New Delhi: Kochi tops the list of most prosperous cities in the country, according to a study conducted by the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) on behalf of the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The NIUA, which published the report on August 5, reviewed the development in first 20 Smart Cities in India. The ranking is given under the ‘Multi-Dimensional Prosperity Index’.

It studied four verticals and generated four indices such as Household Amenity Index, Physical/Finance Infrastructure Index, Social/Health Index and Community Asset Index. All the four indices were then combined to generate the Multi-Dimensional Prosperity Index (MPI).

While Kochi came first with 329.8 points under MPI, New Delhi came second with 248.3 points. They are followed by Ludhiana and Davanagere.

Sub-Indices

Kochi is way ahead than the other 19 cities in Physical/Finance Infrastructure Index and Community Asset Index. The city comes with 1186.7 points in Physical/Finance Infrastructure Index while its close contender Delhi could only secure 829.9. In Community Asset Index, Kochi ranks top with 6 points while Delhi has a much lower 2.3 points.

However, Kochi fell behind 14 other cities in Household Amenity Index. Also in the Social/Health Index, Kochi is overtaken by Guwahati, Ahmedabad, Udaipur, Bhubaneswar, Davanagere, Belgaum, Vishakhapatnam and Jaipur.

The report said that Kochi, New Delhi and Ludhiana are placed at the first three slots. The index suggests though there are variations at the sub-index levels, cities which have scored heavily in physical infrastructure as well as amenities gave scrored higher in the MPI too.

Jabalpur, Solarpur and Kakinada are at the bottom of the ranking. “These cities have weaker systems and hence they would require investing strategically to create local systems or institutions that can effectively support their Smart City aspirations,” the report said.

It further said urban administrators and policy makers should focus on creating social and economic conditions for effective workforce development. “These need to be supported by spaces for social engagement. The deployment of technologies will become useful only if the society which depends upon it is oriented and trained to make use of them.”

Multi-Dimensional Prosperity Index (MPI) Ranking

1. Kochi

2. New Delhi

3. Ludhiana

4. Davanagere

5. Coimbatore

6. Jaipur

7. Chennai

8. Vishakhapatnam

9. Ahmedabad

10. Pune

11. Bhopal

12. Surat

13. Udaipur

14. Indore

15. Belgaum

16. Bhubaneswar

17. Guwahati

18. Solapur

19. Kakinada

20. Jabalpur