Answer

Efficient urban governance plays a pivotal role in ensuring the effective utilization of financial investments for infrastructure development. Despite contributing nearly 70% of India’s GDP, urban areas face governance challenges due to limited powers, fragmented responsibilities, and financial constraints of municipal governments. Addressing these challenges requires targeted structural reforms to strengthen urban local bodies (ULBs).

Enroll now for UPSC Online Course

Efficient urban governance is as crucial as financial investment for infrastructure development

• Optimal Resource Utilization: Governance ensures that financial investments translate into impactful projects without delays or inefficiencies.
  For example: Bengaluru’s water supply projects have suffered delays due to weak coordination between municipal and state authorities.
• Citizen-Centric Planning: Empowered municipalities can design infrastructure based on local needs.
  For example: Indore’s municipal-led waste management program has become a model of citizen-centric governance.
• Sustainable Urban Growth: Robust governance balances infrastructure expansion with environmental sustainability.
  For example: Chennai’s urban flooding issues highlight the need for governance focusing on ecological considerations.
• Effective policy implementation: Urban governance ensures infrastructure projects align with long-term sustainability goals and are executed efficiently.
  For example: The Bangalore Smart City Project focused on improving urban mobility and waste management, with coordinated governance efforts ensuring optimal resource use.
• Citizen participation: Involving citizens in decision-making processes makes infrastructure projects more relevant and impactful.
  For example: The Mumbai Metro project actively engaged the public through consultations, addressing concerns about land acquisition and project alignment, which facilitated smoother implementation.
• Coordination between agencies: Urban governance coordinates various levels of government and agencies to ensure timely and effective project implementation.
  For example: In the Chandigarh Smart City Project, effective coordination between local authorities, state governments, and central agencies ensured the smooth rollout of infrastructure improvements like roads and public spaces.

Structural Reforms Needed

• Decentralization of Powers: Empowering  Urban Local Bodies with greater autonomy in decision-making and project execution.
  For instance: Amendments to the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act to make municipal functions obligatory rather than discretionary.
• Fiscal Empowerment: Providing ULBs with greater control over local revenue generation through property taxes, user fees, and municipal bonds.
  For example: Ahmedabad successfully issued municipal bonds to raise funds for urban infrastructure projects, enabling the city to improve public services and facilities.
• Capacity Building: Strengthening technical and managerial expertise within ULBs to enhance their efficiency.
  For instance: Training programs under AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) aim to enhance the skills of urban local bodies, equipping them with the knowledge and tools needed to implement and manage infrastructure projects effectively.
• Integrated Urban Planning: Addressing the fragmentation of responsibilities between state, central, and municipal authorities.
  For instance: Creating Metropolitan Planning Committees as mandated by the Constitution for coordinated development.
• Technology-Driven Governance: Promote smart solutions like e-governance to enhance transparency and citizen participation.
  For example: Pune Municipal Corporation’s adoption of a GIS-based property tax system improved revenue collection.

Check Out UPSC CSE Books From PW Store

Empowering municipal governments through structural reforms is essential to complement financial investments in urban infrastructure. A focus on decentralization, fiscal autonomy, and capacity building can transform ULBs into engines of sustainable and inclusive urban development, ensuring India’s cities are future-ready.

DOWNLOAD PDF