Urbanisation has become a significant trend in India, with a large number of people moving to cities and towns in search of better opportunities and a higher quality of life. Urban governance, which refers to the process of decision-making and implementation of policies and programs aimed at improving the living conditions of citizens in cities and towns, has become a critical issue in the country.

Urbanisation is recognized as a major challenge in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). SDG Goal 11 aims to “Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable”. It calls for cities to be well-planned, affordable and accessible, and to have basic services, affordable housing, and transport systems that are sustainable, safe and reliable.

Urban governance plays a critical role in achieving the SDGs, particularly in areas such as urban planning and management, housing, transport, energy, and waste management. However, urban governance in India faces numerous challenges, including lack of political will, inadequate funding, lack of coordination among various stakeholders, and a shortage of trained personnel.

Importance of Urban Governance in India

• Improving Quality of Life: Urban local governance plays a crucial role in improving the quality of life of residents in the city. Effective governance ensures that residents have access to basic services such as water, sanitation, electricity, healthcare, and education. This leads to a better standard of living for all.
• Promoting Inclusiveness: Good urban governance creates an inclusive environment that allows all groups, regardless of their socio-economic status, to access basic services and opportunities. This promotes equality and fairness in society, and helps to reduce poverty and social inequalities.
• Economic Development: Effective governance of cities leads to economic growth and job creation, which is essential for overall development of the country. A well-governed city attracts investment, promotes entrepreneurship and innovation, and provides a platform for economic growth.
• Decentralised Decision-Making: Urban local governance enables decisions to be made at the local level, providing greater accountability and responsiveness to local needs and priorities. This decentralised approach allows for effective and efficient use of resources, and helps to address local issues and challenges more effectively.
• Environmental Sustainability: Better governance of cities ensures that the environment is protected and sustainable development is promoted. Effective governance helps to efficiently use resources, reduce waste and pollution, and promote environmentally friendly policies and practices.
• Strengthening Democracy: The successful implementation of urban governance at the local level strengthens democracy and participatory governance in India. It provides a platform for residents to have their voices heard and their needs addressed by those in power, promoting transparency and accountability in government.
• Infrastructure Development: Governance in cities helps in the development of infrastructure, such as roads, public transport, and public spaces, which enhances the quality of life of residents and attracts investment.

Issues in Urban Governance in India

• Acute scarcity of finance: The city municipalities are facing an acute scarcity of finance, as they are not collecting enough taxes and not realising the full potential of property tax. This affects their ability to provide basic services to the citizens.
• Shortcomings of State Finance Commissions: The functioning of SFCs is not efficient, which affects the ability of ULBs to augment financial resources. The recommendations made by SFCs are adhoc in nature and not based on sound public finance principles, which further hampers the functioning of ULBs.
• Devolution of power: The powers of ULBs are being usurped by a rising number of special purpose agencies in the country, meaning the devolution of powers in terms of functions and the ability to collect taxes is yet to be achieved. This restricts the functioning of these bodies and affects the ability of municipal bodies to provide basic services.
• Irregular elections: Elections to urban bodies have suffered constant postponement, and in some states, elections have not been held for years. This defeats the goal of decentralised governance and affects the functioning of ULBs.
• Poor governance: The largest reason for the poor condition of India’s cities is the failure of municipal governance. There is a lack of planning and governance at the urban local body level, which affects the ability of municipal bodies to provide basic services.
• Lack of management capacity: Indian municipalities do not have the management capacity to plan economic activities or execute them. The recruitment system fails to bring in the best candidates, and several vacancies are not filled for years, affecting the functioning of ULBs.
• Corruption: Corruption, favouritism and nepotism are rampant in ULBs. ULBs have limited powers to take disciplinary actions against officials. This affects the functioning of these bodies and undermines their ability to govern the cities effectively. Ex: Candidates with criminal background and affluent contractors are often fielded by political parties to participate in elections to ULBs. Election of such candidates then leads to a vicious cycle of corruption in municipal governance.
• Urban planning: Urban planning is done at the state government level, with municipalities having little or no role in it. This leads to ‘one size fits all approach’ to urban planning without taking into account spatial variations and resource capacity across municipalities.
• Lack of coordination: Poor coordination among the centre, state, and various departments at the local level leads to poor implementation of urban policies. This inability to coordinate leads to administrative inefficiency and poor urban governance.
• Politicisation of ULBs: ULBs are seen as a platform for political mobilisation rather than effective tools for development. This affects the functioning of these bodies and undermines their ability to provide basic services.

Low level of people’s participation: Despite a relatively higher level of literacy and education, city dwellers do not take adequate interest in the functioning of urban government bodies. The population of the cities consists of heterogeneous groups and are alienated from one another, which affects the functioning of ULBs.