smart Cities Framework to help cities develop digital technology policies that focus on multi-stakeholder engagement, inclusivity, prosperity, and human rights. The framework rests on five pillars: Community Engagement, Digital Equity, Digital Infrastructure, Digital Security, and Local Capacity.

The Data Smart Strategy of India’s SCM is broadly in sync with the UN Framework in terms of policy aims and objectives. It remains to be seen how Indian cities adopt the frameworks to their local context. While the SCM has planted the initial seeds, ultimately cities need to take ownership and mainstream digital technology adaptation within their own planning process, not let it just be a stand-alone one-time activity. However, Indian cities frequently lack technical and financial capacities, and they would require support from state and national governments. Indeed, smartening up Indian cities in the true sense of the term is a tall order that needs to be accomplished through cooperation between governments at all levels and between the public and private sectors.

[The views expressed are the author’s own. They do not purport to reflect the views of Urban Update.]

Ranjan K Panda Convenor, Water Initiatives/Convenor, Combat Climate Change Network, India

Fighting water woes, combating climate change...more than 3 decades now!

Ttime. Then there are a few who believe restoration of ecosystems can actually help us secure our water for the present and future. One concern, however, is visible among all sections of the youth. Almost all of them feel climate change is a major threat to our water resources and we need to do something about it.

Three things are happening quite fast. Firstly, global water crisis is increasing due to climate change and other reasons. Secondly, growing cities are outpacing the water recharging abilities of their geographies. Thirdly, more and more youth are asserting their leadership roles in environmentalism that calls for conservation of water commons and related ecosystems. As we reached out to thousands of young people while developing the #Youth4WaterIndia campaign to connect more youths to water and nature conservation, we realised that the youth of the country have different levels of understanding about water. Some of them believe cleaning shorelines of the oceans and our rivers can help us tide through the water crisis, while some others feel that wastewater recycling can help us do that. There are some who have started to believe that taps bring us water and putting pressure on governments can keep us water secured for a long

While at the campaign we are trying to better understand the perceptions of youth on water crisis, we are also exploring ways to facilitate actions by youth to ensure water security through appropriate local actions that also build climate resilience. And while doing so, we realised that the youth need to understand their water commons better, as an interconnected entity with other components of ecology, and dive deeper to find real solutions. For the cities, they need to find out the role of wetlands and forests – both from inside the city boundaries and far off watersheds – in ensuring water supply and security. Ecosystems are often a backbenchers’ discussion in the cities as grey infrastructure are prioritised to make them look modern and smart. This needs to change.

between 1950 and 2020, city population throughout the globe increased from 0.8

billion to 4.4 billion. In the next three decades, by 2050, it is projected that almost 6.7 billion people will be living in cities. That’s 68.5 per cent of global population. As the cities grow, they will require water security for sustaining needs of their populations as well as ecosystems. With growing population, new socio-economic, infrastructural and ecological challenges will emerge. For any city, water scarcity is a key hurdle in achieving inclusive urban growth. Water scarcity is not only when demand exceeds supply but also when inequality and quality issues impact the water supply as well as ecological systems. Presently, many cities in the world are facing water crisis and in the coming three decades, as industrial and domestic water demand increases by 50 to 80 per cent, things are going to get tough for urban planners. Further, climate change, by affecting the spatial distribution and timing of water availability, will exacerbate water crisis in the cities, adding to water insecurity especially of the urban poor living in informal settlements.

A research study published in nature communications shows that the “global urban population facing water scarcity is projected to increase from 933 million (one third of global urban population) in 2016 to 1.693–2.373 billion people (one third to nearly half of global urban population) in 2050, with India projected to be most severely affected in terms of growth in water-scarce urban population (increase of 153–422 million people).”

The composite Water Management Index by India’s nITI Aayog said, in 2019, “that 5 of the world’s 20 largest cities under water stress are in India, with Delhi being second on the list. Additionally, 8 million children below the age of 14 in urban India are at risk due to poor water supply.” This same document asserts that water supply infrastructure in the major metropolitan cities of the country, which was never designed to cater to such large population sizes, will be unable to serve the urban population.

This is a global concern as well. The number of large cities exposed to water scarcity is projected to increase from 193 to 193–284, including 10–20 megacities. This is a matter of huge

concern and certainly and calls for better vision for our cities. cities are known for their ‘centralised’ approach to water supply. This is a typical character of city water governance and is linked to the engineering and infrastructure approach that cities have adopted. The above paper, published in nature communications, points out that “urban water scarcity has typically been addressed via engineering and infrastructure. reservoirs are commonly used to store water during periods of excess availability and continuously supply water to cities to avoid water shortages during dry periods.” These have been costly solutions and often come with huge ecological costs not only inside the city limits but in far off places from where the cities draw their water. city planners therefore need to think beyond their geographies to tackle their water scarcity. This is an argument I have been relentlessly making in this column for years.

nATurE brInGS WATEr

A third of 105 of the world’s largest cities (including Jakarta, Indonesia; new York, united States; Mumbai, India; Quito, Ecuador; and Melbourne) derive their water from forest protected areas. Healthy forests, mangroves and other natural systems have a direct impact on water quantity by maintaining water flow, absorbing rainfall and replenishing watersheds.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation’s Forest and Water Programme argues that approximately 75 per cent of the world’s accessible freshwater for agricultural, domestic, urban, industrial and environmental uses comes from forests. Forests and trees are essential to maintaining resilient production systems, communities and ecosystems. They are vital to our water supply, providing high quality water resources; they intercept atmospheric moisture, contribute to cloud formation, reduce erosion and recharge groundwater. However, changes in climate and land-use are contributing to altered groundwater and base flows locally, and precipitation regionally. With approximately 80 per cent of the world population facing water insecurity,

the management of forests for water is becoming increasingly important. The relationship between forest and water resources needs to be addressed through integrated management and policies, supported by scientific understanding. And cities need to care for forests, more than anyone else.

TWO -PrOnGED STrATEGY FOr WATEr SEcurITY

Ironically, the city governments which depend on these forests and watersheds from far off places to provide water supply to an ever-growing urban population, hardly care about these forests and water ecosystems. I understand the municipalities are gasping for funds. A recent report by the reserve bank of India shows that the own revenue of Indian municipal corporations was less than 1 per cent of GDP, smaller than brazil’s (7 per cent) and South Africa’s (6 per cent), and that they are heavily dependent on state and central funds. That should not be an excuse, rather can be an opportunity for better collaborative efforts to manage watersheds and river basins that bring water to them. Working with state and central governments and other stakeholders – most importantly local forest protecting communities in the watersheds – should be the first strategy for making cities water-secured and in return recharge the ecosystems back at the origin to benefit the rural communities. The second strategy should be to look into water commons within their own geographical limits. The cities are losing their wetlands fast due to grey infrastructure. They need forests and waterbodies for meeting water needs and adapting to climate change impacts such as heatwave and flash floods. No time should be lost to restore these commons. And most importantly, the youth should be involved in these efforts. We are trying to do that in the #Youth4WaterIndia campaign. Such efforts should be promoted and expanded this year and in future years if we are serious about meeting our climate and SDG goals.

[The views expressed are the author’s own. They do not purport to reflect the views of Urban Update.]

Praveen Bhardwaj Senior Urban Expert

Development of Indian Cities by Giving New Impetus

in India at mid-year residing in urban areas will be 43.2 per cent.

ISome of THe mAjoR PRoBlemS

fACeD By INDIAN CITIeS

Urban sprawl

India is developing at a fast rate and is presently the fifth largest economy in the world. The urban population at present is 35.9 per cent as per UN estimates while it contributes nearly 60 per cent of the GDP (NITI Aayog report). While urbanisation has been an instrument of economic, social and political progress, it has also led to some serious socio-economic problems.

The rapid growth of urban population both natural and through migration, has put heavy pressure on urban spaces and the major problems being faced are urban sprawl, overcrowding, housing, unemployment, slums and squatter settlements, transport, water, sewerage, waste disposal, electricity, pollution, health, education, etc.

The United Nations-Habitat’s World Cities Report 2022 states that India’s urban population is projected to be 67 cr in 2035, growing from 48 cr in 2020 to 54 cr in 2025 and 61 cr in 2030. By 2035, the percentage of population

large cities act as magnets and attract large number of migrants for employment and educational opportunities, health services and modern way of life provided by cities. The expansion of the cities, both in population and geographical area is the root cause of urban problems. In most cities the economic base is incapable of dealing with the problems created by their excessive size.

overcrowding

overcrowding is a logical consequence of over-population in urban areas. large cities have a large size of population which has no option but to squeeze in a small space leading to many urban problems.

Housing

overcrowding leads to a chronic problem of shortage of houses in urban areas. This problem is specifically more acute in those urban areas where there is large influx of unemployed or

underemployed migrants who have no place to live in when they enter cities/ towns from the surrounding areas.

Unemployment

one of the major causes of urban unemployment is the large scale migration of people from rural to urban areas. The general poverty among the rural people pushes them out to urban areas to migrate in search of better livelihood and improved life. The growth of economic opportunities fails to keep pace with the quantum of migration.

Slums and squatter settlements

Rapid urbanisation in conjunction with industrialisation and unchecked, unplanned and haphazard growth of urban areas results in the growth and spread of slums and squatter settlements which present a striking feature in the ecological structure of Indian cities, especially of metropolitan centres.

Transport

Urban mobility is a major challenge due to the limited road spaces and rising number of vehicles, mostly private. This results in congestion on roads and the related road safety issues. These grow in size and complexity as the city grows.

Water

major cities in India do not have adequate water resources to meet the needs of city dwellers. In dry summer months, taps often run dry for several days and people are denied water supply at a time when they need it the most. many smaller towns have no main water supply infrastructure at all and depend on sources such as individual tubewells and household open wells.

Sewerage Problems

Urban areas in India are almost invariably plagued with insufficient and inefficient sewerage facilities. According to latest estimates, only 3540 per cent of the urban population has the privilege of sewerage system.

In smaller cities the sewerage system is nearly non-existent and there is an urgent need for faecal sludge and septage management.

Waste management

As Indian cities grow in number and size the problem of waste management is assuming alarming proportions. most cities do not have proper waste management systems and the existing landfills are running beyond capacity. Proper waste management with segregation, collection, processing, transportation, and disposal is needed.

Urban Pollution

With rapid urbanisation, industries and transport systems grow even faster. These are primarily responsible for pollution of the environment, particularly the urban environment.

PoSSIBle SolUTIoNS

A city and its status rest on four pillars — economic, political, educational and cultural. In our country we need to help the cities to achieve the above in a phased and planned manner.

Development around highways and expressways

Many new highways and expressways are being developed in India. As the road length increases there is potential for developing economic corridors and activities such as logistics along these routes and thereby develop trade and industry. These could be supplemented with appropriate commercial and housing facilities to enable integrated development.

New airports

All the new airports being developed in the country are distant from the cities. The new area that lies between the city boundary and the airport has potential for development though this needs proper planning with appropriate building regulations. Various activities such as hospitality and cargo logistics may find these locations much suited.

New port and coastal area development

India has a big coast line and as per the estimates nearly 17 crore people live near the coastlines in many cities and in rural areas which lie along the cost. All these coastal areas face climate change related risks like flooding, and cyclones. At the same time, such areas along the coast offer significant potential for development as tourism centres as well as activities such as fisheries development. In addition there are various initiatives to develop coastal shipping as a transport alternative to relieve congestion on highways. This too offers great potential for development of related infrastructure.

emergence of new educational cities

large private universities are emerging and every state needs new universities or extension of the well-established educational institutions to cater to the increasing population and the educational needs to support the country in its growth. If supplemented with housing and other developments, these locations too can provide alternatives to the city centre.

Cultural and Religious Cities

In recent years many old religious and cultural centres are being developed and these have therefore seen increased footfalls which helps in the city growth and livelihood potential. The examples of the city which have seen increased footfalls are Tirupati, Varanasi, Ujjain and Kedarnath. There could be several other such centres which offer good potential thereby enabling better livelihood options for the local population and increased economic activity.

Rural Urban continuum to be given importance

The rural-urban continuum should be given importance and special focus may be given to these areas. The more urbanised states may select some areas where this model may be tried.

[The views expressed are the author’s own. They do not purport to reflect the views of Urban Update.]

Lekha Chakraborty Professor, National Institute of Public Finance and Policy

Financing ULBs to Strengthen our Future Cities

Policy

Against the backdrop of the 73rd and 74th Amendments, in 1992, India institutionalised the structure of local governance with the devolution of functions and finances to the third tier of government. The Urban Local Bodies (ULB) include municipal corporations, municipal councils and Nagar panchayats, which are created for providing civic and community services like health care, education, housing, and transport in cities. However, given the asymmetry in the functions and finances, “unfunded mandates” became a critical issue in the financing of cities. Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in India are amongst the weakest globally in terms of fiscal autonomy. In South Africa, the local governments have attractive tax handles with no major taxes at the State level other than casino taxes and horse races, which gives an ‘hourglass model of finances’. In Scandinavian countries, local governments have substantial access to dynamic tax bases including

income tax. However, in India, there are no major buoyant and dynamic taxes at the third tier.

AIn India, the financing of cities depends on two sources of revenue - intergovernmental fiscal transfers from the Centre (including Finance Commissions) and State governments; and their own tax handles. The recent RBI (2022) report on municipal finance shows that municipal revenues and expenditures in India have stagnated at around 1 per cent of GDP for over a decade. In contrast, municipal revenues/ expenditures account for 7.4 per cent of GDP in Brazil and 6 per cent of GDP in South Africa. Property tax, the significant source of revenue for ULBs, amounts to less than 0.5 per cent of GDP. Vijay Kelkar and Ajay Shah (2019) in their book argued that the Centre and the States may share onesixth of their GST revenue with the third tier to improve the buoyancy of municipal revenue.

The gross municipal borrowing constitutes less than 0.05 per cent of GDP cumulatively for all municipal corporations, with significant variations across States (RBI, 2022). The hard budget constraints at the local level thwart the flexibility of funds at the local level, with no captive subsovereign debt market. As pointed out

Balamuraly B Researcher, National Institute of Public Finance and

by Abhay Pethe (2013), the inability to autonomously access capital markets has weakened the ability of ULBs to fulfil their mandated functions. Only nine municipal corporations have municipal bond issuances in India, raising around Rs 3,840 crore during the period between 2017 and 2021 (RBI, 2022). A dynamic municipal debt market for municipal bonds can provide fiscal space for financing city infrastructure projects.

The “principle of subsidiarity” which states that the decision should be taken at the level closest to people - is crucial for minimum government, and maximum governance. The 15th Finance Commission (FC-XV) report under the Chairmanship of Dr N K Singh has recommended Rs 4.36 lakh crore as grants to Local governments for the period 2021-22 to 2025-26. This is a game changer, as this is the largest share of grants to be assigned to local bodies by Finance Commissions. The 15th FC’s preference for a fixed amount rather than a proportion of a divisible

pool adds predictability to the quantum and timing of fund flow, thus reducing revenue uncertainty, as reported by RBI MF Report 2022. However, fiscal marksmanship is affected due to a huge deviation between the allotted share and the actuals. The actual release to the local bodies has been lower than the recommended amount by about 15 per cent, primarily due to their failure to meet different conditionality (RBI, 2022). The inter se distribution of Finance Commission transfers among States is based on a weight of 90 per cent for the population and 10 per cent for the area of States. The 15th FC recommendation to make audited municipal finance accounts (digital access) is laudable to attain general government data. Digital infrastructure is crucial for sustainable urbanisation.

State Finance Commissions (SFCs) are also crucial in the financing of cities. The SFC reports are mandated for fiscal devolution, arriving at a formula for the devolution of funds with due consideration to (i) distribution of tax

proceeds between State governments and municipalities; (ii) allocation of revenue across all levels of municipal governments; (iii) taxes, duties and tolls to be assigned or appropriated by municipalities; and (iv) measures to improve the financial position of municipalities. Pinaki Chakraborty and Manish Gupta (2019) in their analysis highlighted that in most States, SFCs have not been effective in reducing Adhoc-ism and arbitrariness in rules-based devolution of funds to local governments because the SFCs on average take around 32 months to submit their reports, resulting in an average delay of about 16 months. Thus affecting the flow of funds. They also estimated that the average time taken by State governments to table the Action Taken Report (ATR) in the State legislature is around 11 months.

Yet another major constraint in analysing the financing of cities is the lack of uniform data across all States in India. The lack of consolidated data on third-tier finances in India constrains the evaluation of the quality of local-level public expenditure for determining the magnitude of intergovernmental fiscal transfers (IGFT). RBI reported that in only nine of the fourteen States, a “municipal accounts manual” has been approved by the respective State government. There is no uniform accounting code for ULBs to date, which makes the comparison and consolidation difficult. IMF has consistently published the cross-country general government data as “Government Finance Statistics” (GFS). The RBI (2022) data collation of municipal finances would bring India on par with international standards for GFS, as underscored in the progress reports of the G20 Data Gaps Initiative. The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 11) which refers to Sustainable Cities and Communities mandates that effective governance of cities is critical to sustainable development, to make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

[The views expressed are the author’s own. They do not purport to reflect the views of Urban Update.]

Action-Oriented and Effective Combating of Climate Change

TCLIMATeSMART CITIeS ASSeSSMeNT FRAMeWORk (CSCAF)

The Indian urban system is the second largest in the world with over 498 million people living in 5,200 cities, as per the United Nations-Habitat World Cities Report 2022. Climate change being a global phenomenon is largely impacting urban lives. As a result, cities need to take proactive steps towards climate resilience to mitigate the effects of global warming, such as increasing renewable energy sources, promoting energy efficiency, restoring green cover, and providing capacity building and training for ULBs.

Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi made the pledge at COP26. In order to achieve success, a coordinated approach is required at the national, state, and local levels. Cities at the local government level are able to make the greatest difference in India. ULBs should consider implementing the following mitigation and adaptation measures at the local level to increase climate resilience.

This first-of-its-kind framework in the world – ClimateSmart Cities Assessment Framework (CSCAF) framework at C-Cube, NIUA – has been developed to create synergy across all climate actions which are being undertaken in Indian cities by various stakeholders. A range of partners work with the Centre to strengthen the capacities of Indian cities in understanding, implementing, and monitoring climate change impacts at local levels. The framework focuses on inspiring cities to implement climate-informed actions leading to sustainable urban development and improved quality of life. The framework is broadly categorized into five themes namely; (i) Urban Planning, Green Cover and Biodiversity, (ii) energy and Green Buildings, (iii) Mobility and Air Quality, (iv) Water Management, and (v) Waste Management. As the cities in India are diverse in climatic zones and geographies, the framework provides the cities with tailor-made solutions through the diagnostic report. For phase three of CSCAF, 220+ cities have participated and will be able to know their current status towards climate resilience.

Mohini Bhaisare

Senior Associate, Climate Centre for Cities (C-Cube), National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA)

DeDICATeD ACTION PLANS AT CITy LeveL

As specified in the technical document of ClimateSmart Cities Assessment Framework 3.0, following city level action plans help in identifying and addressing the dedicated climate change actions.

City Climate Action Plan

The city must prepare and implement the Climate Action Plan. It must be developed in a comprehensive manner covering all sectors, including waste management, integrated water management, urban planning, green cover, biodiversity, mobility and air pollution monitoring, energy efficiency, green buildings, and disaster risk preparedness. Based on a GHG emissions inventory and a vulnerability assessment to climate change, the plan should propose both mitigation and adaptation measures.

Clean Air Action Plan

As mandated by the National Clean Air Programme (2019), the Clean Air Action Plan reviews the efforts the city has made to improve air quality, with planning and regular air quality management strategies.

Water Resource Management Plan

A detailed Water Resource Management Plan (with short, medium, and long term actions) for the city is needed to assess the availability and demand of water, as well as its uses for various sectors, projected future water demand, and water quality.

Flood Management Plan

This plan should include information about floods, flooding hotspots (mapping), levels and frequency of floods, flood/water stagnation, detailed flood risk assessments for five, ten and fifty years, and mechanisms for implementing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in accordance with MoHUA/state guidelines.

Disaster Management Plan

Cities should identify their potential hazards and be prepared to respond

promptly in case of a disaster. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) recommends a citylevel disaster management plan that focuses on mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.

TRAINING (PRACTICAL) & CAPACITy BUILDING

Training should be targeted at city officials and should further focus on governance and management processes that are necessary to address climate challenges. In addition, training should be provided to trainers from regional training institutions in order to extend the reach of capacity building. National and international climate experts should share their insights, and good practices with urban professionals and city officials in explaining the crucial aspects of climate action.

MUNICIPAL FUNDING By TRADING CARBON CReDITS

The availability of financial resources at the city level is one of the most pressing challenges faced by ULBs when implementing climate action projects. For cities to implement the identified climate projects at the local level, alternative funding options must be developed. Among the various funding options, trading carbon credits has been widely discussed as one of the best solutions for cities.

Indian Parliament passed the energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill 2022 recently, which promotes domestic carbon credit trade in the country. Carbon trading involves the purchase and sale of carbon credits, which are permits that allow owners to emit a certain amount of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases. As compensation, they are encouraged to invest in green projects to earn the right to do more emissions.

Indore is the first city in the country to generate income from carbon trading. Indore generated Rs.50 lakh in November 2020 for reducing 1.70 lakh tonnes of carbon emissions under the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) programme . Additionally, Indore has

earned an income of Rs.8.34 crore from the sale of 70,000 carbon credits during 2020-21 . This initiative provides a pathway for other Indian cities to identify projects to earn carbon credits and the revenue generated can be utilized for climate projects.

The concept of generating revenue from carbon trading at the local government level is still in its infancy, and cities will require assistance in understanding the process. To accomplish this, state, regional, and national governments must provide the required assistance along with training and capacity-building platforms to the city officials.

CONCLUSION

In order to achieve the desired outcomes, significant investment is needed in terms of human and financial capital. Additionally, the complexity of the challenge and the interdependency of these initiatives requires a comprehensive approach that involves multiple stakeholders, such as governments, the private sector, and civil society. Climate action strategies should be integrated, and all direct and indirect stakeholders should collaborate. Furthermore, the impact of these projects needs to be monitored and evaluated continuously to guarantee their success. It will help in creating a sense of accountability and ensure that the strategies are properly implemented. Furthermore, it will enable stakeholders to work together to address the impacts of climate change and ensure the success of these strategies.

Furthermore, the majority of attention is focused on mitigation; however, adaptation must also be considered. Adaptation should be incorporated into every planning and implementation exercise, as it will help us to better prepare for and respond to the impacts of climate change. It is important to ensure that we are building resilience to these impacts and have strategies in place to address them.

[The views expressed are the author’s own. They do not purport to reflect the views of Urban Update.]

Annual Network Meet to strengthen stakeholders’ participation

The two-day Annual Meet was organized at Hotel Radisson Blu, Ranchi during December 21-22, 2022. It was inaugurated by Satyanand Bhogta, Minister of Labour Resources, Government of Jharkhand in the presence of Dr Jairaj Phatak, IAS (Retd.), Director General, AIILSG, Ravi Ranjan Guru, Deputy Director General, AIILSG, Shouvik Datta, Senior Programme Manager, European Union – Delegation to India and other dignitaries. After inauguration of the event, all the delegates went for a walk through the gallery where all of them interacted with women entrepreneurs in 14 stalls represented by women beneficiaries from blocks where project activities are being taken. Products were on sale for the occasion which gave ample encouragement to the women entrepreneurs. During the event, Policy Dialogue on Scope of Women Entrepreneurship and policy level intervention including financial assistance to promote women entrepreneurship in Jharkhand was also organised.

Further, expert talk on ‘Expansion and Scale up of Rural & Tribal Women Enterprises, Products and Services’ for their livelihood and experience sharing session with women entrepreneurs was also organised. The Annual Network Meet discussed ideas and concerns of stakeholders about the Girl Power project, expectations from both the parties to understand the scenario and make a future road map and strategies for local bodies and administration to give their support to the project as well as women beneficiaries for establishing enterprise.

OBJEcTIvE OF ANNUAL NETWORk MEET OF GIRL POWER PROJEcT

Girl Power Project is carrying out its project activities with the support of civil society organizations (cSOs) and other stakeholders. It is important to have regular interaction with stakeholders and discuss the plan of action. The core objective of this project is to enhance the technical capacity of women beneficiaries and make them self-reliant through entrepreneurship development. In order to achieve the objective of women empowerment, such network meet plays an important role. It helps in building a good relationship between the project team, stakeholders and policy makers. This type of engagement helps to fill the gaps between project implementing team and the stakeholders. Annual Network Meet focused on a dialogue on multiple topics of relevance with the stakeholders. The agenda for the dialogue is driven by all parties and focused on:

♦ Mainstream the rural and tribal women entrepreneurs with universal ecosystem of entrepreneurship

♦ Initiate policy advocacy for strengthening rural entrepreneurship ecosystem in Jharkhand

♦ Exhibit and promote the products and services of rural and tribal women entrepreneurs in Jharkhand.

LEARNINGS & OUTcOMES

Bhogta emphasized the efforts of the

Team Girl Power ProjecT

Government of Jharkhand in working towards skill development in the state and committed to support Girl Power Project to create more entrepreneurs, especially women and girls in the state of Jharkhand.

Shouvik Datta, Senior Programme Manager, European Union – Delegation to India expressed his happiness on the activities taken up by the Girl Power Project as they are working for creating entrepreneurship among rural women for their livelihood. He said that the project must work with the Government of Jharkhand and other vocational institutes to deliver the best out of the project.

Many women entrepreneurs have participated in the programme, but many more can come in future to sell their products on different marketing platforms with the help of Girl Power Project. This is great learning for the women entrepreneurs who have participated in this programme. They can then motivate other women to come forward so that they can get a better platform for the marketing of their products with the help of the project.

Some government departments of Jharkhand having similar objectives are ready to support women in different aspects like subsidy, training and capacity building, food processing,

marketing of their products and thus promote women entrepreneurship. For example, fruitful collaborations can be had with government departments like Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society (JSLPS), Tribal cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED), Jharkhand State co-operative Lac Marketing & Procurement Federation Ltd (JAScOLAMPF) and JHARcRAFT, a government undertaking, for marketing of the products prepared by women beneficiaries.

SUGGESTIONS AND REcOMMENDATIONS FROM THE ENGAGEMENT GROUPS

Girl Power Project team should work hand in hand with different stakeholders for better learning and opportunities to sell the products of women beneficiaries to fetch better value and their improved livelihood. The scope of the project can be extended to remaining districts of Jharkhand as well. Similar activities and efforts can be made to get the support from other institutions or government agencies to promote women entrepreneurship in Jharkhand as well as other parts of the country.

Recently, European Union-funded Girl Power Project organised a two-

day Annual Network Meet, aiming at stakeholders participation and engagement. Stakeholder engagement is based on mutual respect and understanding.

The strongest forms of engagement are those where there are clear, identifiable benefits for both the parties. However, this does not mean that stakeholder engagement is only useful if there is an opportunity to create shared value. But it does not imply agreement on all topics nor should that ever be the objective of engagement. After all, both the parties have their own responsibilities and values to adhere. The reality is that the value of each engagement is different for the project team and for a specific stakeholder group. In situations where there is more regular interaction between team and its stakeholders the value pendulum can swing freely between the parties.

The minimum value for a project is always the strengthening of relationships. Regardless of who gains the most from a specific discussion, it is important to be transparent about the value for each of the participants, organization and others alike. Sometimes, based on strategic choices, the project team will have to accept that its engagement actions bring no or even adverse value to certain stakeholders. In that case, the benefit of the engagement with the stakeholder might be limited to gaining knowledge of the project plans and having an opportunity to take its concerns directly to the company. Yet, this is no excuse for not engaging.

Also, when designing an engagement strategy, it is important to realize that not all stakeholders and their opinions are equally important. It is better for a project team to focus on key stakeholders and do that well rather than try to engage too many stakeholders. In order for the project to be successful it will need to constantly map and review the stakeholder landscape, set clear criteria for selecting of stakeholders based on materiality and regularly review its overall engagement objectives and strategy.

Satyanand Bhokta, Minister of Labour, Planning, Training and Skill Development, Government of Jharkhand, inaugurated the National Annual Network Meet under EU funded Girl Power project at Ranchi, Jharkhand.

AIILSG Ahmedabad Centre conducted Integrated Capacity Building Training Program (Capsule-I)

Batch-IV (NULM) of ULB officials of Government of Madhya Pradesh

AIILSG conducted first district level workshop under the Atal Bhujal Yojana in Rewari district of Haryana

AIILSG conducted second 4-day Level 3 Residential Training under Jal Jeevan Mission on December 22-25, 2022, for Division offcials of Pulwama and Awantipora in Srinagar, Kashmir

LMC receives ‘Energy Efficient Solution’ award

Ludhiana Municipal Corporation (LMC) won the ‘Energy Efficient Solution of the Year’ Award at the eighth National Digital Transformation Conclave and Award held in Guwahati. Shena Aggarwal, Commissioner LMC, stated that the project aimed to reduce energy consumption by replacing existing street lights with LED luminaries and installing Centralised Control and Monitoring System (CCMS). The project was taken up at the expense of `71 crore including a sum of `13.39 crore for infrastructure development charges. Over 1,474 switch points have been installed and 1.5 lakh LEDs have been replaced across the city.

Panchkula ULB inform HC: No waste being dumped at Jhuriwala

CAG criticises CMC, BMC over slaughterhouse mess

BHUBANESWAR: The Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) and Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) have been criticised in a recently released report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) for failing to keep open slaughtering in check. The CAG report for the year 2021 noted that CMC hasn’t obtained the Consent for Establishment (CFE) and Consent for Operation (CFO) from the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) to make their abattoirs operational, and running a slaughterhouse without the approval of the SPCB means animals are being slaughtered illegally.

Apart from that, none of the slaughterhouses in the jurisdiction of both the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) has any working waste management

or processing plants. The CAG report reads, “The liquid waste generated was allowed directly into the drainage system. The solid waste generated in the slaughterhouses and retail mutton, chicken, and fish shops is also mixed with solid waste and transported to landfill sites. The deep burial of carcasses and animals was not practiced by ULBs, instead they were disposed to the landfill.”

The report also mentions that BMC constructed a slaughterhouse at Gadakana in August 2017 for `7.02 crore, which was idle till January 2021. Similarly, the slaughterhouses constructed by CMC were in ruins due to non-maintenance. These dilapidated structures are creating environmental problems and disseminating foul smell in nearby areas.

Bihar cabinet decides to penalise violators of single use plastic ban

PATNA: The Bihar State Cabinet on, December 12, approved the Bihar Municipal Plastic Waste Management Amendment Model By-laws 2022 along with 11 other agendas. S Siddharth, Additional Chief Secretary, Cabinet Co-ordination Department, said that the ban also applies to the common people.

The Panchkula Municipal Corporation (PMC) on December 14, informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court that no waste is being dumped at Jhuriwala dumping ground. PMC’s submission came in response to a plea against dumping waste in Jhuriwala, which is polluting the Ghaggar River. The civic body informed that “as on date, no dumping is taking place on the site in question.” There is only legacy waste at the site which was dumped in the past and is now being processed and taken away from the site.

Burning plastic in the open will incur a fine of `2,000 for the first time, `3,000 for the second time and `5,000 for the third time. Similarly, domestic users, if caught using single use plastic in the market, will be fined `100 for the first time, `200 on the second instance, and the third time violators have to pay `500.

Additionally, throwing plastic waste in public spaces, including parks, drains, archaeological sites etc, will attract a fine of `1,000 for the first time, `1,500 for the second time and `2,000 for the third time.

Apart from that, anyone organising a gathering or an event involving more than 100 people without informing the concerned urban local body (ULB) will be fined `1,500 for the first time, `2,000 for the second time, and `2,500 for the third time.

Law prohibits using decorative items made of polystyrene (thermocol), plastic cups, plates, spoons, forks, knives, straws, trays, stirrers, plastic films, invitation cards and plastic of thickness less than 100 microns or PVC banners in urban areas.

WB govt to promote innovation in plastic waste management

KOLKATA: Firhad Hakim, Minister for Urban Development and Mayor of Kolkata, on December 12, said that the violators of plastic ban norms will be penalised while, on the other hand, entrepreneurs will be encouraged to solve this plastic menace. As per the report published by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), in West Bengal, around 2 lakh tonnes of plastic waste remained unprocessed and was left to pollute the environment during 2019-20. As per the report, the state generated 3 lakh tonnes of plastic waste during the same period, out of which only 39,091 tonnes (13 per cent) were recycled and 60,047 tonnes (20 per cent), were burnt legally. The rest were either disposed of or burnt illegally.

The Plastic Management Act mandates that each local body must set up infrastructure for the collection, storage, segregation, transportation, processing and disposal of plastic waste. The act also specifies that an Individual has to pay a fine of `50, and the vendors will be fined `500 for using a plastic bag of less than 75 microns in thickness.

In terms of the quantity of illegally disposed of plastic waste, West Bengal stood in fifth place. Maharashtra tops the list with 2.9 lakh tonnes, followed by Tamil Nadu. Gujarat is third from the last, followed by Telangana in the category of “total plastic waste left” without treatment.

Ferozepur district clears 7,911 MT legacy waste

The Government of Punjab has informed that Ferozepur district in the state has cleared all of its legacy waste, amounting to 7,911 metric tonnes (MT). Dr Inderbir Singh Nijjar, Minister for Local Government, said, “The waste produced daily is sent to the materials recovery facility (MRF) and compost pits so that it can be recycled.” He later added that the local administration has achieved door-to-door segregation of around 85 per cent of all the household waste, and the remaining mixed waste is segregated daily and disposed of on the same day.

5 EV charging stations to come up in Shimla

Haryana:

ULB

minister says 43 lakh properties identified for tax

CHANDIGARH: Dr Kamal Gupta, Minister for Urban Local Body, Government of Haryana, on December 13, said that nearly 43 lakh properties have been identified for property tax in urban areas of Haryana. The minister also asked the public to pay the fee by the end of this month under the government’s tax waiver scheme.

While addressing a press conference, the minister said that under the government’s tax waiver scheme, “complete interest is being waived on the outstanding house tax amount.” The minister added that till now, around 33 lakh property IDs have been made.

Gupta said that in a survey, they have identified more than 23.50 lakh new properties out of a total of 43 lakh.

Additionally, 1.98 lakh objections have been registered, and the government has empowered the District Municipal Commissioner for the speedy resolution of these objections. Till now, around 1 lakh objections have been resolved, 60,000 have been cancelled, and 30,000 are still pending.

He also said that the decision of the government to mark parking areas in crowded places in the cities has shown positive results. Considering the success of this move, the government has decided to create marked out spaces for parking two-wheelers and four-wheelers in 11 cities including Yamunanagar, Panipat, Karnal, Gurugram, Faridabad, Panchkula, Sonipat, Manesar, Rohtak, Hisar and Ambala.

Municipal Corporation in Shimla is set to come up with five electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in next couple of months. Earlier the Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, announced that the government is looking to replace all government fossil fuel vehicles with EVs. Ashish Kohli, Commissioner, Municipal Corporation of Shimla, said, “We have allotted five sites for setting up the charging stations to two PSU (Public Sector Undertaking) companies and a private one. We have already signed an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Rajasthan Electronics Industries Limited and Sunfuel Electric, a private Gurugram-based company. A pact with Energy Efficiency Service Limited will be signed shortly.”

Guntur comes 2nd in Citizen Perception Survey

Indore to revive water bodies using smart solutions

The efforts of the Guntur Municipal Corporation (GMC) have succeeded in helping the city secure second rank among the states and eighth in half-amillion population city ranking category at the national level in the Citizen Perception Survey. Over 55,000 citizens participated in the survey. The civic body engaged inward secretaries and ward volunteers to reach out to the public with the help of door-to-door campaigns and awareness programmes conducted at the office and educational institutions to encourage people to participate in the survey. Kirthi Chekuri, Commissioner, GMC, conducted regular meetings to inspect the progress of these programmes.

Gurugram to get India’s largest WTE plant

Dr Kamal Gupta, Minister for Urban Local Bodies, inaugurated the construction work of the largest waste-to-energy (WTE) plant in the country in Gurugram. Gupta said that the plant would be a milestone in proper disposal of waste, thus helping both Gurugram and Faridabad districts in the state. He said, “The WTE will start working within two years. The machinery to be installed in the plant has been imported from Germany and this plant will be based on state-of-the-art technology. It will have two boilers of 750 TPD (tonnes per day) capacity each, a turbogenerator of 25 MW (Megawatt) capacity and a control room.”

INDORE: Indore Smart City to revive water bodies with the help of smart solutions such as involvement of Resident Welfare Associations (RWA) and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) etc, aerial survey of water bodies for mapping their catchment channels and installing fountains to maintain dissolved oxygen level in water bodies. There are around 455 wells, 25 stepwells and 29 lakes across Indore. Its water bodies rejuvenation project began with the cleaning and beautification of the Hari Rao Holkar Chhatri Stepwell under the heritage conservation efforts.

After the survey, to assess the conditions of these water bodies, an action plan was framed by Indore Smart City to rejuvenate its water bodies. The

action plan includes exercises such as desilting, deepening and clearing the catchment channels.

During the geo-tagging exercise, it was found that illegal establishments drained their wastewater in these water bodies leading to the accumulation of silt, resulting in reduced water storage capacity and non-potability of water. These illegal structures were removed with due consultation with all the stakeholders before the rejuvenation exercise.

Once the desilting, cleaning of water bodies, and the rainwater harvesting structures are connected to the city’s well through a recharge shaft, conservation of these water bodies will be handed over to local stakeholders such as RWA, NGOs and Garden teams.

80 AMRUT projects completed in Mission cities

J&K:

JAMMU: As per the official document of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India, a total of 80 Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) projects worth `406 crore have been completed in Jammu and Kashmir, while 24 projects worth `194.22 crore will begin shortly.

AMRUT mission aims to ensure the development of basic infrastructure in various sectors, including sewerage and septage management, non-motorised urban transport, stormwater drainage, etc.

According to the document, in three mission cities, a total of 66,500 new sewer connections have been provided, and a total of 2,64,642 households have been covered under the septage management. The document also stated that 13 park projects spread over 5 acres and 32 drainage projects having 122 water logging points have also been completed in three mission cities.

Further, 43 urban local bodies (ULBs), including AMRUT towns have Online Building Permission System, 13 green mobility projects have been completed, and a total of 1,43,710 street lights have been replaced.

MoHUA has asked the Union Territory Administration of Jammu and Kashmir to ensure prompt execution of all the projects. The AMRUT mission has been extended to achieve its objective as AMRUT 2.0 till March 31, 2023.

NGT fines Nagaland Govt `200 cr for improper waste management

TN: CCMC asks people to link PDS card with tax assessment number

DIMAPUR: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has levied environmental compensation of `200 crore on Government of Nagaland for its failure to manage sewage and solid waste. Yanathung Kithan, Scientist ‘B’, Nagaland Pollution Control Board (NPCB), mentioned that the Nagaland Integrated Waste Management Policy 2019 aims to achieve sustainable waste

management by 2030 throughout the state and urged for community participation and take the role of “my waste my responsibility.”

The day-long workshop was organised by the Dimapur division of the Public Health Engineering Department in collaboration with the Niuland Town Council under the theme “Freedom from Garbage.”

Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel launches U20 logo in Gandhinagar

AHMEDABAD: Chief Minister of Gujarat Bhupendra Patel launched the logo of Urban 20 (U20), a special vertical of G20, and its website and social media platforms on December 19, 2022, in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. With this Ahmedabad formally takes up the U20 Presidency, which has been selected to host the U20 cycle in February 2023. While speaking at the launch event, Patel said that Ahmedabad is growing as the major urban centre in the country and it would play an important role as the President of U20 which is one of the engagement groups of G20.

Patel highlighted the glorious past of Gujarat, citing the two world heritage sites Dholavira and Lothal, which represent the Harappan and Indus Valley Civilisation. He also mentioned Vadnagar, the birthplace of Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, which has been chronicled by Hiuen Tsang, the renowned Chinese traveler from the 7th Century.

Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India, attended the event virtually and shared Narendra Modi’s vision ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ which stands for ‘The world is One Family’ and expressed his happiness over U20 being organised in Ahmedabad. Puri said, “U20 is an important city diplomacy initiative which reinforces the role of cities in taking the sustainable agenda forward.”

The Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) has directed the people to link their Public Distribution System (PDS) card with the tax assessment number before January 31, 2023. Owners of residential buildings in area of CCMC must link their PDS card with the property tax number, while the commercial building owners must link their PAN or GST number with the property tax number. Additionally, people who have rented or leased properties of the corporation should also link their PAN or GST details with rental or leased allocation number.

CM announces extension of property tax deadline

Chief Minister of Haryana Manohar Lal Khattar on December 27, announced that the state has extended the deadline to submit the property tax in cities from December 31, 2022, to January 31, 2023. However, people depositing their property tax before December 31 would get a 100 per cent interest waiver, while those submitting their property tax between December 31, 2022, and January 31, 2023, would get waiver for only 50 per cent of the interest amount. The Chief Minister spoke during the discussion on a calling attention motion in the State Legislative Assembly.

The

Tram sTops as Charging sTaTions an eleCTrifying soluTion!

Globally transport sector, another component of fossil-fuelbased emissions, accounts for 37 per cent of the total CO2 emissions (IEA 2021). To cut down transport emissions, countries are replacing fossil-fuel vehicles with electric ones. But extensive use of EVs could only be achieved by building a vast network of charging infrastructure, which would require a lot of space. Seville in Spain has devised an innovative solution to this. Here, tram stops serve as charging stations as well, thereby eliminating the need for separate charging stations. Tram refuels its fast-charging batteries with the help of pantographs at every stop, which saves time and space.

‘Smart City Mission’ projects likely to be completed in 2023

NEW DELHI: The Government of India’s data shows that around 88 per cent of the fund assigned by the government for the ‘Smart City Mission’ (SCM) projects has been utilised. As of December 2, 2022, the government has released `34,675 crore, out of which `30,418 crore has been utilised. Work orders were issued for 7,738 projects costing `1,81,112 crore out of which 4,987 projects worth `92,439 crore have been completed.

A senior official said that the Integrated

Command and Control Centre has been made operational in several cities, including Nagpur, Pune, Rajkot, Ahmedabad, Kakinada, Visakhapatnam, Surat, Vadodara, Bhopal etc. These cities are becoming cleaner day by day as they are using CCTV cameras for monitoring, resulting in reduced incidences of garbage thrown on roads, littering, urination in public and night time burning of garbage.

The Intelligent Transit Management System has helped cities in improving operational efficiency by reducing the cost of

operation and improving the service level. Smart City Centres are also providing technical support to improve safety of women on the streets, generate sensitivity towards the environment in people, rapid response and better preparedness for emergencies and disasters. SCM guidelines say that the central government has to provide financial support to the extent of `48,000 crore over the period of five years to the 100 Smart Cities, and an equal amount has to be contributed by the respective states and UTs.

UP govt to challenge HC’s order on ULBs

NDMC budget 2023-24 emphasises G-20 Summit

NEW DELHI: The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) introduced its budget for the financial year (FY) 2023-24, with an emphasis on preparation for the G-20 Summit to be held in New Delhi. Amit Yadav, Chairman of NDMC, presented the budget in the council meeting. Later Yadav informed the media that the council hasn’t increased property tax rates for 2023-24. However, tax revenue is projected at an all-time high of `1,150.00 crore. Apart from that, the budget for health and education sector has also been increased. Yadav also said that the council presented a forward-looking budget with a surplus of `224.98 crore in the current financial year and `583.29 crore for the financial year 2023-24 against `178.95 crore surplus projected in its budget estimate for 2022-23. The budget for the upcoming fiscal year shows a significant increase in the receipt and expenditure of the council. While keeping in mind the 7.25 per cent increase in receipts at `4,743 crore, the NDMC budget is self-sustainable with a net surplus of `583.29 crore.

The Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh has made it clear that the state government will not hold Urban Local Body (ULB) polls without providing reservation benefits to the backward classes. Therefore, the state government is planning to challenge the High Court’s order regarding reservation issues in the Supreme Court of India. The high court has ordered to conduct ULB polls without providing reservation to the Other Backward Classes (OBC). The state government is arguing that the earlier government has held the local body elections based on the same rapid survey adopted by the current government.

ULB elections: Voting held in 23 districts of Bihar

Voting was held for urban local body polls in 23 districts of Bihar, including Patna, Gaya, Ara, Purnia, Bhagalpur and Muzaffarpur, on December 28. Voting began at 7 am and concluded at 5 pm. Apart from Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC), 17 other municipal corporations, two nagar parishads and 49 nagar panchayats went into elections on Wednesday. Around 62 lakh electors were eligible to exercise their franchise in these municipal elections. A senior official from the State Election Commission (SEC) said that the results will be disclosed on December 30.

Karnataka assembly passes BMLTA Bill

The Karnataka assembly has passed the Bengaluru Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) Bill to bring transport and allied departments under one roof to decongest and manage traffic in a better way. The bill, proposed by Chief Minister of Karnataka Basavaraj Bommai, will come into effect immediately. “The roads did not widen but every day 5,000 new vehicles are added to the city. The city has 1.3 crore people but soon the number of vehicles here will overtake the city population,” Bommai said. He highlighted the need for a scientific study and that, in this regard, Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has been contacted for the same.

India gets $125 million loan from ADB

NMCG approves sewerage

infrastructure worth `2,700 crore

NEW DELHI: The development of sewerage infrastructure in the Ganga basin worth `2,700 crore has been approved at the meeting of the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG). Under the Chairmanship of G Asok Kumar, Director General of NMCG, the 46th meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Mission for Clean Ganga was held in Delhi.

For states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal, there are 12 development programmes pertaining to the development of sewerage infrastructure worth more than `2,700 crore. Whereas for Uttarkhand and Bihar, afforestation programmes were approved at an estimated cost of `42.80 crore that

aim to create a sustainable ecosystem management with community participatory approach.

In the state of West Bengal, a major project for the Rejuvenation of River Adi Ganga was approved at an estimated cost of `653.67 crore. It includes construction of three Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) of 10 million litres per day (MLD), 3.5 MLD and 11.60 MLD capacities. Three projects were approved in Uttar Pradesh, one of which includes the construction of sewerage infrastructure in Prayagraj and will cost Rs. 475.19 crore.

Projects for Daudnagar and Motihari towns in Bihar have been approved with an estimated cost of Rs. 42.25 and 149.15 crore respectively.

The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) inked a $125 million loan agreement in order to build climate-resilient sewage collection and treatment, drainage and water supply systems in three cities in Tamil Nadu – Coimbatore, Madurai, and Thoothukudi. Rajat Kumar Mishra, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance signed the tranche 3 loan for Tamil Nadu Urban Flagship Investment Program from the Indian side whereas Ho Yun Jeong, Officerin-Charge of ADB’s India Resident Mission signed the loan from ADB’s side.

Delhi’s bus

fleet

will have 80% electric buses by 2025

NEW DELHI: The Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal flagged off a fleet of 50 electric buses procured by the government at Rajghat bus depot on January 2, where he disclosed that 80 per cent of buses of Delhi’s fleet will be electric buses by 2025. Kejriwal said, “Now, we have 300 electric buses and a total of 7,379 buses. This is the highest number of buses on Delhi roads in 75 years.” He added that the government aims to procure 1,500 more electric buses by the end of 2023. “After this, the total electric buses in Delhi’s public transport fleet will be 1,800, the highest in any State.”

Apart from this, the government will procure around 6,380 electric buses by the end of 2025. Earlier, government procured around 100 electric buses from the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC). In 2025, Delhi will have 10,480 buses, 80 per cent of which will be electric buses.

In addition to electrifying the bus fleet of the UT of Delhi, government is also planning the electrification of bus depots to park these buses. The government aims to electrify 56 bus depots at the cost of `1,500 crore. In pursuance of this plan, three bus depots have already been electrified and 17 others will be electrified by June 2025. By December 2023, this number will go up to 36.

ULB Minister to MCG: Resolve property ID complaints on priority basis

GURUGRAM: Dr Kamal Gupta, Minister for Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), Government of Haryana, directed the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) to resolve the objections and complaints raised by the citizens regarding the newly generated property IDs.

Gupta said that all the objections should be resolved to allow the citizens to deposit their property tax on time. The meeting with the civic body officials was held at the PWD (Public Works Department) rest house.

The property tax survey was carried out by MCG in January 2022, after which the number of properties under the ambit of the property tax soared from 3.7 lakhs to 5 lakhs. Based on this survey, new property IDs were created and objections were invited from the residents. The residents complained that there are mistakes in the details of residents’ properties in these new property IDs, and MCG should organise camps to rectify these mistakes.

Speaking on behalf of MCG, S S Rohilla said, “The deadline to seek property tax rebate has been extended till January 31. Those who have not filed their dues can get a rebate of 50 per cent if they deposit it by January 31. To make sure that maximum number of people avail this benefit, the ULB minister directed the officials to resolve the complaints related to property IDs.”

India’s first Green Climate Fund set up in Tamil Nadu worth `1,000 crore

CHENNAI: The Government of Tamil Nadu issued an order to set up the Tamil Nadu Green Climate Fund (TNGCF) worth `1,000 crore to support climate change-related initiatives, greening projects, and mitigation efforts. It is the first-of-its-kind fund in the country which will mobilise resources from the government, development finance institutions, and international climate funds. The Tamil Nadu Infrastructure Fund Management Corporation (TNIFMC) Limited will manage the fund with a greenshoe option of another `1,000 crore.

The state government will provide the initial `100 crore which will be generated through equity, equity-linked instruments, convertible instruments, and debentures among others with a 10-year tenure extendable for two years.

Supriya Sahu, Additional Chief Secretary, Environment, Forests and Climate Change Department, said that under the SEBI Alternative Investment Fund Regulations, 2012, the process of registering TNGCF as a category 1 (social venture fund) will be done in a week or 10 days. “Once the registration is done, we will open the fund for private players for collaborate effort,” Sahu said.

To steer climate action plans effectively, the state government has set up three key missions namely, Tamil Nadu Green Mission, Tamil Nadu Climate Change Missions, and the Tamil Nadu Wetlands Mission. It has also set up Tamil Nadu Green Climate Company (TNGCC) which is a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to help implement the state climate action plan.

CM Sukhu says HP govt is planning to upgrade ULBs

The Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, informed on December 29, that the Government of Himachal Pradesh is considering the plan to upgrade some of the urban local bodies (ULBs) in the state. Sukhu, presiding over a review meeting of the Department of Urban Development, Town and Country Planning and Department of Municipal Corporation, said that the move will not only stop the illegal construction but will also facilitate planned development of these fast-emerging towns. He added that besides constructing children’s parks and parking facilities, authorities should also ensure planned development in these areas.

WB: PM Modi flagged off Vande Bharat Express

Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi flagged off the Vande Bharat Express from Howrah to New Jalpaiguri virtually. In the virtual address, he said, “Today’s Vande Bharat Train was launched from the land where ‘Vande Mataram’ slogan was coined. The Vande Bharat Express has 16 coaches and will start its journey from Howrah Station to New Jalpaiguri, covering 564 km in 7 hours and 45 minutes. It will stop at three stations, Barsoi, Malda, and Bolpur, and will save three hours of travel time compared to other trains.

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MoHUA releases draft guidelines to assess financial health of Indian cities

NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India, introduced draft guidelines and framework for ‘City Finance Rankings’ to assess and rank cities and urban local bodies (ULBs) across India. The rankings aim to assess financial health of Indian cities and ULBs. Apart from the ‘City Finance Rankings’ the ministry has also launched the draft guidelines for ‘City Beauty Competition 2022’.

As per the draft guidelines for ‘City Finance Rankings’, cities would be assessed based on their current financial status and improvement made overtime based on three parameters, including resource mobilisation, expenditure performance and fiscal governance. The ranking is an effort to help ULBs identify areas where they could improve, thus allowing cities and local bodies to deliver quality infrastructure services to the citizens.

Hardeep Singh Puri, MoHUA, Government of India said, “This initiative will provide the necessary

nudge to the urban local bodies to undertake financial reforms for improving their financial status, besides facilitating peer learning, building internal capacities to address present and future challenges, and realizing the cities’ potential as engines of growth and development. The exercise aims to assist ULBs in identifying their areas of improvement taking forward the municipal finance reforms agenda.”

The ranking of cities and ULBs will be determined based on selfreported financial data, verified and validated from the financial documents submitted by each participating ULB. ULBs will submit this data on the online rankings module, which will be operational by the end of January 2023.

Cities will be classified into four categories based on their respective population level. These four categories are less than 100,000, 100,000 to one million, one million to four million and above four million. And top three ULBs from each population category will be rewarded at the national level.

There will be state-level rankings as well. The ministry is inviting comments on the draft from January 15, and the guidelines would be finalised by January 30.

‘City Finance Rankings’ stress financial health on one hand, and the ‘City Beauty Competition’ aims to encourage and give recognition to the transformational efforts made by cities aimed at creating beautiful, innovative and inclusive public spaces in their area of jurisdiction on the other hand. Apart from that, the competition is also aimed at developing a sense of community ownership, improving quality of life, heritage conservation, neighbourhood revitalisation, sustainable communities and ecological conservation, thus fostering development of local economy.

‘Beautiful Wards’ and ‘Beautiful Public Spaces’ are two central and state-level awards which include green spaces, water fronts, tourist or heritage sites and market and other commercial spaces.

Silchar begins formation of Municipal Corporation

Kerala: Herpetofaunal survey conducted in Thiruvananthapuram wildlife division

The Government of Assam has started the process of formation of Silchar Municipal Corporation. The Delimitation Board of Silchar Municipal Corporation was formed with the District Commissioner of Cachar as the Chairperson. Other members of the delimitation board are Dipayan Chakraborty, MLA from Silchar; Hemant Bhuiyan, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs Department; Additional Deputy Commissioner of Cachar; present Excecutive Officer of Silchar Municipal Board and Bimal Oswal, social worker of Dhubri Medical Hall. The Assam Government will receive a report from the newly established delimitation board outlining the boundaries of the Silchar Municipal Corporation ward.

Gadkari inaugurates Phase 1 of Zuari Bridge

Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Government of India, inaugurated phase 1 of the new Zuari Bridge in Goa. Under this phase, four-lane right-hand side corridors and eight-lane stayed cable bridge has been inaugurated on the river Zuari at Cortalim village on the MargaoPanaji National Highway to ease the traffic woes of the state. The Chief Minister of Goa, Pramod Sawant stated that the bridge will be a tourist attraction as well as a circular road connecting the airport, railways, and seaport. He also pitched for a Light and Sound show around the bridge.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The forest department of Kerala and Aranyakam Nature Foundation conducted a herpetofaunal survey in the Thiruvananthapuram wildlife division and recorded 67 amphibians and 80 reptile species. Many of these amphibians and reptile species have been classified as vulnerable, endangered and near-threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The survey covered all the protected areas spread across 212 sq km including Peppara and Neyyar wildlife sanctuaries, and the Agasthyavanam Biological Park.

Most of the volunteers were from research institutions including Kerala Forest Research Institute; College

of Forestry; University of Calicut; St Joseph’s College, Irinjalakuda; Farooq College, Kozhikode. Travancore Natural History Society and Malabar Natural History Society were the other two NGOs to take part in the survey.

The findings included 55 Western Ghats-endemic amphibian species including spotted leaping frog, Kani bush frog and Beddome’s Toad. They also spotted critically endangered species including the Chalazodes Bubble-nest frog and the large Ponmudi bush frog.

During the survey, 186 spider species, 191 butterfly species, 129 bird species, 41 odonate species, 45 ant species, 12 mantid species and four cicada species were documented. The Peppara wildlife sanctuary recorded 83 spider species, 126 butterfly species, 115 bird species and 20 odonate species while the Neyyar wildlife sanctuary is home to 133 species of spiders, 182 species of butterflies, 70 species of birds and 35 species of odonates.

WB to enhance lending capacity to tackle climate challenge

NEW DELHI: The World Bank is planning to enhance its lending capacity to address climate change and other global issues. Ahead of its April meeting, the bank will discuss the plan that includes a capital increase and new lending tools, according to an “evolution roadmap” viewed by Reuters on January 2.

The document containing the proposals has been sent to the shareholders, with which began the negotiation process aimed at changing the mission and financial resources to shift away from the project and country-oriented model that the bank has been using since World War II.

The management team of the World Bank wants to have specific proposals to change its mission, operating model and financial capacity for approval from the joint World Bank and International Monetary Fund Development Committee in October. A spokesman said that the document aims to provide details on the scope, approach and timetable for the evolution along with regular updates from the shareholders and later the decision as well.

The World Bank is looking for options like new capital increase, changing capital structure of the bank to enhance the lending capacity and new financing tools, including guarantees for the private sector loans as well as other ways to bring in more capital from the private sector.

Historic biodiversity deal approved at COP15 summit

MONTREAL, Canada: The countries have reached a consensus resulting in a historic deal on Monday, December 19, at the 15th Conference of Parties (COP15) held in Montreal, Canada, regarding the conservation of land, ocean, and providing finance for the conservation of biodiversity in the developing countries.

The framework was adopted on the last day of the United Nations Biodiversity Conference or COP15. China, which currently holds the chair, came up with a draft on Sunday, December 18, that provided the muchneeded momentum to the ongoing contentious talks.

Just before the deal was approved, amidst applause from the participants, Huang Runqiu, Minister for Environment, China, said, “We have in our hands a package which, I think, can guide us as we all work together to halt and reverse biodiversity loss and put biodiversity on the path to recovery for the benefit of all people in the world.”

Bhupender Yadav, Minister for Environment Forest and Climate Change, Government of India, who partook in the negotiation, informed The Hindu that in a broader

perspective, the agreement is positive in nature as far as the interests of India are concerned.

Yadav presented India’s stand during the negotiation on December 17, regarding the goals and targets, which were to be adopted later in the summit and said that the target needs to be ambitious, as well as “realistic and practical.”

Yadav highlighted the principle of climate justice wherein countries responsible for high historical emissions must provide financial assistance for the remedial measures to be adopted in developing countries, and the same principle needs to be applied to the conservation of biodiversity. He also talked about the need for a Global Biodiversity Fund and rejected the idea of phasing out agricultural subsidies, which were part of the draft text of the agreement.

The draft agreement also included recommendations to reduce overall risk from pesticides and hazardous chemicals by at least 50 per cent by 2030.

But the most significant part of the agreement is the commitment for the conservation of 30 per cent of land and

water, significant for the conservation of biodiversity. Right now, only 17 per cent of land and 10 per cent of the marine landscape is protected.

The agreement also includes a call to raise $200 billion for the conservation of biodiversity, along with a variety of measures to phase out or streamline subsidies which will help raise another $500 billion. The financial package also asks for increasing the amount by at least $20 billion annually by 2025 and $30 billion by 2030 for poor countries.

Financing was the most contentious topic at the summit. Several countries from Africa stalled the summit talks for almost nine hours as they were demanding the creation of a new fund, but in the end agreed on the creation of a fund under the ambit of the existing Global Environment Facility (GEF).

Christophe Béchu, Minister for Ecological Transition, France, said, “Creating a fund under the GEF is the best way to obtain something immediate and efficient” and the creation of a new fund would take several years while the developing countries need immediate money for the protection of biodiversity.

Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Canada, said, “We have 30 by 30. Six months ago, who would have thought we could 30 by 30 in Montreal? We have an agreement to halt and reverse biodiversity loss, work on restoration, and reduce the use of pesticides. This is tremendous progress.”

Some estimates in 2019 warned that one million plant and animal species would face extinction within the next few decades at a rate which is 1,000 times greater than expected. Humans use around 50,000 wild species, and one out of five of the world’s population depends on these species for food and income.

Joshimath: Number of houses developing cracks keeps rising

JOSHIMATH, Uttarakhand: The number of houses developing cracks due to incidences of land subsidence rose to 849 on January 17, while this number was only 150 in the first week of December 2022.

First incident of houses developing cracks was reported from the Gandhinagar area of Joshimath in October 2021, when 14-15 houses developed cracks. On January 4, 2023, the district administration in Chamoli issued a bulletin calling the situation ‘crisis’ for the first time. Bulletin said that a total of 561 houses have developed cracks.

As per the latest bulletin issued on, a total of 800 buildings, including houses and hotels, have developed cracks. The number of houses in the danger zone has also increased to 167. As of January 10, only 86 houses were in the danger zone.

Local authorities decided to demolish the structures declared ‘unsafe’ by the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI) including Malari Inn and Mount View. But demolition could not go on due to protests over the issue of compensation for demolished structures and loss of livelihood. The protesting crowd is also demanding closure of the National Thermal Power Projects (NTPC), the alleged culprit behind the incidents of land subsidence. The Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti (JBSS) has also announced holding a protest across the town on Republic Day on January 26.

In the meantime, the authorities reported that two more hotels have started tilting towards each other, and cracks have widened in hotel Comet and Snow Crest hotel.

In terms of ward-wise distribution of affected houses, Ravigram has reported having 161 such houses, and in Gandhinagar, there are 154 such

houses. Authorities say that they have evacuated a maximum number of people from Gandhinagar, Sindhar, Manohar Bagh, and Sunil wards as most of the houses fall in the ‘danger zone.’ Land subsidence has also affected the upper and lower portion of the tehsil buildings, thereby scaring people. To closely monitor the situation, CBRI has installed crack meters in the affected buildings. Himanshu Khurana, District Magistrate, Chamoli, said that the authorities identified 615 rooms in 83 places which will be used as temporary relief camps for the 2,190 evacuated people of the Joshimath town area. In addition to that, 491 rooms in 20 buildings have also been identified for use as temporary shelter facilities in Pipalkoti outside the municipal area, where 2,205 people will be housed. The district has distributed a relief package worth `3.77 crore to 396 families affected by the land subsidence crisis. The relief items distributed to the affected people include 284 food kits,

360 blankets, 842 litres of milk, 55 heaters or blowers, 36 daily use kits and 642 other items.

When the demolition activity resumed on January 15, the hotel owner Thakur Singh Rana said, “The district administration teams have demolished the topmost floor of my hotel and they are working to demolish the other floors on Tuesday.”

Ajendra Ajay Badrinath Temple, Chairman of the Temple Committee, on January 16, visited the winter abode of Lord Badrinath, named Narsingh temple and said that there is no threat to the building. He said, “I inspected the Narsingh temple premises and have been monitoring the situation in the past too. Currently, there is no danger to the temple premises apart from a few cracks that developed earlier outside the temple premises.”

He added that the Geological Survey of India (GSI) also surveyed the temple and they are awaiting their inspection report.

FMC Commissioner shows way ahead for a growing city

In this edition of one-on-one, Abhishek Pandey, Editor, Urban Update interviewed Ghanshyam Meena, Municipal Commissioner of Firozabad Municipal Corporation. He talks about the various challenges of FMC and the innovative solutions that they are devising to overcome them

Welcome to the one-on-one edition of urban update. firozabad municipal corporation is a fairly neW municipal corporation established in 2014. so, a lot of neW challenges and neW evolutions are happening in this corporation. the city is groWing and is expected to join the group of million-plus-cities by 2030. What are the urban challenges that you foresee for the city? and hoW do you see the corporation leveraging all these strengths to tackle these challenges?

There are several challenges for a newly built corporation like Firozabad. First of all, there is Swachh Survekshan

Challenge. We are trying to improve the ranking of the city as quickly as possible. For instance, there used to be a huge garbage dump here till a year ago, of about 2,14,000 metric tons of garbage and today we have reduced it rapidly. And now, only 1 lakh metric ton of garbage remains. At the same time, we aim to bring garbage production down to zero by segregating and reprocessing it. Towards this aim, we have started door-to-door collection of waste since about 10 months. At the same time, we are working towards the material recovery facility so that we can segregate, reuse and recycle the waste and decompose biodegradable waste to make manure. But there are many challenges to achieve this aim

Ghanshyam Meena, Municipal Commissioner of Firozabad

of 100 per cent processing of waste. A major challenge is creating awareness amongst people. Eliciting participation is extremely important to make this a successful initiative. As you know, Firozabad is an industrial town with a huge glass market which gives rise to the challenge of pollution which we are trying to overcome. Our sewage treatment plant is already running and as of now we’re trying to completely process the waste water before it goes into river Ganga. We’re trying to improve amenities in our city on the lines of cities such as Bengaluru, and Chandigarh. We are working on city beautification as well. For instance, recently, we installed lights on both sides of a major bridge which was appreciated by the people. We also opened an eco-friendly restaurant at a place where there used to be garbage. So, we’re trying to target major garbage points and create common community centres for people to spend time with their families. We’re training our staff and safai karamcharis to provide better cleaning services to the people.

you spoke about tWo major issues of legacy Waste and circular economy. a lot of cities in india have been folloWing the principles of circular economy. hoW do you engage the employees of the corporation in these efforts and build their capacity? For this, we work on two levels. We motivate our sanitation inspectors, zonal supervisors and all those who work on the ground. We take daily feedback of sanitary inspectors and promote those who perform well. We also take efforts to bring about qualitative change in the lives of workers by resolving their issues such as pension, and safety. Keeping their safety in mind, we are moving towards mechanization. Promoting those who work is important as is taking action against those who don’t. We provide training, one-to-one interaction, supervision via technology, etc.

the technical aspect of Waste management has changed With time. hoW do you provide the technical knoW-hoW to the team?

We recently did an experiment. Last year, dengue had become a serious problem in Firozabad. So, this time we prepared for it since the beginning of the season by providing technical intervention to staff in the purview of Municipal corporation and ‘zila prashasan’ wherein a software was designed for supervisors through which we monitored each and every supervisor. This is how we found what are the focal points of infection and focused more on those areas. As a result, we did not get any cases of dengue this year. Now, we’ll implement it in the long term. Soon, we will launch a new software wherein any city dweller can upload pictures of garbage anywhere in the city which will directly go to the supervisor who, in turn, will have to redress the issue. We are continually training our employees to get them acquainted with new technologies.

in india, municipal corporations struggle from a perpetual lack of funds, except for a feW corporations like those of mumbai and bangalore.

Ghanshyam Meena

Ghanshyam Meena, Municipal Commissioner of Firozabad

according to a report by rbi, the oWn revenue of municipal corporations in india Was less than 1 per cent of the gdp, While in developing countries it is 7 to 9 per cent. What are the innovative methods you use to provide fmc With a sustainable financial model?

As you know, tax collection is an important source of funds for municipal corporations. In order for a financial model to be sustainable, the tax collection by corporations has to be good. We are trying to diversify tax collection at the moment. For instance, we are charging for parking which was earlier free in many places. We are also charging for advertising in certain places in the city, and also imposing taxes on many industrial units which weren’t being taxed earlier. A GIS survey was completed in a timebound manner as ordered by the state government. It is a matter of joy for us that the number of taxable households has increased from approximately 35,000 earlier to 1.4 lakh households. This massively increases our tax base. We’re holding regular meetings to change the taxes on nagar nigam shops which haven’t been changed for years. We’re also trying to involve people in this process and make them aware of the benefits of taxation.

You know Chanakya, the author of Arthashastra, has said about taxes that when the water of the ocean turns into vapor, it rains in different parts of a region thereby increasing the productivity of the land. The more tax we collect, the more benefits citizens receive. So, we’re trying to achieve a dual goal through this exerciseincreasing the tax base and creating awareness among the masses.

talking about inclusivity in service delivery, it is usually seen that people from loWer income backgrounds do not get access to superior quality of services. What is the firozabad municipal corporation doing for inclusive or equitable service delivery to

all people?

I’d like to share a few points with you regarding this. In 2014, around 14 gram sabhas were assimilated under the Nagar Nigam. These areas are not as advanced as the older parts of the city where a lot of development has already taken place. In the new areas that have now been added, we’re trying to bring in new schemes to bring them up to speed with the rest of the city. We’re also trying to remove slums also, by making roads, houses, canals, etc. to improve people’s quality of life. Most of the DUDA (District Urban Development Agency) funds are being utilized in these tasks. We’re also trying to honestly implement state and central government schemes for the benefit of the poor such as Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.

firozabad is a developing city; many neW things are being introduced here. it Was an industrial city earlier as Well. as the population increases demands and expectations of people from the corporation is also increasing. along With it, people from all over the country are coming to firozabad for tourism. What Will the city have for them and if you Want firozabad to be in the tourist map of Western uttar pradesh then What is being done for that?

When tourists come from outside they have expectations and we are working to ensure that the main product of the city is visible to them. We are trying to build a Glass Emporium where we can showcase many of the glass products Firozabad is famous for. So that any tourist or customer who comes from outside can see all the products on one platform. So for that in our proposed zonal office it is being asked to keep a separate space, so that some of the glass work of the city can be displayed there. This will ensure that any tourist who comes here will be able to reach our products whereby increasing the popularity of our glass work. At the same time, we are trying to beautify the

surroundings of the monuments and improve them for the sake of providing better facilities to the tourists along with developing food points. So we are working in a theme based or mission mode manner so that we can better facilitate tourists who come from outside.

noW let us go a little beyond firozabad and talk about climate change. climate change is being talked about everyWhere, Whether it is egypt during cop27 or in paris in 2015 Where a lot of commitments are made. many people say that climate change and sustainable goals cannot be achieved until local government is engaged. at the local level, What can a city like firozabad contribute to it, keeping in mind that We have to save the local environment, We have to save local ecosystem and We have to ensure that it sets an example so small developing toWns in the nearby areas can also implement them. so What is the concern of firozabad regarding climate change and What solutions the city is looking to implement?

I would like to tell you that under the Clean Air Survey done in 2022, in Bhubaneswar, Firozabad got the 2nd award in city three to 10 lakh population category. The Municipal Corporation got an award of about 50 lakhs and an additional fund of 17.50 crores was also provided to us. As you know we got this award at an all India level and for this we introduced many innovations here. So we tried to clean dust from our roads by applying extra manpower and machines. Along with this, we have also improved the vegetation cover around us. In many of the pockets, where plantation was not done, we have completed that too, to increase the green cover. We have made efforts for improvement of air quality by ensuring that industrial units follow their parameters. And in all places where fire is used like in furnaces and the brick industry, we also regulated them. If you

see air quality ranking of Firozabad on daily basis, you could see the air quality is very good here. We have worked a lot on fulfillment of requirement of a person of clean air. Along with this, we have water treatment plant and sewage treatment plant and we are working to ensure that we only discharge 100 per cent treated water in Yamuna river, We conduct regular laboratory inspection for this and we are strictly following whatever water quality standards are prescribed by the government, so that we can control water pollution. Apart from this we are also working on other practices like plastic ban and we regularly plan and take action on this. We are in the process of wiping out the plastic.

as you Were talking about climate change you said that there is lot of Work being done in the city and vegetation is in focus. you have also performed Well in vaayu survekshan. so i Wanted to knoW at the local level What are the expectations of residents of city from you When they come to meet you? What type of changes do they Want in the city?

As I told you we can classify the city in two parts, One is the old town, in which people expect good roads, good drainage system and water availability which we have fulfilled. If we talk about new areas which have been added in 2014, as it is in building process people have different type of requirements there. Their demands are like roads should be made, water system should be improved; we are working on these.

Our plan for New Firozabad also focuses on this area as they recently became part of the city and we have bifurcated the funds accordingly to fulfill urgent requirements. People also demand that there should be parks in their area where they could go in the evening or morning and children can get the opportunity to play outside for which we have also developed 16 parks with open gyms.

We have also started a new initiative in which we have taken 7 schools to

make them smart schools. In order to ensure that poor children who study in our schools get good education we have made a DPR of approximately 14 crores. Their requirement of stadiums, open auditorium and smart classes are being fulfilled by us within a month.

i have a question - as there are a number of missions running, - state government has its oWn missions and central government has its oWn. We have seen that after 2014 urban sector has been at the forefront. earlier it Was said that india is a reluctant urbaniser but noW it is sloWly and gradually changing. Which missions of government of india and state government are running in the city and What is their impact on lives of the people?

Recently, our Honorable Chief Minister has implemented state smart city scheme in Firozabad, as a result of that smart roads are being built here and people’s expectations are high too. Smart road will have better lightning facilities, better seating facilities, there will be beautification points, better drainage to prevent water logging during heavy rains, roads will be wide like most cities. Before the implementation of this Smart Road programme, we conducted survey to check all lines including water pipelines, gas line etc. For this, we are making ducts, to eliminate the need for frequent road cutting. Many agencies are involved in this scheme and all are working in tandem to build best Smart Roads.

After that we are working on implementation of ITMS (Intelligent Transport Management System) Project under which all the traffic facilities and road lights are being improved. Along with this, cameras installed at the major intersections in the city are showing positive results. There used to be a law and order situation earlier but this system has helped a lot in controllingit. We also found many children who had gone missing using ITMS facility

- developed as part of the State Smart City scheme.

Now we are working to develop such an interactive platform so that people can record their complaints with an interactive button after which it will be recorded in our ITMS system so that our agencies like police or fire service can address the problem easily through data.

hoW much budget has been allotted to state smart city mission?

The budget allotted to us in the last financial year was around Rs 80 crores, under which we undertook two projects. One was ITMS and the second was Smart Roads. Now we have got more funds so we are making Zonal Office so that people can submit their problems there and they can also pay tax easily via zonal office.

my last question Would be - since you are commissioner in firozabad and you have Worked here so What do you think is the strength of this city and hoW do you Want to see firozabad in next 10, 15 or 20 years?

If you analyse the city you can find many strength points. First of all there is a basic requirement inside any city that there should be good roads, and the city should be developed in a structured manner which you will see in Firozabad. Our city is like a running city and industrial units are located outside the city. All these things are strong points here and they need to be channelised further. Now the new town is being developed; here we are taking these strong points and planning accordingly; for example, where will the stadium be, where will be the place for the children to play, and where will be the homes. Under the master plan, we are also coordinating with our developmental authority, to check the haphazard development and in the coming time, excellent results will come.

Benefits of Digital Governance in South Asia

All India Institute of Local Self- Government and United Cities and Local Government Asia Pacific (UCLG ASPAC) organised a webinar on “Digital Governance in South Asia” on January 19 2023. It focused on the benefits of digital local governance, challenges of the local governments in South- SouthWest for adoption of digital technology and sharing of good practices of digital governance in the region

Ravi Ranjan Guru, Chair SSW Standing Committee and Deputy Director General, All India Institute of Local SelfGovernment talked about how the SSW Committee started under the umbrella of the UCLG ASPAC and that it provides necessary support and networking within the South –Southwest Asia region and the urban local bodies on growing urbanisation. He mentioned how digitalization can be helpful for the urban local bodies and the governance system if they leverage the benefits of the digital solution. Abhishek Pandey, Editor, Urban Update who was the moderator for the session requested Praveen Bhardwaj, senior Urban Expert to talk about digitalization in local governance. Explaining in brief on how e-governance started in the country and its necessity, Bhardwaj mentioned about the e- governance system and its services like government to citizen services (G2C), government to business services

R(G2B), government to employee services (G2E) and government to government services (G2G). There are many G2C services, like online building plan approval, public grievance management system, municipal license management system, property tax management system, human resource management system, water connection and water billing, real estate regulatory system and so on. Talking about G2B services, he highlighted that earlier, procurement used to be done through the paper-based system. Now, we have e-procurement system, which is mandatory for most of the municipalities at both state and central levels. It has become more reliable and transparent for the common citizen. G2E is one of the systems which is very applicable as it provides online facilities like human resource training and development to the employees and one can also check if salary has been credited or not.

Mukesh Mathur, Professor, National Institute of Urban Affairs, mentioned the key elements of good governance which are accountability, transparency and participation. He also mentioned that the Government of India prioritizes and has announced many new projects for this sector. He spoke extensively about the financial ecosystem of urban

local bodies before the introduction of digital governance and the current scenario. The 15th Finance Commission has mentioned it clearly that all audit reports need to be made available online for the public scrutiny. This is a major initiative which has made it easier for the citizens to go through the reports and know how their money is being spent, the kind of subsidy they are getting and so on. Recently, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has launched a city finance portal which will collect financial information of the urban local bodies as well as the grants of the 15th Finance Commission, be it the tied grants or the untied grants and those linked with the performance of the local bodies.

Nagarajarao Vijayshankar, FounderDirector of Cyber Law College, spoke about the challenges of digital governance. One of the major challenges is that the e-governance tendering system heavily favors IT entities, most probably the MNCs and international companies alone can participate in tenders because the tender specifications make it necessary that an organisation needs to be of a particular size and form. The reliability of a software is linked to the size of an organisation which, according to him, is not the correct way of adjudging the capacity of a vendor. In the tendering system, the small vendors are losing out to the larger organisations which needs to be addressed in some way. The government also tends to go to a well-established company, increasing the cost of the project and wastage of funds which could have been utilized in

a better way. Therefore, having reliable vendors who can be trusted is important and it is one of the most important aspects of good governance. The second challenge is whenever a government project is implemented, there is always a perception of corruption in the system. Corruption proofing of e-governance projects is one of the major requirements which one needs to be looked at.

Pashim Tiwari, Technical Director, All India Institute of Local Self Government (AIILSG), explained how the SSW region is moving towards e-governance system. The availability and the accessibility of a digital platform which is inclusive in nature, and which has certain ability to be done in a low resource environment has led to a maturity where most governments, today, are present on the electronic platform. He stressed on the four key components that need to be available for an effective digital system. First is digital identity like the AADHAR (Unique Identification Authority of India) card in India. Second is the network system that is available and accessible to everyone through a digital platform. Third is the ability to transact, which means payment based on the services provided through digital network like the UPI. Fourth, locational services, where all the cities are in GIS platform. Four other key components are to get Government, Industries, Academia and Citizens (GIAC) together and involved in the system and help to transact and disseminate information. To achieve this, one has to increase the capacity of the governance system. He also mentioned about the barriersaccessibility of internet at an inclusive pricing, digital literacy and making it gender inclusive.

The webinar came to an end after Dr Bernadia Irawati Tjandradewi, Secretary General, United Cities and Local Governments Asia –Pacific (UCLG ASPAC) highlighted the importance of developing digital infrastructure and the challenges faced due to linguistic barriers, lack of technical awareness, and availability of digital tools. She stressed that digital e- governance should also be inclusive in nature and be gender sensitive.

Ring in the new, ring out the old

New Year is the time of resolutions. When it comes to a country it is the time to revisit past policies, coursecorrect or reset agendas and plan for the coming year. The 2023 wish-list for the Indian urban sector could be a long one, given that the past year was quite eventful. The World Cities Report 2022 has already highlighted that urbanisation will keep rising in the coming years, which in turn highlights the fact that the governments need to come up with strategies to deal with this. The imbalance in urban and regional populations will put extreme pressure on existing resources in the cities.

The world has rapidly developed in the last century. A large proportion of this development has to do with urbanisation, which has happened at the cost of environment. As a result of high carbon emissions, thanks to urban transportation, the climate is warming. Rapid urbanisation at the cost of climate will likely cause more disasters in the coming years. The tragedy of Joshimath in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand is the most recent one in a series of disasters which tell the story of natural environment under duress. Experts have blamed unprecedented construction activity in the region for the land subsidence that occurred, in addition to complete apathy of authorities to the multiple warning signs in previous years. The slopes in the area have become weaker as a result of the enormous drilling and excavating that was done there using explosives to build highways, dams, and other structures.

Apart from ecological imbalance, increasing population in urban centres could cause social imbalance in society. Rural-tourban migration is only natural because of jobs and better amenities in the cities than rural areas. Japan is a good case study in this regard. Japan is paying people to move out of its crowded metropolis Tokyo. For years now, Japan has had a falling birth rate which means a rising ageing population. Due to a high cost of living in cities with lack of childcare support, people choose to not have children. Tokyo is also prone to earthquakes due to over-concentration of population. Starting in April, the Government of Japan will provide $7,700 per child to families which decide to move to lesser populated regions of the country. It is aimed at decongesting overcrowded urban centres while also boosting the falling birth rate.

Urban sector needs to be a major area of focus for the government. According to a World Bank research recently released, India has to boost its yearly investment in city infrastructure from an average of $10.6 billion over the past ten years to an average of $55 billion over the next 15 years in order to fulfil the needs of the expanding urban population. This should not be an impossible goal to achieve. After all, India is “a bright spot” in the world economy.

Ashok Wankhade Managing Editor