Unlocking urbanization —– leveraging coalitions for transformative change in Indian cities

Abstract

India is going through the early phase of urbanization with 33% of its citizens currently living in urban areas, with the number expected to go up to 40% by 2030. The sudden growth in Indian cities has led to challenges in infrastructure provisioning and service delivery which have not kept pace. Evidence in the form of case examples from across cities point to the possibility that there is room for leveraging disruptive innovation in filling the space in efficient service delivery via institutions outside the formal public setup. In the context of the gaps in governance, this paper seeks to examine the role of institutions and the potential of coalitions as ‘agents of change’ that can empower and equip the government and citizenry with technical capacity and methodologies for action, enabling sustainable development and eventually, triggering broader cross-sectoral, city-wide transformation.