PRESS RELEASE
06, APRIL, 2014
India at the forefront of rapid urban expansion!
In order to improve the quality of life and the various infrastructures in the cities, the
Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India introduced the Jawaharlal
Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), which involves a
total investment plan of more than $20 billion over a period of seven years. The
scheme was named after the first Prime Minister of India, Dr. Jawaharlal Nehru. This
program is mainly to cater to the improvements on quality of life and infrastructure
in various cities across the country.
A recent article in Times of India reports, The Nagpur Municipal Corporation has started
the process of getting projects for the city under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban
Renewal Mission-II. It will be the second City Development Plan (CDP) and is to be
submitted to the central government under its capacity building for urban development
project (CBUD).
The civic body organized a two-day workshop on "Revised City Development Plan for
Nagpur," for stake holders to discuss effective implementation of CBUD which covered
various core areas like urban infrastructure services; urban planning and urban poor;
municipal finance, governance and local economy; and heritage and urban environment.
The said project has been initiated by the ministry of urban development, government of
India.
The twenty first century will witness an urban revolution in the
developing world. India will be at the fore front of this urban
revolution. It will provide a unique opportunity to the country
to accelerate economic growth and reduce clustering of firms,
households and institutions in cities, says Prasanna K.
Mohanty in his recent book Cities and Public Policy
published by SAGE Publications
The book recognizes the central role of cities in catalysing
growth and generating public finance for economic
development. Urbanization will perhaps be the single most
important policy concern for national, provincial, and local
government in these countries. If managed properly, it will be
a powerful instrument to improve the lives of millions of poor and marginalized. If
neglected, it will lead to disastrous consequences. To convert the urban challenges into
opportunities, policy makers and planners need to understand the economics of cities
and the phenomenon of agglomeration externalities.