The National Urban Conclave 2025, held in New Delhi, focused on advancing India’s vision for Viksit Bharat @2047 through discussions on sustainable, inclusive, and forward-looking urban growth strategies.
Key Themes of Discussion
- Urban Governance: Strengthening institutional frameworks for efficient and future-ready city management.
- Circular Economy: Promoting waste-to-resource models and integrating circularity into urban policy.
- Housing Ecosystem: Expanding affordable housing in alignment with livelihood generation and infrastructure planning.
Launches and Announcements
- MoU Exchange: MoU signed between the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of Uttar Pradesh, Osmania University, IIPA, and AIILSG - to support training, research, and development in the urban sector.
- Launch of IIRS Sankalan App: A GIS-based urban survey platform to enable on-site editing, geo-tagging, and faster data collection for accurate and reliable urban planning.
- Launch of the Centre for Public Policy on Habitat and Housing (NIUA, Delhi): To serve as a research and knowledge hub on affordable housing, policy support, capacity building, and inclusive urban planning.
Government Vision and Future Plans
- Global Urban Leadership: India will host the BRICS Urban Forum 2026 and Urban Tech Expo 2026, showcasing India’s growing role in global urban policy and innovation.
- Hill & Himalayan Cities Fund: An INR 1,000 crore fund under Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 was announced to strengthen solid waste management and urban sustainability in hill and Himalayan cities.
- Empowerment-Oriented Urbanisation: India is transitioning from a poverty alleviation approach to one focused on empowerment, entrepreneurship, and inclusive urban growth.
Keynote Insights
Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, emphasised linking urbanisation with national economic strategy, calling for:
- Cross-sectoral urban planning.
- Low-carbon mobility and circular models.
- A data-driven definition of “urban” using real-time indicators.
Outcome of the National Urban Conclave 2025
The conclave concluded with actionable insights for shaping India’s roadmap toward inclusive, resilient, and well-governed cities, aligning urban development with national growth priorities under Viksit Bharat @2047.
Urban Development in India
India’s urban population stands at over 543 million, accounting for nearly 37% of the total population. It is expected to reach approximately 50% of the total population by 2047. The urban economy contributes almost two-thirds of India’s GDP, underscoring cities as the primary drivers of national growth.
Over the past decade, government programmes such as Smart Cities Mission, AMRUT scheme, and Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban have driven major improvements in urban infrastructure, housing, and service delivery.
However, Indian cities continue to face structural challenges, including governance fragmentation, housing shortages, waste management, and climate resilience issues. The National Urban Conclave 2025 serves as a key platform for aligning policy, innovation, and governance frameworks for building inclusive, resilient, and future-ready cities.
DhruvStar Industry Insights: What it Means for Urban Development in India
- Smart Survey & Data-Tech Demand: The launch of the IIRS Sankalan App signals growing opportunities for GIS, spatial data, and urban analytics firms in municipal planning.
- Affordable Housing Ecosystem: The Centre for Public Policy on Habitat and Housing opens collaboration opportunities for developers, policy researchers, and urban finance institutions.
- Circular Urban Economy: The push for waste-to-resource models can create new markets for recycling tech, material recovery, and sustainability-focused MSMEs.
Sources
[1] PIB
[2] Global Data
[3] Boston Consulting Group
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