Parliamentary Standing Committee Report on Housing And Urban Affairs

Parliamentary Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs recently presented a report on the Demands for Grants of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

The report highlights structural gaps in urban planning, financing and governance, and calls for a long-term strategy to prepare Indian cities for the future, particularly in the context of the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047.

Urbanisation in India

Urbanisation is expected to accelerate significantly in the coming decades. Nearly 75% of India’s population could be living in urban areas by 2030, highlighting the scale of the infrastructure challenge.

Cities already contribute a major share to India’s economic output. A report titled “Cities as Engines of Growth” prepared by NITI Aayog and the Asian Development Bank highlights the strong link between urbanisation and economic growth. As urban centres become hubs of productivity and innovation, the quality of urban infrastructure such as housing, water supply, sanitation, transport, and climate-resilient infrastructure will determine the sustainability of India’s development trajectory.

Key Highlights of the Report

The report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs highlights several important issues related to urban infrastructure planning, financing and governance in India. The major findings and recommendations of the committee are as follows:

Need for a Long-Term Urban Infrastructure Roadmap

Parliamentary Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs observed that India currently lacks an integrated long-term urban investment and planning framework. Without such a framework, urban development risks becoming fragmented, resulting in inefficient allocation of resources and financial stress in the future.

The committee noted that the last national-level assessment of urban infrastructure investment requirements was carried out in 2011, and its projections covered only the period up to 2031. Since then, no comprehensive evaluation has been undertaken to assess infrastructure demand, financing gaps and institutional requirements beyond 2030. Therefore, it has recommended the creation of a new High Powered Expert Committee on Urban Infrastructure to prepare a comprehensive roadmap for urban infrastructure development up to 2047, aligned with the national goal of Viksit Bharat 2047.

Concerns Regarding Urban Development Budget

Another major concern highlighted by the committee is the declining share of urban development in the Union Budget.

• The report noted that the allocation for the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has declined to 1.6% of the Union Budget Estimates for 2026-27, the lowest level in five years, despite increasing urbanisation and growing demand for housing, water supply, sanitation and urban transport.
• Although the overall Union government expenditure has increased significantly from about ₹39.44 lakh crore in 2022-23 to ₹53.47 lakh crore in 2026-27, the ministry’s share has not increased proportionately. This suggests that urban development may not be receiving adequate fiscal priority relative to the scale of emerging challenges.

Issues in Budget Estimation and Fund Utilisation

• The committee highlighted gaps between projected outlays and actual budget allocations, along with differences between Budget Estimates (BE), Revised Estimates (RE) and actual expenditure.
  • For example, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs projected an outlay of about ₹97,644 crore for 2026-27, but the approved Budget Estimate was reduced to ₹85,522 crore. Similar reductions have occurred in earlier years as well.
• The committee also noted problems in utilisation of funds. In 2025-26, the Budget Estimate of about ₹96,777 crore was reduced to ₹57,203 crore at the Revised Estimate stage, and actual expenditure remained lower than this amount.

This indicates weak planning and implementation capacity. Therefore, the committee recommended that the ministry adopt more realistic budget estimates and prepare a time-bound plan to increase its share in the Union Budget.

Existing Government Initiatives

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has highlighted several flagship programmes aimed at improving urban infrastructure and quality of life in cities. These include:

• AMRUT 2.0:  improving water supply and sewerage systems
• Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0: sanitation and solid waste management.
• Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban 2.0: affordable housing for urban poor.
• PM e-Bus Seva: promoting electric public transport in cities.
• Expansion of Metro Rail networks

While these initiatives have contributed to improvements in urban infrastructure, the committee observed that they remain largely scheme-driven and sector-specific. They do not constitute a holistic and integrated national strategy for urban development.

Need for an Integrated Urban Strategy

Beyond financial allocations, the committee emphasised the importance of developing a unified long-term urban strategy that integrates multiple dimensions of urban development. Such a strategy should address:

• Infrastructure creation
• Governance reforms
• Climate resilience
• Economic growth and job creation
• Social inclusion and affordable housing

It should also ensure balanced development across metropolitan cities as well as Tier-II and Tier-III cities, which are expected to absorb a large share of future urban population growth.

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