The capacity of cities to create unprecedented levels of economic activity and innovation will all but ensure that they will take the lead in the century ahead.
Increasingly, numbers & political clout is moving from villages to cities. Being more exposed to media, cities are influencing political agenda more than politicians understand.
Disenfranchisement by institutional fiat is profoundly undemocratic. The effect of the ECI's new documentary process in Bihar will tilt the scales in favour of the BJP.
Mini deal will likely see no cut in 10% baseline tariff on Indian exports announced by Trump on 2 April, it is learnt, but additional 26% tariffs are set to be reduced.
India-Russia JV is also racing to deliver 7,000 more AK-203 assault rifles by 15 Aug. These are currently being made with 50% indigenisation and this will surge to 100% by 31 December.
Public, loud, upfront, filled with impropriety and high praise sometimes laced with insults. This is what we call Trumplomacy. But the larger objective is the same: American supremacy.
Most of us think of Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong while speaking of China. Consider the scores of new cities it has created since 1978 which are in the million plus category. Without necessarily thinking of metropolitan areas and smaller urban towns as an Either Or binary, it is unquestionably true that most of the incremental GDP that will need to be created for India to reach a per capita income of @ 6,000 will have to be generated in urban areas. Being a Nehruvian to the core, my heart tells me it will be the metros more than the smaller towns that will get us there. Which makes it all the more tragic that one half of Bombay’s population lives in slums. Our urban areas need not be Smart Cities but the quality of our urbanisation needs to be much better.
Most of us think of Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong while speaking of China. Consider the scores of new cities it has created since 1978 which are in the million plus category. Without necessarily thinking of metropolitan areas and smaller urban towns as an Either Or binary, it is unquestionably true that most of the incremental GDP that will need to be created for India to reach a per capita income of @ 6,000 will have to be generated in urban areas. Being a Nehruvian to the core, my heart tells me it will be the metros more than the smaller towns that will get us there. Which makes it all the more tragic that one half of Bombay’s population lives in slums. Our urban areas need not be Smart Cities but the quality of our urbanisation needs to be much better.