The Indian Government took the historic step of launching the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) in December 2005 with a view to give fillip to urban infrastructure development in 65 major cities by mobilising Rs.50,000 crore from the Central budget and by getting a matching Rs.50,000 crore from the State governments and the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs). The response to JNNURM has been very good. As a consequence, projects costing Rs.95,385 crore have already been sanctioned and are under various stages of implementation.

This book reveals the nuances and thinking behind the JNNURM, its implementation and status on the ground and suggests the way forward. The current urban reform process undoubtedly offers tremendous opportunities to rethink economic and development priorities. This book is timely given the re-affirmed commitment of the government to urban development. It is an essential read for all interested in policy, planning, urban develop-ment and renewal issues.

M. Ramachandran is Secretary, Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India. Member of the Indian Administrative Service since 1972, Dr. Ramachandran has handled several international assignments. He was the First National Officer selected to be on deputation to United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), India, during 1986-1992. He was Principal Secretary, School Education in Uttaranchal and Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister before elevating to the position of Chief Secretary. He was identified as the “Infrastructure Man” in the state of Uttaranchal. As Secretary, MoUD, since November 2006, he is steering the implementation of Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) in addition to many other city reform programmes.

Sameer Kochhar, Chief Editor and CEO, Skoch Consultancy Services is an industry veteran with a multifaceted career spanning over two and a half decades. He is Chief Editor of Inclusion—a quarterly publication focused on development issues, and President of Skoch Development Foundation—a section 25 company, and has been passionately working towards promoting participatory democracy, empowerment and bringing improvement in delivery systems. He is considered to be one of the most respected independent voices on inclusive development and citizenship issues in India. He is member of several expert groups and committees, and his research opinion and writings have shaped many a public policy dialogue. He has recently published with Academic Foundation, New Delhi, two edited books entitled: Financial Inclusion and Infrastructure and Governance.