Context:

• The government of Maharashtra recently launched an initiative targeting urban governance reforms- Aspirational cities Programme.

State of urbanization in Maharashtra

• Maharashtra reported the largest share of the urban population of India (13.5 per cent) as per Census 2011. 
• The share of the urban population in Maharashtra was 45.2 per cent, much higher than the national figure of 31.1 per cent. 
• Maharashtra also reported the largest number of slums that are home to more than 11.8 million people living in these informal settlements comprising 34 per cent of the urban population.

Challenges of rapid urbanisation: 

• Cities in Maharashtra and other states continue to grapple with challenges and pressures relating to 
  • Basic infrastructure, 
  • Air pollution, 
  • Deficient infrastructure, 
  • Social inequities, 
  • Large informal sector (involving women and children), 
  • Frequent mobility and migration, 
  • With increased vulnerabilities to disasters and climate change. 

Need for effective urban governance 

• Most of the challenges related to urbanisation emanate from poor urban planning.
• While cities constitute about 3 percent of the land in the country, they generate 70 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
• Cities contribute substantially to economic growth and opportunities as urban India is undergoing a major transformation with an inward net movement of people for better livelihood opportunities.
• There is a robust relationship between the index of cities’ liveability and the country’s GDP per capita suggesting that long-term growth is only feasible if the city attributes in terms of providing equitable access to basic services, residences, and improved economic management are provided seamlessly through digital service delivery platforms.
• Cities require a holistic solution to problems instead of a piecemeal approach by individual departments.

Maharashtra’s urban governance model

• • Maharashtra has conceptualised and initiated the Aspirational Cities Programme (ACP) modeled on the lines of the Aspirational Districts initiative of Niti Aayog. 

• The ADP is NITI Aayog’s flagship initiative to uplift those backward 112 districts that are lagging behind in specific development parameters of health and nutrition, education, agriculture and water resources, financial inclusion, skill development, and basic infrastructure.

• • The ACP is based on three priority areas that will define the city’s growth paradigm: 
    • Integration of inclusive urban development that involves all development sectors thus bringing an integrated approach to urban programming; 
    • Adoption of scientific data methods for assessing and monitoring outcomes of both state and central schemes 
    • Enhancing the voice and participation of citizens in civic affairs through physical and digital means.
  • The ACP is set to focus on 

• Improved governance

• Address persistent civic issues 

• • • • Provisioning adequate potable tap water to all households by taking advantage of the ambitious Jal Jeevan Mission.

• Increase funding avenues for the urban local bodies. 

• • • Reforms in property assessment by delinking it from the reasonable rental value method and adopting the market value of the property as a base for assessment wou;d increase property tax, which is the main tax revenue of urban bodies.

Working of the model

• The ACP has identified 57 cities that have been proposed for the programme. 
• During the selection process, the cities were individually ranked based on their own revenue and other services such as tap drinking water connection per household, rate of completion houses as a part of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna, Garbage Free Cities (GFC) star ranking and population of backward classes in the city. 
• Service level benchmarking was done for the cities based on the data collected on the Performance Assessment System of the Government of Maharashtra. 
• The performance of the 57 selected cities would be monitored and ranked quarterly through a standard digital monitoring platform with indicators on the themes of — urban infrastructure, education, urban services, skill development, and climate change as of now. 
• This would in turn enable the state government to act with speed, take strategic policy decisions and make necessary fund allocations to enable the growth and development of the less progressive cities for an impactful boost in the state’s economy.

Significance of the initiative

• This effort by the Government of Maharashtra is strategically contextualised with the “Viksit Bharat” vision for India in 2047. 
• Putting people first as part of urban development is a step in the right direction. 
• Bringing a sense of competition amongst the cities for urban governance will turn the state into a trillion-dollar economy as well as ensure ease of living.

Conclusion

• As New India is moving from its villages to the cities, there is the need for renewed thinking and policies that are citizen-centric for which Maharashtra’s urban governance initiative serves as a model.

https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/how-maharashtra-is-reforming-its-urban-governance-model-8592216/