A July 17 Press Information Bureau release titled “Finance Commission holds meeting with MoHUA” states that the Ministry of Housing and Urb...
A July 17 Press Information Bureau release titled “Finance Commission holds meeting with MoHUA” states that the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs requested a substantial increase in grants for municipal resources, with an increase of devolution to municipalities by at least 400%.
It is hoped that the Union Finance Commission, in its final report due in October, will pay heed to this request and increase grants to urban local bodies substantially.
Indian cities, despite their significant contribution to the national gross domestic product at nearly 70%, remain poor without adequate resources to meet their mandates. Recently, Indian cities have been affected the most by the Covid-19 pandemic. City officials, especially health and sanitation workers, are at the forefront of fighting the battle against Covid-19.
A prolonged lockdown has also affected municipal own revenues significantly. For cities to remain at the forefront of the battle against Covid-19, it is critical to ensure that they have access to adequate and predictable financial resources. Adequate financing is also essential to enable municipal governments to fulfil their mandate of various services and functions assigned to them.
India lags behind
A key source of revenues for local governments globally is the transfers from national governments, as well as transfers from state governments in...
