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JNNURM

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The Government of India launched the JNNURM on 3rd December 2005. The mission aims to create ‘economically productive, efficient, equitable and responsive cities’. The main thrust of the mission is to:

Improve and augment the economic and social infrastructure of cities

Ensure basic services to the urban poor including security of tenure at affordable prices

Initiate wide-ranging urban sector reforms to eliminate legal, institutional and financial constraints that have impeded investment in urban infrastructure and services

Strengthen municipal governments and their functioning in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution (seventy-fourth) Amendment Act, 1992.

Integrated development of infrastructure services by providing adequate funds to meet the deficiencies in urban infrastructure services. This includes funding infrastructure projects relating to water supply and sanitation, sewerage, solid waste management, road network, urban transport, and redevelopment of old city areas. The programme lays special emphasis on urban renewal programme for the old city areas to reduce congestion. It also attempts to ensure planned development of cities including peri-urban areas, outgrowths and urban corridors leading to dispersed urbanisation.

Provision of basic services to the urban poor by up scaling the delivery of civic amenities and provision of utilities. The emphasis is on universal access and includes security of tenure at affordable prices, improved housing, water supply and sanitation, and delivery of other existing services of the government for education, health and social security.

Adoption of wide ranging urban sector reforms, which will facilitate establishment of linkages between asset-creation and asset-management and ensure long-term project sustainability. The thrust is to ensure improvement in urban governance and service delivery so that ULBs become financially sound and sustainable for undertaking new programmes. A set of thirteen mandatory reforms at State and Central level and ten optional reforms at the level of State and local level is listed in the Toolkit. All the twenty-three reforms need to be implemented in the mission period. Cities have the freedom to opt for any two reforms from the optional category in each year of implementation of JNNURM.

The Toolkit (a complete document containing eligibility criteria, guidelines etc. Associated with JNNURM) prepared by the Government of India contains the outline of the JNNURM framework, methodology for preparation of CDPs, project proposals, and timeline for preparation of the Reform Agenda.

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The objective of the Mission would be met through preparation of City Development Plans (CDPs), Detailed Project Reports (DPR) and signing of MoA between the Centre, State, and Urban Local Body (ULB). Every city is expected to formulate a City Development Plan (CDP) indicating policies, programmes and strategies, and financing plans. The CDP would include identification of projects leading to the formulation of Detailed Project Reports (DPRs). The Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) / Parastatal agencies have to prepare DPRs for undertaking projects in the identified spheres. The projects should be planned so as to optimize the life-cycle costs. A revolving fund would be created to meet the O&M requirements of assets created, over the planning horizon. In order to seek JNNURM assistance, projects need to be developed in a manner that would ensure and demonstrate optimization of the life-cycle costs over the planning horizon of the project. On approval of the CDPs and DPRs, the State Government and ULBs including Parastatal agencies, where necessary would execute a MoA with GoI indicating commitment along with a timeline to implement identified reforms.

At the National level, the JNNURM is steered by the National Steering Group (NSG), headed by the Minister for Urban Development. As a coordinating arm of the GoI, the NSG will review the progress of the mission along with the agenda for reforms. In the tier beneath the NSG, are two Sub Mission Directorates – one for Urban Infrastructure and Governance and the other for Basic Services to the Urban Poor. The former is under the charge of the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) and the latter under the Ministry of Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation (MoUEPA). Each of these Sub-Missions has separate Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committees. These committees are responsible for sanctioning and monitoring of projects and associated reforms.

At the State level, are State Level Steering Committees who would screen and prioritize identified projects. The projects would be implemented by State Level Nodal Agencies (SLNA).

At each of the three tiers of governance, i.e. Central, State and Local, advisory assistance and support is provided by expert groups and agencies and the Technical Advisory Group. The TAG is headed by a Technical Advisor drawn from Civil Society with proven experience in mobilizing collective action for reforms in urban governance.

The cities eligible for seeking financial assistance under JNNURM are compulsorily required to formulate a City Development Plan (CDP) indicating policies, programmes, strategies and financial plans. The CDP should also be linked to the Reform Agenda. The Reform Agenda would include the strategy to implement reforms, in a phased manner. The CDPs would facilitate identification of projects and ULBs are required to prepare Detailed Project Reports (DPRs). The funds for identified projects across cities would be disbursed to the ULB/ Parastatal agency through the designated SLNA as soft loan or grant-cum-loan or grant. The SLNA / ULB in turn, would leverage additional resources from other sources.

A City Development Plan (CDP) is an action plan for equitable growth in a city, developed and sustained through public participation to improve the quality of life for all citizens. ‘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 is the city now? It sets out the directions of change – where does the city want to go? It identifies the thrust areas — what does the city need to address on a priority basis? It also suggests alternative routes, strategies, and interventions for bringing about the change – what interventions should be made 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. The basic framework outlining the methodology for preparation of CDPs is given in Toolkit Number 2.

The CDP is therefore the crucial link that weaves together the three basic elements of the mission - namely integrated development of infrastructure, basic services for the poor and adoption of urban sector reforms, into an integrated whole. It lays the foundation from which would follow DPRs not only for the mission period but also for the near future (say next decade or so). The quality of the CDP, therefore, is one of the most imperative links on which the success of the mission would depend. It may also be used by the city to promote itself to potential investors.

Appraisal of CDPs: The CDPs and DPRs have to go through a process of appraisal by an independent agency. The National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) is one of the agencies who has been entrusted this responsibility by the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD). Till date, the institute has appraised about fourteen CDPs. In the first phase after launch (i.e. upto 31st March 2006) the institute has appraised eight CDPs. Since 1st April 2006, the CDPs of Madurai, Coimbatore, Chandigarh, Mysore, Kohima and Guwahati were appraised.

Monitoring of Reforms: In addition to the appraisal of CDPs, NIUA has also been assigned the task of monitoring reforms at the city-level. The monitoring will be done based on the agenda of reforms postulated in the tripartite Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) signed between the Central government, State government and Urban Local Body and (or) parastatal body. This work will be initiated by the end of the year as the cities have either just signed the MoAs or are in the process of signing it. The format for timeline for implementing the urban reform agenda is illustrated in Toolkit Number 5.

Timeline for City Development Plans (CDPs) appraised

 * Since elections were declared in Tamil Nadu, the CDP appraisal of these cities could not be taken up until late April 2006.