Managing India's Cities
The future of India is inescapably urban. Cities have emerged as the prime engines of economic growth and generators of national wealth. In fifteen years, more than half the country's one billion people will live in cities. A third of them will be slum dwellers and squatters.

In 1992, the 74th Amendment of the Indian Constitution began a process to strengthen municipal governments through improved management and service delivery. Under USAID's FIRE-D (Financial Institutions Reform and Expansion - Debt) Project, City Managers Associations have been formed in nine states to address urban growth, mobilize resources, improve infrastructure services and support the development of a market-based urban infrastructure finance system. A model municipal act has been developed in collaboration with the Government of India to provide guidance to the states on municipal legislation amendments. The amendments will facilitate private sector participation in municipal service delivery, urban environment management and accessing market finance for investment in municipal infrastructure.

Indore , with a population of over 1.64 million is the largest city in the state of Madhya Pradesh. Realizing that population growth would require larger expenditure on services and amenities, the Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) focused on strengthening its revenue base and increasing citizens' participation in local governance and service improvement. The revenue department was re-organized to introduce cash collection counters and decentralize many operations in zonal offices. Accounting systems for calculating property taxes, shop rents and trade licenses were also improved. A master data bank was set up to identify illegal electric and water connections and, self-assessment of property tax by citizens was introduced. According to the Mayor of Indore city, "Computerization, database creation and simplification of tax-related procedures have helped the IMC to increase its revenue by almost 150% in four years, from 1997-98 to 2001-02".

Date: 2003