Urban development | Cities under stress

India is the second-largest urban system in the world, accounting for 11 per cent of the total global urban population. The population of urban India is more than that of the US, Germany, Japan and the UK taken together. The UN estimatesthat around 416 million people will be added to Indian cities between 2018 and 2050, taking the share of the urban population—which was 17 per cent in 1951—to 50 per cent by 2050. More than the volume of population, the importance of cities lies in their contribution to economic growth. Urban India is just 3 per cent of the country’s land, but it adds a massive 60 per cent to the GDP.

An aerial view of Queen’s Necklace at Marine Drive, Mumbai, Aug. 2021

Yet, most Indian cities and towns have been expanding in an unplanned and unscientific manner. Though the Union government’s recent push has ensured that almost the entire population in recognised urban areas have access to basic amenities such as electricity, drinking water and sanitation, and urban mobility is gradually improving with metro rail in several cities, the living conditions have been abysmally poor. In the Economist’s Global Liveability Index, 2022, Indian cities were at the bottom with the highest rank being 140th out of 173 cities evaluated.

Most Indian cities need a two-pronged approach for being liveable—plan-based development and corrective measures for areas that have grown by flouting norms.