A City Development Plan (CDP) is both a perspective and a vision for the future development of a city. It presents the current stage of the city’s development – where are we now? It sets out the directions of change – where do we want to go? It identifies the thrust areas — what do we need to address on a priority basis? It also suggests alternative routes, strategies, and interventions for bringing about the change – what interventions do we make in order to attain the vision? It provides a framework and vision within which projects need to be identified and implemented. It establishes a logical and consistent framework for evaluation of investment decisions.

A CDP is anchored on the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) goal of creating economically productive, efficient, equitable and responsive cities. As a step to achieving this goal, the CDP focuses on the development of economic and social infrastructure, strategies that deal specifically with issues affecting the urban poor, strengthening of municipal governments and their financial accounting and budgeting systems and procedures, creation of structures for bringing in accountability and transparency, and elimination of legal and other bottlenecks that have stifled the land and housing markets. It provides a basis for cities to undertake urban sector reforms that help direct investment into city-based infrastructure.

Note : It is essential for a city to systematically think of the future, and determine how it wishes to shape that future.

Preparation of a CDP is a multi-stage exercise, involving:

• In-depth analysis of the existing situation, covering the demographic, economic, financial, infrastructure, physical, environmental and institutional aspects: The purpose of this stage is to review and analyse the current status of the city with regard to the state of its development, systems and procedures, as equally its institutional and financial context. This stage is meant to identify the strengths and weaknesses in the city’s development and to provide an understanding of what impedes service delivery and management within the existing set-up and what contributes to better service provision. This stage offers an opportunity to bring out the unique features of the city that may distinguish it from other cities.
• Development of a perspective and a vision of the city: Using the results of the first stage of analysis combined with consultations with key stakeholders and civil society, this stage is meant to develop a vision for the future development – a shared vision of where the city wants to be in a medium-term perspective. It is a collective vision of the future direction expressed in terms of expectations and often even goals, such as “water for all”.
• Formulating a strategy for bridging the gap between where the city is and where it wishes to go: It is in this stage that strategies and interventions are identified for attaining the vision and future development perspectives. This stage is used to first identify the options and strategies and second, to evaluate the strategies from the perspective of their contribution to the goals and objectives of the JNNURM. The chosen strategies are translated into programmes and projects in this stage. This is the phase where the city needs to decide which programmes would contribute most to the vision and medium–term perspectives. It is at this stage where criteria are selected, with appropriate consultative processes, for prioritising the strategies, programmes and projects.
• Preparing a City Investment Plan (CIP) and a financing strategy: An investment plan and a financing strategy are an integral part of the CDP. It is an aggregate investment plan indicating, for instance, the cost involved in providing 24/7 water supply from the present level of 10/ 7; it is not a financial estimate of a project for increasing the capacity of a water plant from 1,00,000 mld to 1,50,000 mld. Crucial to this stage is a plan that considers the alternative sources of financing the vision and the accompanying strategy and programmes. The process of formulating a CDP is illustrated in the chart (see diagram).

An analysis of the existing situation is the first stage in the formulation of a CDP. The purpose of the analysis is to make a realistic assessment of where the city is, the direction in which it has been moving, and its strengths and weaknesses. This stage is meant to make an in-depth analysis of the demographic, economic, financial, infrastructural, physical and environmental, and institutional aspects of the city. It should also examine the implications thereof for service delivery, management and governance.

Demography

The demographic characteristics of a city are a major component in the formulation of a CDP, and are analysed in terms of the pattern of population growth and its spatial spread within the city. The analysis should reflect on questions such as: Is the population growth excessive (by what measure), average or below average? What factors underlie the growth – natural increase, in-migration, or jurisdictional change? What, in broad terms, are the characteristics of the inmigrants? What implications does population growth have for shelter, services and infrastructure? What is the social composition of the city’s population in terms of income and access to shelter and services? What are the poverty levels within the city? Are the poverty levels in the city growing or declining? Is the problem of slums a matter of major concern for the city? Is it a growing problem or one that is showing signs of stabilisation?

The analysis can be extended to examine the age and sex composition of population so as to obtain a better understanding of the size of school-going population and labour force.

Economic Base

The economic base refers to the key sectors that drive the city’s economy. The sectors may relate to mining and manufacturing, infrastructure such as power and utilities, financial and banking services, public services, tourism, or places of religious importance. The key to the analysis lies in identifying the lead sectors of the city’s economy, and examining if the growth within the lead sectors is likely to be maintained in a medium-term framework? It should ascertain the recent shifts in the economic base and the factors that would explain such shifts and their long-term impact on the city’s economy. It is important to take stock of the role and contribution of the informal sector in the city’s economy.

Financial Profile

The financial profile of the city indicates the state of the city’s finances and the capacity of the city to be able to manage its finances and mobilise resources for maintaining infrastructural services at prescribed norms and standards. The analysis should focus on assessing: (i) the financial status of the city government (as also of other parastatal organisations responsible for service provision); (ii) the status of current assets and liabilities including outstanding debt; and (iii) analysing the role of inter-governmental transfers in the finances of municipal governments. It should especially address such questions as: What sources of revenues do the municipal governments have? Is the municipal government able to meet its current level of recurrent expenditure out of its own resources? Is it able to optimally use its “own resources”? How effective are the local tax assessment and collection procedures criteria? To what extent does the city government depend on the state government transfers for meeting its recurrent expenditures? Is the gap between what is needed by city governments and what they are able to raise due to inter-governmental assignment of revenue-raising powers, or their inefficient use and application by city governments? It will be useful to examine if the levels of expenditure on municipal services are skewed in favour of certain areas compared with others e.g., the poor areas. What budgetary and accounting practices are used? Do the finance accounts of city governments reflect the “receivables” and “payables”?

In most municipalities, the primary source of revenue for the local government is property taxes. An analysis of the property tax system should focus on tax assessment and collection practices, ratio of collection costs to revenues, and estimation of leakages, loss on account of exemptions etc. What criteria are generally applied in fixing user charges? What is the level of efficiency and equity in local taxation, expenditure, and user fee policies? How much do the urban poor contribute to local revenues? How much do they benefit from local expenditures?

Infrastructure

The infrastructure profile refers to the current state of infrastructure and utility systems in the city. It indicates the adequacy or inadequacy of infrastructural services in terms of coverage, quantity, and quality, and attempts to identify the factors responsible for inadequate development of infrastructure services. It measures the gap between demand and supply of different infrastructural services, and examines the factors that explain the gap. For example, is the inadequacy of the availability of water or power due to: (i) the lack of investment, leakages and thefts commonly observed in water and power sectors; (ii) low tariffs that serve as a disincentive to investment; (iii) or institutional fragmentation. It reviews the cost of delivering services and compares them with recoveries made therefrom. What are the distributional characteristics of service delivery within the city? What differences are there in the level of services received by different socio-economic groups?

The most important aspect of the analysis lies in recognition of the fact that inadequate access to infrastructure is a key constraint to development; apart from determining the characteristics and quality of public service delivery, it is important to ascertain the factors that are constraining infrastructure development. Are these factors financial, institutional, or others?

Physical and Environment Aspects

The physical aspects of a city relate to topography (the extent to which it acts as a constraint on development), natural drainage system, and availability of lands. Given the service delivery concerns, this element of assessment should specifically deal with the availability of land, and land use organisation. It should indicate the total land availability, allocation of land for different uses and purposes, whether it has been done on the basis of certain identified principles, and their consistency with the broader economic and infrastructural base of the city. The analysis contains an assessment of the adequacy of land availability and focuses on the role of legal and statutory provisions e.g. Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1976 in making land available to the market. It contains a survey and delineation of areas and infrastructure that are in need of renewal, by establishing criteria for identification of renewal areas.

Given that urban planning is an important factor in development, it is necessary to focus on such questions as: What percentage of urban land is occupied by different uses? What land use changes have occurred in recent years? What are the characteristics of the urban land market? What kinds of land use controls are practised?

An analysis of environment is primarily concerned with the impact of population growth, changes in income, expansion of economic activities, motorisation and the like on environment and environment-related services such as air and water quality, waste water, and composition of solid wastes including toxic and hazardous waste. A key point is to assess the health impacts of environmental conditions within the city. It is equally essential to include in the analysis, the city’s susceptibility to floods, earthquakes, or other national disasters.

Institutions

The city is managed and governed by a number of institutions and organisations. In this respect, a city is a complex entity. The purpose of the analysis is to present the organisational structure as it relates to the delivery and management of infrastructure services, i.e., who does what, and evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of the existing institutional structures. Often, responsibilities overlap, and also often, there may exist fragmentation of responsibilities without any platform for coordination. The analysis needs to be organised such that it sheds light on the key problems in the existing allocation of functional and financial responsibilities, and the extent to which it bears on the efficient and equitable delivery of services. It involves: (i) identification of institutions and organisations that have direct and indirect responsibilities for infrastructure provision; (ii) identification of the areas of fragmentation or overlap; (iii) assessment of the impact that it has on infrastructure delivery and management; and (iv) a review of the role of the private sector in service delivery and the potential of public-private partnership in the development and management of infrastructural services.

The analysis is designed to focus on such questions as: What is the de jure and de facto distribution of authority between the three tiers of government and how does it relate to Constitutional and legal requirements? What impact does it have on urban administration and delivery of public services? Is there an overlap in the responsibilities and activities of public service agencies? Are their objectives and activities complementary or conflicting? What mechanisms exist for interagency coordination?

Developing a vision for the city is central to the preparation of a CDP. A vision is a statement of where the city wishes to go, within a given timeframe, and is often expressed in terms of clear expectations. It defines the potential of the city and reflects its unique attributes in terms of comparative and competitive advantages, values and preferences of the city’s residents, relationship of the city to the state, national and global economies, and of course, the history and physical characteristics of the city. A vision aligns stakeholders’ energies to work cohesively for the development of the city. Cities need to systematically consider the future, and design strategies to accordingly shape the future. All objectives, strategies, programmes and projects must be aligned with the vision of the city.

Developing a common vision requires a significant effort of consensus building in order to balance the competing demands arising from different economic infrastructure sectors, as also from different interest groups within the city. In order to achieve an understanding on a common vision, it is useful to choose “milestones” and targets such as provision of a minimum level of services to all; public disclosure and transparency in the formulation of budget proposals; introduction of a single window in matters of service delivery and management and the like.

It is important that when cities define outcomes and milestones on the vision, they ensure that these are measurable and have a time frame.

• Universal access to a minimum level of services
• Establishment of city-wide framework for planning and governance
• Modern and transparent budgeting, accounting, and financial management system at municipal levels
• Financial sustainability for municipalities and other service delivery institutions
• Introduction of e-governance in the core functions of municipal governments
• Transparency and accountability in urban service delivery and management

The gap between where the city is and where it wishes to go can be bridged by pursuing different strategies and programmes. It is important that alternative strategies for meeting the gap are identified and subjected to careful evaluation. The selection of a strategy or a set of strategies should be guided by their contribution to its goals, objectives, and the reform agenda.

The selection of a strategy is an extremely important constituent of a CDP, and needs to be done with wide-ranging consultations among key stakeholders. A strategy that links the urban poor with service provision may be preferred compared to the one that aims at expansion of service without any reference to its potential beneficiaries or target groups. An urban renewal strategy which incorporates the interests of the poor in the transition phase may rank high in comparison with another, which does not distinguish between different affected groups. It is thus evident that evaluation of alternative strategies aims at maximising the impact – be it the water supply project or a constituent of the reform agenda like the repealment of the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1976.

In working on strategy formulation and selection, it is useful to ask: Will this strategy help in achieving the vision or will it help bring the city closer to the vision? Will this strategy help in achieving the outcomes? The selection of a strategy involves making a choice; no two strategies are of equal importance in their impact. Selection needs to be guided by the probability of producing results and should be evaluated in terms of “outcomes” instead of “inputs”. Selection is often determined by institutional capacities and financial means for implementation although strategies could be selected in a way that they enhance institutional and financial capacities to achieve the vision.

A City Investment Plan (CIP) provides an estimate of the level of investment that will be needed to implement the CDP. It is an estimate and approximation, and provides an order of investment, arrived at by using financial norms or standards for service provision and upgradation or directly estimating the cost of implementing a reform agenda. An investment plan may be formulated by seeking answers to questions such as: What level of investment would be needed to provide 150 litres of water to the city’s population? What would be the order of investment if area under citywide roads were to be raised from the present level to about 20 per cent of the city’s total area? What would the city need to invest if the open drainage system were to be converted into an underground sewerage facility?

A linked, but an extremely important, aspect is to consider options and strategies for financing the vision as contained in the CDP. Will it be financed by the local government by mobilising resources or in partnership with other tiers of government and financing institutions? Will the city resort to capital market? What will the city need to do in order to access the capital market? Will it encourage the private sector to finance this vision? What steps will be required to be taken to facilitate private sector investment? To the extent a city is able to systematically examine the financing options will add value to the CDP.

It is useful to summarise the key features of the CDP focusing on the following:

• What does the analysis of city’s profile show? Where are the opportunities and where are the key constraints?
• Given the opportunities and constraints, where does the city wish to move in a mediumterm perspective? While the vision is forward-looking, it is also a realistic vision, achievable with a given time frame.
• What strategic options are available to achieve the vision? What are the costs and benefits of alternative strategic options? Which of the strategies will help the city achieve the vision at least cost or maximum impact?
• What would be the aggregate investment needed to implement the vision? What are the options for mobilising resources for implementing the CDP?
• What reforms other than those embodied in the JNNURM are necessary for effectively implementing the CDP?

Note : The Toolkit lays down the steps in the preparation of a (CDP). It must be recognised that the preparation of a CDP is not a straight-jacketed exercise that must follow the steps outlined in this Toolkit. It is flexible, requiring an approach that suits the city’s environment and institutional set-up. Further, this Toolkit is, at best, illustrative and a reference document and so are the format of Tables

The Urban Administration and Development department envisages the below mentioned structure of CDP:

• Executive Summary
• Project introduction
• Methodology adopted
• Documentation of Stakeholder meetings and meetings with officials

Physical features of the town

• Historic Importance/Tourism importance/Any other Unique identity of the town
• District information
• Location (Linkages and connectivity)
• Physiography and landform (Topography, Drainage, Geology Climate and rainfall Wind direction)
• Municipal area and planning area

Demographic profile of the town

• Population growth trend
• Population projection
• Population density
• Other demographic indicators
• Issues

Socio - Economic profile of the town

• Sex ratio
• Literacy rate
• Average household size
• Workforce participation (Primary, Secondary and Tertiary occupation and income levels)
• Industrial activities
• Trade and commerce
• Tourism
• Issues

Physical planning and Growth management

• Spatial growth trends
• Spatial distribution of population
• Municipal level mapping (to the scale)
• Ward delineation map
• Landuse analysis
• Master plan provisions
• Housing scenario
• Present and future Housing demand
• Illegal colonies
• Future growth possibilities
• City specific Strategies and action plan

City infrastructure Water supply

• Quality and quantity of water at source
• Quality and quantity of water in distribution system
• Other sources
• Water distribution arrangements
• Internal distribution networks
• Water treatment facilities
• Present and Future Demand and Supply Gaps
• Water supply projects
• Comparative analysis with the UDPFI,CPHEEO guidelines
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Sewerage and Sanitation

• Existing sewerage system
• Means of sewage disposal
• Household toilets (Dry Latrines and Flush latrines)
• Public toilets
• Present and Future Demand and Supply Gaps
• Sanitation projects
• Comparative analysis with the UDPFI,CPHEEO guidelines
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Solid waste management

• Quantity of waste generated
• Constituents of municipal waste
• Current practices of Solid waste management.
• Waste storage & segregation
• Primary and secondary collection
• Processing and disposal
• Reuse and recycling
• Vehicles for solid waste collection and Transportation
• Present and Future Demand and Supply Gaps
• Estimation of waste collection
• Comparative analysis with the UDPFI,CPHEEO guidelines
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Drainage

• Existing drainage system
• Major water bodies
• Primary drains
• Secondary drains
• Tertiary drains
• Flood – prone areas
• Flooding in catchment area of major nallah
• Present and Future Demand and Supply Gaps
• Comparative analysis with the UDPFI,CPHEEO guidelines
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Traffic and transportation

• Existing traffic & transportation scenario
• Vehicle population
• Agencies in traffic & transportation.
• Travel characteristics
• Public transport / mass transit
• Traffic management and circulation
• Inter - city bus transport
• Intermediate public transport
• Parking requirements
• Present and Future Demand and Supply Gaps
• Comparative analysis with the UDPFI, other guidelines
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Street lighting and Fire fighting

• Existing situation of Street lights
• Fire service
• Vehicles and equipment for fire fighting and Rescue operations
• Operational systems
• Power generation and distribution (consumption of electricity by ULBs in street lighting water supply pumping etc.)
• Present and Future Demand and Supply Gaps
• Comparative analysis with the UDPFI, other guidelines
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Urban poor and their accessibility to basic Services

• Poverty in the town
• Separate information on BPL population and Slum population
• Slums in the town
• Location of slums on town map
• General characteristics of slum
• Status of slums (Notified/Un-notified)
• Land ownership & tenure status
• Unidentified slums and homeless population/pavement dwellers
• Urban basic services in slums (In line with JNNURM’s 7 point charter)
• Social security schemes and beneficiaries
• Present and future Housing demand
• Comparative analysis with the UDPFI,CPHEEO guidelines
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Social infrastructure

• Overall Health facilities and Medical practitioners in the town
• Basic health indicators
• Medical facilities provided by Municipal Body
• Role of Municipal Body in the health programs
• Overall Educational facilities and Teachers in the town
• Basic Education/literacy indicators
• Education facilities provided by Municipal Body
• Recreational facilities (Parks, Playgrounds etc)
• Sports facilities
• Comparative analysis with the UDPFI guidelines
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Environment

• Flora and fauna
• Pollution levels (Air, Water and Soil)
• City green spaces (gardens and recreation – total coverage ratio)
• Water front development and conservation
• Existing environmental regulations
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Heritage and Conservation
In case of Holy cities the JNNURM’s Heritage toolkit should also be considered to prepare the CDP

• Identification of Heritage structures/Areas
• Existing status of Heriatge buildings
• Existing regulations/Heritage guidelines at the ULB and State Level
• Heritage issues
• Tourism potential of the town (No. of visitors and tourist facilities)
• Possibility of tourism circuits at the regional level
• Comparative analysis with the UDPFI guidelines
• SWOT analysis
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Existing Institutional framework for Development

• Urban Local body structure
• Town and Country planning department
• Development authority
• Public health engineering department
• Madhya Pradesh housing board
• Madhya Pradesh pollution control board
• Any other
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Investment Plan and Financing Strategies

• Revenue account
• Revenue income
• Revenue expenditure
• Capital account
• Capital income
• Capital expenditure
• Key financial indicators
• Key issues and conclusion
• City specific Strategies and action plan

Investment Prioritization plan

• Project identification
• Basis for project identification
• Projects for system and infrastructure Augmentation
• Projects for system and infrastructure refurbishment
• Other developmental projects
• Sector wise project identification and costing
• Investment plan
• Financing plan (Financial operating Plan)
• Revenue account
• Key assumptions
• Non tax sources
• Revenue expenditure
• Capital income

Urban reforms

• Status of Mandatory reforms (as envisaged under JNNURM/IHSDP/UIDSSMT)
• Status of Optional reforms
• Issues
• City specific Strategies and action plan

City Vision

• Summary of Sectoral Strategies
• City Vision