| Project Detail |
The knowledge and support TA will support India to strengthen capacities to plan and implement sustainable urban growth strategies based on transit-oriented development (TOD) principles and using land planning tools that enable compact development along mass transit corridors, ensure sustainable mobility, facilitate land value creation and capture to expand the municipal revenue base. Project Name Strengthening Transit-oriented Development for Urban Transformation in Indian Cities Project Number 56090-001 Country / Economy India Project Status Approved Project Type / Modality of Assistance Technical Assistance Source of Funding / Amount TA 10116-IND: Strengthening Transit-oriented Development for Urban Transformation in Indian Cities Urban Resilience Trust Fund US$ 2.50 million Operational Priorities OP2: Accelerating progress in gender equality OP3: Tackling climate change, building climate and disaster resilience, and enhancing environmental sustainability OP4: Making cities more livable OP6: Strengthening governance and institutional capacity The knowledge and support TA will support India to strengthen capacities to plan and implement sustainable urban growth strategies based on transit-oriented development (TOD) principles and using land planning tools that enable compact development along mass transit corridors, ensure sustainable mobility, facilitate land value creation and capture to expand the municipal revenue base. Project Rationale and Linkage to Country/Regional Strategy Urban India, which accounted for 31% of the total population and 60% of the national gross domestic product in 2011, is expanding rapidly. Demographic models suggest that the urban population was 460 million in 2018 and is expected to nearly double by 2050 accounting for 50% of the total population. Given the key role that urbanization has played in economic development internationally - through several channels collectively known as agglomeration economies - it presents an unprecedented opportunity for India to contribute towards its aspiration to become a $40 trillion economy by 2047, and create productive and well-paying jobs for its young population. To realize its potential, the urbanization process needs to be managed in an integrated manner to channel growth, catalyze strategic renewal, and enhance competitiveness. However, Indias current urban development processes and tools have not been able to keep pace with the demands of this rapid urbanization and growth aspiration. To accommodate growing numbers of people, on one hand, the majority of cities, have expanded outwards in an unregulated manner without appropriate and timely provision of infrastructure and amenities. On the other, city centers have continued to degrade due to the absence of planned urban renewal and adequate infrastructure and public transport augmentation, owing to lack of integrated urban planning. Existing planning approaches, and frameworks have failed to cope with and proactively address the fast-growing complexities caused by rapid urbanization. The Government of India recognizes that to realize the countrys economic potential and generate job opportunities, the current approach of urbanization needs to be reversed by (i) bringing a paradigm change in how cities and towns are planned, (re)developed, and managed; (ii) introducing enabling policy changes that will help to tap benefits of the ongoing initiatives on public transport augmentation; (iii) initiating a series of institutional reforms and comprehensive capacity building programs to strengthen integrated urban planning capacities of line agencies including TOD; and (iv) exploring how urban and economic planning may be better synchronized. The role of TOD as a key growth and planning strategy to develop cities, based on the compact city principles have recently received significant traction from Indias decision-makers. As TOD is an emerging concept in India, there is a high skill gap and low awareness about its benefits. In addition, existing statutory and regulatory provisions are not aligned with compact city principles. To strategically address these challenges, the government, in the national budget of 2022-2023, announced a comprehensive capacity-building program to support states to plan, implement, and manage TOD-based urban development, and requested Asian Development Bank (ADB) TA support, drawing on lessons from its engagement with Bangalore Metro Rail Transit System Project and Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System Investment Project. The TA aligns with three of the seven operational priorities (i.e., OP2, OP4, and OP6) of the ADB Strategy 2030 and the country partnership strategy for India, 2018-2022 by focusing on capacity development to achieve development outcomes. |
