URBAN GOVERNANCE IN INDIA
Challenges and Responses:
A Framework for Reforms
Planning Commission
January 25, 2007
Outline
•The Urban Context
•Views of City Government - different perspectives
•The Reality of Urban Governance
•Frequently Suggested Solutions
•Framework for Urban Governance
•Specific Action Agendas
•External Factors/ Developments to consider
•Benefits of the Framework
•Taking it forward
The Urban Context
•Economic growth closely linked to urbanisation
•North America/ Europe were 50% in 1940s, 80% now
•Cities the gateways to globalisation
•80% of all FDI into China in 1990 went to top 20 cities
•Urbanisation a complex process
•No controllable set of factors
•Policy makers reversing traditional bias
•Historical denial of urbanisation beginning to change
Views of City Government
Urban Poor
Special
Interest
Groups
Urban
Middle
Class
City
Bureaucrat
State
Bureaucrat
Community
Based
Orgns
ParaStatal
Agency
NGO TypeB
City
Politician
NGO TypeA
State
Politician
Infrast’ure
Players
National
Politician
Multi/
Bilateral
Agencies
Business
Community
Opinion
Leaders
Media
•Constant
vulnerability
•Anchor of city
services
•Want legal housing
•Forced often to seek
political patronage
Views of City Government
Urban Poor
Special
Interest
Groups
•Minimal authority
•High expectations
•HR challenges
•Too much political
interference
•Too many agencies
•2-year tenure
City
Bureaucrat
Urban
Middle Class
State
Bureaucrat
Community
Based Orgns
ParaStatal
Agency
NGO TypeB
City
Politician
NGO TypeA
State
Politician
•Minimal understanding
Infrast’ure
of the system
Investor
•Made to feel political
irrelevant
•High level of agitation,
no avenues to engage
•Poor often seen in
adversarial terms
•Low opinion of political
representatives
Multi/
Bilateral
Agencies
National
Politician
Business
Community
Opinion
Leaders
Media
•No authority to make
decisions
•Complex system
•Too much
interference from
higher political
players
•Move on to next level
•Look out for myself
•Aggressive approach
to procure rights for
marginal communities
•Adversarial attitude
towards business and
development
Views of City Government
Urban Poor
Special
Interest
Groups
•Too many changes
required
•Too many legacy
institutions
•No possibility of
dramatic change
•Torn about
decentralisation
City
Bureaucrat
Urban
Middle Class
State
Bureaucrat
Community
Based Orgns
ParaStatal
Agency
NGO TypeB
City
Politician
NGO TypeA
State
Politician
Infrast’ure
Investor
•Demands for
infrastructure
•“End justifies
the means”
•Less patience
for long-term
reform
Multi/
Bilateral
Agencies
National
Politician
Business
Community
Opinion
Leaders
Media
•Frustrated by urban
management
•Decentralisation only
to my level
•Opportunities for
strengthening base
•Mixed knowledge of
urban issues
•Difficulties in
maintaining grassroot
energies
•Challenges to
network, scale,
sustain
Views of City Government
Urban Poor
Special
Interest
Groups
City
Bureaucrat
Urban
Middle Class
•Issue-based advocacy
(environment/ heritage/
disabled etc.)
•Often removed from
core reform discussions
•Mixed approach to
other stakeholders
State
Bureaucrat
Community
Based Orgns
ParaStatal
Agency
NGO TypeB
City
Politician
NGO TypeA
State
Politician
Infrast’ure
Players
•Focus on service
options and
pricing
•Partial ability to
influence reforms
•Weak grassroot/
public support
Multi/
Bilateral
Agencies
National
Politician
Business
Community
Opinion
Leaders
Media
•Mixed knowledge of
urban challenges
•Focus on visible
changes e.g. “keep my
street clean”
•Incomplete solutions for
change
Views of City Government
•Reform-oriented at
the expense of being
marginalised
•Collaborative attitude
causes confusion
•Frustrated at pace of
change
Urban Poor
Special
Interest
Groups
City
Bureaucrat
Urban
Middle Class
•Fuzzy accountability to
city government and
citizens
•Relief to have freedom
-“Let me run” attitude
•City governments do
not have expertise to
manage services
State
Bureaucrat
Community
Based Orgns
ParaStatal
Agency
NGO TypeB
City
Politician
NGO TypeA
State
Politician
Infrast’ure
Players
•Project-based
approach
•Increasing
recogniition of
need for reforms
Multi/
Bilateral
Agencies
National
Politician
Business
Community
•Watching and reporting
the tamasha!
Opinion
Leaders
Media
•Little opportunity to bring
real change
•Frustrated at people’s
expectations
•Personal interest in specific
projects
•Minimal impact on reforms
The reality of Urban Governance
•Enormous Day-to-Day Challenges
•Solid waste management – thousands of tonnes/day
•Water supply
•Sanitation systems and treatment plants
•Multiplicity of agencies
•Ad-hoc measures of past left behind legacy problems
•Genuine technical skills issue with local government
•New ideas need new skills
•PPPs/ Outsourcing/JV Agreements use complex contracts
•Creation and monitoring of Service-Level Agreements difficult for local govt
•Rapid economic activity
•Urban growth running faster than solutions can catch up
•Very little reliable data being generated to track this
The reality of Urban Governance
•Urban poverty issues
• Multiple factors: land rights/ permanent and seasonal migration/
beneficiary identification
•Multiple institutional jurisdictions (example: basic services with local
government; public distribution system/housing with state departments)
•Weak administrative systems
•Weak human resources with minimal training
•Poorly designed Cadre and Recruitment Rules
•Dysfunctional internal systems – finance, land records, personnel etc.
•Massive financial requirements
•Rs 28,000 crores/annum for the next 10 years for urban infrastructure
•Minimal support from centre/states
•Rural-urban issues
•Urban growth primarily at fringes
•Complex Governance and equity challenges
Multiple factors impacting Urban Change
Many factors contribute to shaping vibrant cities*
No.
Factor
1
Effective decentralisation of government functions
2
Efficient Financial Management Systems
3
Defining and monitoring Service Levels
4
Adequate provision of well-located low-income housing
5
Relevant and rapid infrastructure provisioning
6
Efficient collaboration between different agencies
7
Institutionalised Citizens' participation
8
Uniform demarcation of administrative jurisdictions
9
City planning recognising economic/environmental factors
10
GIS for Spatial Information Management
11
Guaranteed Land Title System
12
Effective Zoning. Land-Conversion and Enforcement Policies
13
Efficient Land Market Assessment process
14
Periodic regional economic mapping
15
Regularly updated and centralised Land Records System
* “White Paper on Sustainable Cities”, Swati Ramanathan
Multiple factors impacting Urban Change
Factors have inter-dependencies among them:
No.
Factor
No. of
Dependents*
No of
Dependencies*
1
Effective decentralisation of government functions
7
4
2
Efficient Financial Management Systems
6
8
3
Defining and monitoring Service Levels
7
6
4
Adequate provision of well-located low-income housing
6
12
5
Relevant and rapid infrastructure provisioning
2
12
6
Efficient collaboration between different agencies
12
7
7
Institutionalised Citizens' participation
7
6
8
Uniform demarcation of administrative jurisdictions
8
2
9
City planning recognising economic/environmental factors
5
10
10
GIS for Spatial Information Management
9
1
11
Guaranteed Land Title System
6
3
12
Effective Zoning. Land-Conversion and Enforcement Policies
4
9
13
Efficient Land Market Assessment process
7
8
14
Periodic regional economic mapping
5
7
15
Regularly updated and centralised Land Records System
8
4
*: shows the degree of inter-dependence between factors
Need for a Comprehensive Framework for Reforms
•Many inter-dependent factors
•Difficult to un-bundle reforms
•Reforms cannot be separated from institutions
•Recognition of the process of change
•High price to pay for incomplete/insufficient reforms
•Slower national economic growth
•Poorer quality of life for citizens
•Multiple approaches to change
•“This is how change happens”
•“Can we be more efficient in how we manage this?”
•Purpose of a Comprehensive Framework
•Pull all reform ideas together
•Suggest Action-Steps to move forward
A Framework for Urban Governance
The entire Metropolitan Region as the footprint of governance
METROPOLITAN PLANNING COMMITTEE
REGIONAL
SPATIAL DATA
CENTRE
METROPOLITAN
TRANSPORT
AUTHORITY
CONCERNED PARA-STATALS,
SPECIAL-PURPOSE VEHICLES,
STATE GOVT DEPARTMENTS
CONCERNED LOCAL
GOVERNMENTS
RURAL
TALUK /ZILLA
PANCHAYATS
URBAN
URBAN LOCAL
GOVERNMENTS
GRAMA
PANCHAYATS
WARD
COMMITTEES
GRAM/WARD
SABHAS
AREA SABHAS
LAW & ORDER
EDUCATION
PWR DISTRIBN.
REVENUE
PUBLIC HLTH
INDTL. DEVMT.
PLANNING &
ZONING
WOMEN &
CHILD W’FARE
ECONOMICS &
STATISTICS
WATER &
SANITATION
ENVIRONMENT
& FORESTRY
URBAN POOR
SERVICES
ALL PUBLIC TRANSPORT
AGENCIES
(BUS/RAIL/AIR/TAXI/
AUTO/RTO etc.)
Key Elements of the Framework
•Recognition of Regional Footprint beyond local govts
•Metropolitan Planning Committee, as per Article 243ZE of COI
•MPC spans rural and urban areas
•DPC substitutes for MPC in less urban regions
•Decentralisation to Local Governments
•Supported by appropriate accountability mechanisms
•Synchronisation of rural/ urban structures
•Establishment of co-ordination mechanisms
•Between para-statals and local governments
•A realistic alternative to complete absorption of agencies
•Ensure Accountability of Local Governments
•Formalised Community Participation
•Disclosure
Specific Action Agendas
1
REGIONAL
SPATIAL DATA
CENTRE
10
METROPOLITAN PLANNING COMMITTEE
METROPOLITAN
TRANSPORT
AUTHORITY
4
X
3
CONCERNED LOCAL
GOVERNMENTS
2
RURAL
CONCERNED PARA-STATALS,
SPECIAL-PURPOSE VEHICLES,
STATE GOVT DEPARTMENTS
LAW & ORDER
URBAN
PWR DISTRIBN. 9
TALUK /ZILLA
PANCHAYATS
GRAMA
PANCHAYATS
GRAM/WARD
SABHAS
URBAN LOCAL 6
GOVERNMENTS
WARD
COMMITTEES
AREA SABHAS
EDUCATION
REVENUE
PUBLIC HLTH
INDTL. DEVMT.
PLANNING &
ZONING
WOMEN &
CHILD W’FARE
ECONOMICS &
STATISTICS
WATER &
SANITATION
ENVIRONMENT
& FORESTRY
2
5
7
ALL PUBLIC TRANSPORT
AGENCIES
(BUS/RAIL/AIR/TAXI/
AUTO/RTO etc.)
9
URBAN POOR 8
SERVICES
X
ALL RELEVANT
REGULATORY
AUTHORITIES
3
9
Specific Action Agendas
1
•Permanent MPC, with coordination powers
•Constitution with Elected Representatives and Experts
•Master Planning Procedures and Technical Groups
2
•Completely revamped Municipality Law
•Direct Election to Mayor
•3-tier structure of Municipality/ Ward Committee/Area Sabha
•Formal Citizen Participation in Municipal affairs
•Mandatory quarterly disclosure of performance
3
•Co-ordination mechanisms on all Municipal Services as
per Schedule XII (and Schedule XI)
•Alignment of Jurisdictions based on Ward Boundaries
•Joint Budgeting/ Reporting cycles
Specific Action Agendas
4
•Establishment of Spatial Data Centre
•Real-time GIS for planning and coordination across agencies
5
•Establishment of Integrated Transport Authority
•Planning and coordination across all Public Transport Agencies
6
•Implementing Muncipal Reforms at City-level
•Financial Reforms in Budgeting, Accounting, MIS
•HR and Capacity Building
7
•Urban Land Reforms
•Simplified Land Records Management
•Guaranteed Land Title
Specific Action Agendas
8
•Integrated Services for the Urban Poor
•Provision of Low-Income Housing
•Other Urban Poor Programmes
9
•Defining and ensuring service outcomes
•Establish qualitative and quantitative benchmarks
•Management and Monitoring Processes
•Equitable outcomes for the poor
10
•Development & Delivery of Comprehensive City Plans
•Regional Fooprint
•Involvement of multiple stakeholders
•Creation of appropriate infrastructure
•Rigorous enforcement – e.g. zoning/land-use
•Regular mapping/monitoring of economic activities in the city
External Factors/ Developments to Consider
•Announcement of JNNURM
•Substantial Financial Incentive for Urban Reforms
•Reforms include 2 3 6 9
•Additional Financial Support for Urban Poor Programmes
8
•Funding support for E-Governance Initiative
•Spatial Data Centre Establishment
4
•Major Disruptive Transport Initiatives in most cities
•Airports & Mass Transit Systems not as Integrated Transport
5
Benefits of the Framework
•Provides a complete response to urban challenges
•Captures most solutions being aired
•Recognises regional and rural-urban issues
•Applies across a state, rather than a specific city
•Identifies the specific changes that are required
•Integrates all current national initiatives and trends
•Allows for prioritisation of reforms and timelines
Thank You