The decline in the quality of life in leading Indian cities is the result of two linked factors. While the task on hand (result of in-migration) gets bigger by the day, in the last three years (2015-17) 20-odd leading Indian cities have progressed at a snail’s pace in improving their level of governance. Because of this they remain far behind not just leading global cities like London and New York but also a city in a developing country, such as Johannesburg.

This is the foremost takeaway from Janaagraha’s fifth and latest Annual Survey of Indian City Systems (ASICS), 2017.

What the scores tell

The ASICS score (on a scale of 0 to 10) gives a measure of the health of a city’s governance and ability to deliver on quality of life. The scores for Indian cities come in the 3.0 to 5.1 range, whereas both London and New York score 8.8, and Johannesburg 7.6. In the last three years, the average score of Indian cities has barely moved from 3.4 to 3.9.

The survey notes that a large part of the missing policy initiative to set things right must come from State governments. Unfortunately, the Centre has not been able to make much of an impact. According to Srikanth Viswanathan who led the survey team, the “smart cities” initiative has made hardly any impact and the AMRUT programme just about a little.

There’s been little change at the top in the last three years. Pune, Kolkata and Thiruvananthapuram, which appear in that order, occupied the top three positions in 2016 and were in the top four, with Mumbai in second position, in 2015. A big change is the way Mumbai has gone down the pecking order, to number nine in 2017!

Why? One, it has not carried out many of the urban reforms envisaged in AMRUT. Two, Mumbai’s average per capita capital expenditure for the last three years has gone down despite its robust revenue stream, being the only city whose own revenue exceeds its total expenditure. Three, despite carrying a gargantuan commuter load, it has no comprehensive mobility plan. A key deficiency remains. Its mayor is still indirectly elected and for a 2.5-year term, when the norm is five.

On the other hand, how has Pune gone from fourth to first position in the last three years? One, it has undertaken some AMRUT reforms. Two, it has improved the share of its own revenue in total expenditure and raised the average per capita capital expenditure for the last three years. Three, it has made available online municipal staff data and a roadmap for digital governance. Right at the bottom of the list comes Bengaluru, the country’s information technology, innovations and startup capital, declining from rank 12 in 2015 to 23 in 2017. Being a city of job opportunities, it is growing rapidly but (deficiency one) does not have a resilience strategy. Two and three: it lacks a sanitation and mobility plan. Four: the Town Hall lacks autonomy for approval of its budgetary process. Five: the mayor is indirectly elected and that too for only a year. Expectedly, it has not carried out several AMRUT reforms.

Another leading Indian city, Chennai, has gone from rank eight to 19. It has three key shortcomings: it lacks resilience and sanitation plans and a land titling law. Proper titles for property owners create an incentive to pay property taxes, raising revenue. Expectedly, the share of its own revenue in its total expenditure has gone down. Perhaps the most damaging is its record of not having held municipal elections since 2011.

Most intriguing is the case of Chandigarh, which occupies the second lowest rank of 22 (one down from 21 in 2015). This is because it has hardly any urban local government worth the name. The share of its own revenue in its total expenditure is next to zero. Only nine of the 18 functions listed in the 74th amendment to the Constitution empowering urban local government have been devolved to the municipal body.

Stark realities

This is what a structured yearly survey throws up. Bengaluru is rapidly running out of water and has some of the worst traffic jams imaginable. Yet, it is still a lovely city to live in, not least because of the innate civility of the native Bangalorean and the city’s unique weather. There are more slum-dwellers in Mumbai than its proud long-term residents would like to admit. Property prices make people commute for up to a third of their waking hours. Yet, it remains the most professional city in the country. Delhi vibrates with life and growth but is dying by the minute in its polluted air.

Successive ASICS surveys have highlighted what needs doing for India to have a sustainable urban growth engine. Urban local government has to be empowered, professionally run and have a mechanism whereby an involved citizenry can claim ownership and demand answers. The rest will follow, with or without smart solutions.

The writer is a senior journalist