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Source: The post is based on the article “Annual Survey of India’s City-Systems 2023” published in “The Hindu” on 3rd November 2023
Why in the News?
The sixth edition of the Annual Survey of India’s City-Systems (ASICS) 2023 report has been released.
What is the Annual Survey of India’s City-Systems (ASICS) 2023 report?
Released by: Janaagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy, a non-profit institution
Aim: To highlight the challenges and constraints faced by the Local Governments in Indian Cities.
Key Highlights from the report:
| Specifications | Details |
| Active Master Plan | 39% of India’s capital cities lack an active master plan. |
| Sectoral Plans | Only nine cities have prepared sectoral plans for key aspects such as sanitation, comprehensive mobility, and sustainability. |
| Urban Legislations | Eastern states, comprising Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal have relatively better urban legislations followed by southern states. |
| Limited control over finances | (1) Majority of local governments are financially dependent on their State governments. (2) Only Assam empowers its city governments to collect all key taxes. (3) Except five States — Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Meghalaya, and Rajasthan — all the others have to get approval from the State before borrowing money. |
| Power Asymmetry across city categories | Mayors in megacities are not directly elected and do not have a five-year tenure, whereas mayors in smaller cities are directly elected but have limited authority over city finances |
| Limited Authority in Staff appointments | Mayors and city councils have limited authority in appointing and promoting staff, including senior management teams, leading to challenges in accountability and efficient administration. |
| Transparency issues | Only 11 of the 35 States/Union Territories have enacted the Public Disclosure Law that mandates publishing of key civic data |
| Staff Shortage | (1) 35% of posts in India’s municipal corporations are vacant. (2) The vacancy progressively worsens with 41% posts being vacant among municipalities and 58% being vacant in town panchayats |
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