Context: NITI Aayog has conceived an initiative focused on developing city regions are growth hubs.
About Growth Hub Program of NITI Aayog
- To leverage urbanisation for economic growth, NITI Aayog has conceived developing city-regions as growth hubs.
- The program endeavors to forge a robust economic growth strategy for city-regions across India and prepare a roadmap for achieving the same.
- Under the initiative, NITI Aayog will work in close collaboration with the State governments.
- During the initial stage, four city regions will be taken up on a pilot basis to develop a template for devising an economic strategy. Later, 16 more cities will be taken up.
- The economic strategy template will act as the model strategy for other city-regions across the country for achieving desired economic targets.
- Economy growth strategy for cities: Under the program, a roadmap for developing economic growth strategy will be developed for each city region.
- For developing this following activities will be taken up:
- Comprehensive baseline assessment of city region’s economy
- SWOT analysis for understanding the strengths and challenges of the region
- Identification of growth drivers, setting economic goals
- Designing policy enablers
- Proposing governance structure for projectization of proposed strategies
- Initial focus cities: Mumbai, Surat, Vishakhapatnam have been identified.
Significance of developing economic potential of urban areas
- Urban areas hold immense potential to drive economic advancement to achieve the target of making India a developed country with a GDP $35-$45 trillion economy target by 2047.
- GDP of several major city, regions worldwide appears to match the GDP of entire countries. This intriguing trend reflects urban centers’ growing economic prominence and vitality, highlighting their pivotal role in shaping the country’s economic development.
- Indian cities also hold the potential to propel unparalleled economic growth which needs to be realised. While the government is exploring multiple pathways at all levels to achieve this target, strategizing \for transforming city regions into mega economic growth hubs is crucial.
