Reimagining the urban future
The problem of capacities runs deeper than just the ability to spend funds. What cities lack is the ability to raise finances — even basic user charges for municipal services and taxes are not adequately collected. To employ innovative instruments such as green municipal bonds or getting the private sector to partner in building the climate resilience would require city administrations to set their house in order. More importantly, power and finances need to be adequately devolved to urban local bodies. To that end, executive and political imagination needs to be unlocked to suit the future needs.
These findings outline the challenges — financial, environmental, and administrative — that lie ahead. Without adequate spending on climate adaptation infrastructure — better drainage, architecture that reduces the need for cooling and lighting — an urban crisis looms. For instance, heat mitigation measures can save up to 130,000 lives and increase the GDP by 0.4% a year, against the backdrop of exposure to dangerous heat stress having doubled between 1983-1990 and 2010-2016 in 10 of India's largest cities. Similarly, losses from pluvial flooding could worsen without regular upkeep and upgrades of the drainage system. All this calls for urgent municipal action, especially since India's urban population is expected to rise from 480 million in 2020 to 950 million by 2050.
That only half the infrastructure needed to support the growth in urban population has been built (as the report says) is both a challenge and an opportunity. The report's recommendation that a dedicated national urban resilience programme be developed along with a financing strategy needs a close look.
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