Abstract
Development of urban infrastructure is sine qua non for growth of the urban sector in India. To propel development and expansion of urban infrastructure, the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) was launched in 2005 as a common minimum programme. It is a mission-led initiative which primarily aims to develop infrastructure; establish linkage between asset-creation and asset-management through reforms; ensure funds to meet deficiencies; planned development of identified cities including peri-urban areas, outgrowths and urban; and scale-up delivery of civic amenities and provision of utilities with emphasis on universal coverage. JNNURM is also supposed to provide assistance for capacity building, preparation of City Development Plan (CDP) and Detailed Project Reports (DPRs), community participation and implementation of the Information, Education and Communication (IEC) programme. In this background, the book Re-visioning Indian Cities: The Urban Renewal Mission by K.C. Sivaramakrishnan makes a critical assessment of different components of the Mission and their implications for urban development.
There are 12 chapters in the book which encompass the coverage and components of the Mission; provision of urban services; reforms as envisaged by Constitution; metropolitan and district planning; and technical support at national and city levels. The author has focused on urban economic realities with respect to land and real estate and their implications for Constitution as well as urban poverty alleviation. The author has also highlighted the disconnect between the municipalities and urban development in the implementation process of all the four components of JNNURM. While many of the earlier studies on JNNURM have focused predominantly on urban infrastructure development, Sivaramakrishnan’s study has gone beyond that by focusing on overall urban development. The book is endowed with the reflections of the author as a member of the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) and his thorough understanding about urban governance. It has taken resort to both quantitative and qualitative information to spur thought provoking discussion. The book goes into the depth of different cases on city development and conflict of institutions. Implications for urban development have been drawn from these case studies. The author has taken a balanced view in dealing with growth and equality issues. He has made an attempt to unravel the Constitutional provisions in dealing with urban poverty.
Sivaramakrishnan has revisited the Indian planning process with respect to urban development. To set the stage for discussion on JNNURM, he has started with review of the spectrum of urban development projects, funds, regulations and reforms on the governance. On JNNURM, the author has discussed about the selection of cities or urban agglomerations and allocation of funds across the states. With the help of extensive statistical tables, he has highlighted the fact that although a substantial proportion of funds have been allocated to the better-off states, but the need of smaller states cannot be overemphasized. Funding arrangements being performance oriented and allocation of funds for centrally-sponsored or centrally-assisted schemes to states being restricted by plan ceilings, the better-off states have received a major chunk of the funds. JNNURM primarily depended on government funds as cities could not leverage funds from the market in spite of being rated by reputed rating agencies.
Urban Infrastructure and Governance and Basic Services to the Urban Poor are the two Sub-Missions under the Mission. The author has critically assessed the policies of housing and basic services in the context of the Mission. He has pointed to the lack of information on the completed housing units, time of allotment and beneficiaries under the aegis of Basic Services for Urban Poor (BSUP), which is one of the components of the Mission. BSUP has made additions in the reform agenda by earmarking local body funds for provision of basic services to the urban poor. The author is critical about the apathy of city planners to earmark land for low-income groups.
The Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) has commissioned many Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) projects under the JNNURM in different cities of India. The projects stipulate different conditionalities for improving urban mobility. The author has expressed concern over the burgeoning private vehicle sales and its impact on contestation of road space between public and private transport. BRTS and an integrated mobility plan have the potentiality of resolving this problem by providing a better transport facility. The author has rightly advocated restraining the growth of private vehicles through appropriate policy.
The mandatory reforms of ULBs as stipulated by JNNRUM have taken a backseat as speedy implementation of schemes has been given prime importance. The author has opined that JNNURM guidelines have not given importance to reforms like decentralization measures as envisaged by the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA). In the book, several instances were cited where the local governments have not been involved in city management. The guidelines of JNNURM have also irresponsibly equated ULBs with the parastatal agencies. Furthermore, the Peer Experience and Reflective Learning Programme (PEARL) which was organized to create networks between JNNURM cities for cross learning and knowledge sharing on urban reforms, devoted less attention to public participation and functioning of platforms for decentralization.
In this book, the reader can find glimpses of discussion on delimitation and planning and functional domain of local governments, which is represented extensively in his earlier book Courts, Panchayats and Nagarpalikas: Background and Review of Case Law. It has raised several pertinent questions like ‘What the Ministry Could Have Done?’ for reforms to comply with CCA or ‘DPC-A Flawed Design?’. Due to lack of an organic link with district-level local government, the author finds no merit of inclusion of the District Planning Committee (DPC) as an item of the JNNURM. He is specific in identifying the ‘Disconnects’ between CDP-ULB and CDP-DPR. The guidelines of JNNURM did not stipulate that the ULBs should be responsible for CDP preparation. DPR are expected from CDP. The author has observed that in case of many CDPs, DPRs were not available.
Sivaramakrishnan has strongly expressed that the metropolitan management has to be done through proper planning and inter-jurisdictional collaboration. Case studies on Kolkata, Hyderabad and Mumbai have made the discussion on metropolitan management very interesting, informative and convincing. Upholding the centre–state collaboration in metropolitan development and management in Kolkata during the 70s, the author has argued that problems of metropolitan management can be addressed through multi-jurisdictional and intergovernmental endeavours. The Metropolitan Planning Committee (MPC) has also played an important role in preparation of urban development plan of Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. However, in cities like Hyderabad and Mumbai metropolitan planning has not played any commendable role in city development.
The book has also incorporated the author’s reflection on several initiatives in JNNURM like service-level benchmarking, awards for performance, e-governance and public disclosures on service provision for better urban management. The author has discussed about TAG which has been devised to aid and advise the Ministry. The author as an insider of TAG opines that its evaluative role is not fully recognized or encouraged. The reader would be enlightened by his detailed and in-depth understanding about the status and functioning of City Technical Advisory Groups (CTAGs) and City Volunteer Technical Committee (CVTCs) formed by civic-minded individuals and talented professionals in all the JNNURM cities.
One of the mandatory reforms advocated by JNNURM is repeal of Urban Land Ceiling and Regulation Act (ULCRA) to increase the availability of land. The author reveals that in reality this has helped the developers to assemble large tracts of land but has hardly helped to improve the provision of housing for low- and middle-income groups or increase the availability of land. He is critical about the sole power of the state governments or parastatals or development authorities to determine land use or change them at the expense of bypassing the municipalities. This has led to legal tussles between municipal corporations and the state governments on land use and final development plans. The author has prudently made interpretations of the court judgments, which appear to be a setback to the local governance as envisaged in the CAAs.
Sivaramakrishnan has concluded the book by strongly advocating for cooperation between central, state and local governments for urban development. The book takes a holistic view on urban development from the perspective of JNNURM. Along with discussion on evolution of urban policies, his terse comments and observations have made the book precious for avid scholars and researchers of urban development. Discussion on a plethora of schemes might at times mystify the reader but the formulation, conceptualization and analysis would definitely throw light for the pathway of achieving Millennium Development Goals.