Union Budget 2022-23: What is the store for rapidly expanding urban sector?

By Ismail Haque*
On February 1, 2022, honourable finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the union budget 2022, which focuses on key priority areas and gives a clear mandate to ensure exemplary economic growth and inclusive development over the next 25 years – from India at 75 to India at 100. With particular reference to the urban sector, numerous facets subsumed within the same were covered, namely – land and housing, transport, urban development and planning. In terms of budgetary allocations, a sum of INR 48000 crore has been earmarked for the housing sector to construct 80 lakh houses under the ongoing PMAY mission by 2023. The union government also seeks to provide urban planning support to states by establishing five centres of excellence in urban planning with INR 250 crore being provided to each. In addition, states have been allocated a fifty-year interest-free loan assistance of INR 1 lakh crore which will be used for reforms related to building bye-laws, town planning schemes, transit-oriented development, and transferable development rights. Several visionary policy interventions and reform measures have also been announced, some of which have been discussed below.

Key Policies and Programmes and their Strengths & Weaknesses

Announcements such as 48,000 crores for ongoing PMAY mission, 80 lakh new homes by 2023, single-window environmental approvals, better coordination between the Centre and states for approval processes and uniform registration of deeds will help boost the affordable housing market. It will also have a huge multiplier effect on local entrepreneurship, job creation and economic growth. However, PMAY vertical-wise budget allocation and housing intervention would be much more effectual to address the existing housing backlog, especially for the urban poor. In addition, this budget is silent on the recently introduced ARHC scheme for migrant workers and concerted efforts would be required at the policy level to revitalize the rental sector.
Efficient use of land resources is a strong imperative for sustainable urban development. While the digitization of land records initiative is not new, this budget emphasizes a technology-enabled land management system. In particular, it includes features such as the adoption of Unique Land Parcel Identification Number system at the state level to facilitate IT-based management of land records; transliteration of land records across any of the Schedule VIII languages; introduction of National Generic Document Registration System (NGDRS), and the promotion of pan-India single registration software. All of these may be instrumental for greater transparency and accountability in the land transaction process and the smooth functioning of the urban land and housing market. If implemented well, this would give a real boost to the sector.
Innovative financing tools and faster implementation strategies are envisaged for building urban mass transport systems like metro rail. Multimodal connectivity between mass urban transport hubs and railway stations has also been prioritized. However, the introduction of new metro rail projects beyond the large metro areas may not be feasible if we go by the ridership. This is a pain-point of earlier ventures that may need a revisit.
Rapid pace of urbanization poses serious challenges for inclusive and sustainable urban development in India. Therefore, a planned and resilient urban development process is the need of the hour to realize India’s economic potential, including livelihood opportunities for the demographic dividend. This budget recognizes that given large metropolitan cities and their hinterlands are already serving as centres of economic growth, Tier-II and Tier-III cities need to develop as the ‘centres of sustainable living’ with opportunities for all. This is indeed a welcome move and requires a massive paradigm shift in India’s urban planning ecosystem.
As a reform measure, a high-level expert committee will also be formed to make recommendations on urban sector policies, capacity building, planning, implementation and governance. Aside from this, states will get adequate support for urban capacity building especially in the modernization of building bye-laws, effective implementation of Town Planning Schemes (TPS), and Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) plans. This will facilitate states to achieve inclusive and sustainable development for all. However, there is no mention of the future of the ‘smart city’ project in this budget, which was introduced earlier to improve the planning and infrastructure of numerous cities.
It is foreseen that the budget’s announcement of India specific knowledge development in urban planning and design, and the establishment of five centres of excellence providing endowment funds of 250 crores each would have a major impact on the urban planning process and practices.

Missing points/Suggestions

The budget 2022 has paid considerable attention to the key aspects of urban sector, as highlighted above, for sustainable growth and development. While some of the proposed reforms seem to be good, their effective implementation on the ground remains a challenge.

This budget strives to boost the land and housing market through technological interventions, but no big announcement have been made for the real-estate developers as well as home-buyers (tax rebate etc.). In particular, private developers operating in the informal real estate market (both ownership and rental) should be recognized and incentivized to augment the supply for ensuring equitable access to the housing market. Concerted efforts are also required to build a strong supportive ecosystem and centre-state coordination for improving the implementation of the PMAY scheme. In addition, technology can definitely bring transparency, but given the long history of land-related conflicts, ameliorative steps in the form of facilities for local-level negotiations need to be provided.
Secondly, to develop Tier-II and Tier-III cities as centres of economic growth and sustainable living, a concrete plan of action is required. Incorporation of these small and medium-size urban centres under the ambit of ongoing JNNURM and Amrut schemes and diverting investment and development projects towards these cities for strengthening their infrastructure and economic bases may herald sustainable and balanced urban development. In particular, capacity building, adequate financial support to promote vibrant infrastructure development and governance should be the immediate priority.
Finally, inclusive urban development can’t be achieved without recognizing and addressing the issues of informal urban spaces. Effective policy interventions are thus required to improve their current conditions. Like NREGA scheme for rural areas, it would be worthwhile to include National Urban Employment Guarantee Act scheme for the urban poor.
—
Associate Fellow at ICRIER, New Delhi

Comments

Eight years of empowering tribal communities through water initiatives in Chhattisgarh

By Gazala Paul* In the heart of Chhattisgarh, amidst the echoes of tribal life, a transformative journey has unfolded over the past eight years. The Samerth organization has diligently worked to elevate the lives of indigenous communities in the Kawardha district through the project, "Enabling Baiga Community to access safe drinking water."

Martin Crowe played instrumental role in making New Zealand a force in world cricket

By Harsh Thakor* Late Martin Crowe was the perfect manifestation of how mere figures could not convey or do justice to the true merit of a batsman. Crowe was arguably the most complete or majestic batsmen of his era or the ultimate embodiment of batting perfection, or the classical batsmen. He perished 7 years ago, due to a rare and aggressive form of cancer, follicular lymphoma, which originated in 2012. In September, we celebrated his 60th birthday but sadly he left for his heavenly abode.

Regretful: Kapil Dev retired not leaving Indian cricket with integrity he upheld

By Harsh Thakor Kapil Dev scaled heights as an entertainer and a player upholding the spirit of the game almost unparalleled in his era. In his time he was cricket’s ultimate mascot of sportsmanship On his day Kapil could dazzle in all departments to turn the tempo of game in the manner of a Tsunami breaking in. He radiated r energy, at a level rarely scaled in his era on a cricket field. Few ever blended aggression with artistry so comprehenisively. Although fast medium, he could be as daunting with the ball as the very best, with his crafty outswinger, offcutter, slower ball and ball that kicked from a good length. Inspite of bowling on docile tracks on the subcontinent, Kapil had 434 scalps, with virtually no assistance. I can never forget how he obtained pace and movement on flat pancakes, trapping the great Vivian Richards in Front or getting Geoff Boycott or Zaheer Abbas caught behind. No paceman carried the workload of his team’s bowling attack on his shoulders in his eras muc

How the slogan Jai Bhim gained momentum as movement of popularity and revolution

By Dr Kapilendra Das* India is an incomprehensible plural country loaded with diversities of religions, castes, cultures, languages, dialects, tribes, societies, costumes, etc. The Indians have good manners/etiquette (decent social conduct, gesture, courtesy, politeness) that build healthy relationships and take them ahead to life. In many parts of India, in many situations, and on formal occasions, it is common for people of India to express and exchange respect, greetings, and salutation for which we people usually use words and phrases like- Namaskar, Namaste, Pranam, Ram Ram, Jai Ram ji, Jai Sriram, Good morning, shubha sakal, Radhe Radhe, Jai Bajarangabali, Jai Gopal, Jai Jai, Supravat, Good night, Shuvaratri, Jai Bhole, Salaam walekam, Walekam salaam, Radhaswami, Namo Buddhaya, Jai Bhim, Hello, and so on.

Towards 2024: Time for ‘We the People of India’ to wake up before it is too late

By Fr Cedric Prakash SJ* It is Constitution Day once again! We, the people of India, gratefully remember 26 November 1949 when the Constitution of India was passed and adopted by the Constituent Assembly. The Constituent Assembly comprised women and men of distinction, who were able to represent the heart and soul of the people of India without fear or favour. They gave of their best, so that we may a visionary Constitution, which would be the mainstay for and of democracy in India!

Ceasefire a tactical victory for Palestinian resistance, protests intensify across globe

By Harsh Thakor* The Zionist leadership and Netanyahu’s government were compelled to concede the defeat of their first attempt after almost 50 days of daily fighting in the Gaza Strip. Netanyahu was forced to concede that he was unsuccessful in suppressing the Palestinian Resistance; and that the release of the prisoners was only plausible because they accepted Hamas’ terms.

Odisha leadership crisis deepens: CM engages retired babus to oversee depts' work

By Sudhansu R Das Over decades, Odisha has lost much of its crop diversity, fertile agriculture land, water bodies, employment potential, handicraft and handloom skills etc. The state has failed to strike a balance between the urban and rural sector growth; this leads to the migration of villagers to the urban areas leading to collapse of the urban infrastructures and an acute labor shortage in rural areas. A large number of educated, skilled and unskilled Odia people have migrated to other states for higher education, quality jobs and for earning livelihood which plummet the efficiency level of government departments. Utmost transparency in the recruitment and promotion in the state government departments will improve governance mechanisms in the state. "No near and dear one approach" in governance mechanisms can only achieve inclusive growth for the state on payment basis. This is a moral hazard. When so many educated young people seek employment outside the

1982-83 Bombay textile strike played major role in shaping working class movement

By Harsh Thakor On January 18th, 1982 the working class movement commemorated the 40th anniversary of the Textile Workers Strike that lasted for 18 months, till July 1983. It was landmark event that played a major role in shaping the working class movement. With more than 2.5 lakh workers from 65 textile mills joining in this strike for almost two years, this strike became one of the most significant strikes in terms of scale and duration All democrats should applaud the mill workers’ united battle, and their unflinching resilience an death defying courage continues to serve as a model for contemporary working-class movements. Many middle class persons harboured opinions that the Textile workers were pampered or were a labour aristocracy, ignorant of how they were denied wages to provide for basic necessities. The Great Bombay Textile Strike is notably one of the most defining movements in the working class struggles in Post-independent India. Bombay’s textile industry flourished in

Massive tropical deforestation: Big finance's $307 billion go to forest-risk commodities

A note on report by Forests & Finance coalition -- Rainforest Action Network, TuK Indonesia, Profundo, Amazon Watch, Repórter Brasil, BankTrack, Sahabat Alam Malaysia and Friends of the Earth US: *** A new report released on ‘Finance Day’ at COP28 by the Forests & Finance Coalition , provides a comprehensive look into the role big finance plays in driving deforestation, biodiversity loss, climate change and human rights abuses in tropical forest regions. The report reveals that since the Paris Agreement, banks have pumped over $307 billion into high risk forestry and agriculture companies linked to tropical deforestation, proving that the policies of major global banks and investors are failing to prevent continued widespread forest and biodiversity loss.

20% of Indian businesses have no emission plan in place despite climate emergency: Report

By Jag Jivan New research underlines urgent need for strategies and transition plans to combat climate change, remain successful and meet stakeholder expectations.

Search This Blog