Vol. 14 No. 1 (2026)
Space and Culture, India

Perspective

Pivoting From Smart to Sustainable: What's Next for India's Urbanisation Beyond the Smart Cities Mission (SCM)?

Published 2026-06-20

  • Diganta Das
    • ,
  • Sheriah Peries

Diganta Das
Associate Professor, Co-Chair: NIE Sustainability Learning Lab (SLL), Humanities and Social Studies Department, Nanyang Technological University, NIE 3-3-131, 1 Nanyang Walk, Singapore 637616

Sheriah Peries
Research Assistant, Humanities and Social Studies Department, Nanyang Technological University, NIE 3-B1-21, 1 Nanyang Walk, Singapore 637616

Abstract

India’s rapid urbanisation has intensified socio-environmental challenges that increasingly undermine urban liveability and economic productivity. While initiatives such as the Smart Cities Mission (SCM) sought to enhance quality of life through technological integration, mounting evidence suggests that pollution, urban heat, water scarcity, biodiversity loss, and infrastructure deficits continue to shape everyday urban experiences. This perspective article examines the limitations of the SCM’s dominant interpretation of “smartness,” arguing that the initiative often equates technological adoption and infrastructure expansion with urban progress. As a result, economic growth priorities frequently overshadowed social inclusion, environmental sustainability, and citizen well-being. Drawing on emerging scholarship, the article highlights how top-down governance, privatisation, and digital-first solutions have produced uneven outcomes, marginalising vulnerable communities and failing to address structural urban inequalities. In response, the article advocates a conceptual shift from technology-centric smart city models towards sustainability-oriented, participatory approaches grounded in the “slow ideology” of context-sensitive development. Comparative insights from international practices, particularly Singapore’s Liveability Framework, demonstrate how integrated planning, community engagement, and nature-based urban design can align economic competitiveness with environmental resilience and social equity. Ultimately, the article argues that India’s next phase of urbanisation requires redefining smartness to prioritise liveability, inclusivity, and long-term sustainability alongside technological innovation.

Keywords

Smart Cities Mission , Smart Cities, India, Sustainability, Sustainable Urbanism

PDF

Author Biography

Diganta Das

Diganta Das’s research focuses on smart and sustainable urban development, with particular attention to the intersections between smart-city production and everyday urban life, as well as the evolving dynamics of urban waterscapes in Asia. His scholarly work has been published in leading international journals in the fields of urban studies, geography, and science, technology, and society (STS). 

Sheriah Peries

Sheriah Peries has academic interests in urban and environmental issues in/of Asia. She graduated from Yale NUS College in 2025.

References

  1. Aurigi, Alessandro & Nancy Odendaal. (2021). From “smart in the Box” to “smart in the City”: Rethinking the Socially Sustainable Smart City in Context. Journal of Urban Technology, 28 (1-2), 55–70. https://doi.org/10.1080/10630732.2019.1704203.
  2. Basu, I. (2019). Elite discourse coalitions and the governance of ‘smart spaces’: Politics, power and privilege in India's Smart Cities Mission”. Political Geography, 68, 77–85. doi:10.1016/j.polgeo.2018.11.002
  3. Boni, Alejandra, Aurora López-Fogués, Álvaro Fernández-Baldor, Gynna Millan, and Sergio Belda-Miquel. (2019). Initiatives towards a Participatory Smart City. The Role of Digital Grassroots Innovations. Journal of Global Ethics,15 (2), 168–82. https://doi.org/10.1080/17449626.2019.1636115.
  4. Centre for Liveable Cities Singapore. (2025). The Liveability Framework. Centre for Liveable Cities Knowledge Hub. https://knowledgehub.clc.gov.sg/liveability-framework/overview/.
  5. Das, Diganta. (2015). Making of High-Tech Hyderabad: Mapping Neoliberal Networks and Splintering Effects. Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography,36 (2), 231–48. https://doi.org/10.1111/sjtg.12112.
  6. Das, Diganta. (2019). In Pursuit of Being Smart? A Critical Analysis of India’s Smart Cities Endeavor. Urban Geography, 41 (1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2019.1646049.
  7. Das, Diganta. (2025). A Decade of Smart Urbanism in India through the Smart Cities Mission (SCM). Space and Culture, India, 12 (4), 6–9. https://doi.org/10.20896/3jstx354.
  8. Datta, Ayona. (2018). Postcolonial Urban Futures: Imagining and Governing India’s Smart Urban Age. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 37 (3), 393–410. https://doi.org/10.1177/0263775818800721.
  9. Datta, Ayona. (2020). The ‘Smart Safe City’: Gendered Time, Speed, and Violence in the Margins of India’s Urban Age. Annals of the American Association of Geographers, 110 (5), 1318–1334. https://doi.org/10.1080/24694452.2019.1687279.
  10. Evans, James, Andrew Karvonen, Andres Luque-Ayala, et al. (2019). Smart and Sustainable Cities? Pipedreams, Practicalities and Possibilities. Local Environment, 24 (7), 557–64. https://doi.org/10.1080/13549839.2019.1624701.
  11. Geoghegan, Shona, &Federico Cugurullo. (2025). Beyond Dystopian Smart Cities? Unlocking a Progressive Utopian Future in Smart Urbanism. Urban Geography, May, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2025.2496508.
  12. Ghosh, B., & Arora, S. (2022). Smart as (un)democratic? The making of a smart city imaginary in Kolkata, India. Environment and Planning C: Politics and Space, 40(1), 318–339. doi:10.1177/23996544211027583
  13. Hambarde, A., & Shinde, V. (2025). Urban design consultants and public participation: a review of the street design projects under the Pune Smart City initiative, India. Planning Practice & Research, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/02697459.2025.2512913
  14. Kesar, Purushottam, & P. M. Ache (Peter). (2024). “Past, Present and Future of the Smart City in India: An Institutional Perspective.” Cities, 146 (March), 104775. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2023.104775.
  15. Kitchin, Rob, and Martin Dodge. (2017). The (In)Security of Smart Cities: Vulnerabilities, Risks, Mitigation, and Prevention. Journal of Urban Technology, 26 (2), 47–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/10630732.2017.1408002.
  16. MacRae, Penelope. (2026, 02 January). Sewage in Drinking Water Blamed for at Least 10 Deaths in India’s ‘Cleanest City.’ The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/02/sewage-in-drinking-water-deaths-india-cleanest-city-indore.
  17. Mariona Tomàs. (2023). The Smart City and Urban Governance: The Urban Transformation of Barcelona, 2011–2023. Urban Research & Practice, November, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/17535069.2023.2277205.
  18. Marvin, S., Luque-Ayala, A., and McFarlane, C. (Eds.). (2015). Smart urbanism: Utopian vision or false dawn? Routledge.
  19. McFarlane, Colin, & Ola Söderström. (2017). On Alternative Smart Cities.” City, 21 (3-4), 312–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/13604813.2017.1327166.
  20. Mullick, M., &Patnaik, A. (2025). Negotiating urban entities: marginalized citizens, participation, and the Indian smart city. International Journal of Urban Sciences, 29(sup1), 136–156. https://doi-org.libproxy.nie.edu.sg/10.1080/12265934.2024.2358102
  21. Narula, Mandeep Kaur. (2025, 05 September). Chandigarh: Crumbling Infra, Neglect Throw Bike-Sharing Project off Track. Hindustan Times. https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/chandigarh-news/chandigarh-crumbling-infra-neglect-throw-bike-sharing-project-off-track-101757015737444.html.
  22. Pandey, Kundan. (2024, 23 September). Urban Expansion Drives Forest Loss in India’s Biodiversity Hotspots. Mongabay-India. https://india.mongabay.com/2024/09/urban-explosion-land-use-changes-driving-forest-loss-in-himalayas-western-ghats/.
  23. Park, Joon & Seungho Yoo. (2022). Evolution of the Smart City: Three Extensions to Governance, Sustainability, and Decent Urbanisation from an ICT-Based Urban Solution. International Journal of Urban Sciences, August, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/12265934.2022.2110143.
  24. Praharaj, Sarbeswar. (2025). An Appraisal of the 100 Smart Cities’ Mission in India: Lessons for Post-Pandemic Urban Future. Journal of Urban Technology, 32 (5), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/10630732.2025.2549672.
  25. Prasad, Deepti, Tooran Alizadeh, and Robyn Dowling. (2023). Smart City Planning and the Challenges of Informality in India. Dialogues in Human Geography, 14 (3), 204382062311566. https://doi.org/10.1177/20438206231156655.
  26. Press Information Bureau. (2025). 10 Years of Smart Cities Mission. Pib.gov.in. https://www.pib.gov.in/PressNoteDetails.aspx?NoteId=154736&ModuleId=3&reg=3&lang=2.
  27. Rao, Devika. (2021). 74 of the World’s 100 Most Polluted Cities Are in India. Can the Country Clear Its Bad Air? CNA. 2021. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/cna-insider/india-world-most-polluted-cities-clear-bad-air-delhi-5121396.
  28. Raj, A., Anjali, A., Singh, V. K., & Semwal, V. B. (2025). Mapping urban heat islands in Pune, India: ecological impacts and environmental challenges. Remote Sensing Letters, 16(6), 654–664. https://doi.org/10.1080/2150704X.2025.2486319
  29. Sethi, Soumya Satyakanta, & V. Vinoj. (2024). Urbanization and Regional Climate Change-Linked Warming of Indian Cities. Nature Cities, May, 1–4. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44284-024-00074-0.
  30. Shakeel Sobhan. (2025, 12 June). Northern India and Pakistan Scorched by Relentless Heatwave. Dw.com. Deutsche Welle. https://www.dw.com/en/northern-india-and-pakistan-scorched-by-relentless-heatwave/a-72878150.
  31. Sharma, Anita, Rohit Bhatt, & Tarun Sharma. (2025, 05 June). Examining the Water Crisis in India’s Smaller Cities | IDR. India Development Review. https://idronline.org/article/water-sanitation/examining-the-water-crisis-in-indias-smaller-cities/.
  32. Singapore Green Plan. (2025). City in Nature. Www.greenplan.gov.sg. 2025. https://www.greenplan.gov.sg/key-focus-areas/city-in-nature/.
  33. Telegraph India (2026, 22 January). ‘Pollution Poses Greater Threat to India’s Economy than Tariffs’: Gita Gopinath. https://www.telegraphindia.com/business/gita-gopinath-pollution-poses-greater-threat-to-indias-economy-than-tariffs/cid/2143898#goog_rewarded.
  34. UN-Habitat. MoHUA, GoI. (2023). Smart Cities Mission, India: Localizing Sustainable Development Goals.
  35. United Nations Population Fund [UNFPA]. (2019). Making Bhubaneshwar socially smart. Bhubaneshwar: UNFPA India. https://india.unfpa.org/en/publications/making-bhubaneswar-socially-smart(open in a new window).
  36. Urban Redevelopment Authority (2025). Growing Plants in the Sky. https://www.ura.gov.sg/Corporate/Resources/Ideas-and-Trends/Skyrise-Greenery.
  37. V, V., & Ramachandran, P. (2023). Components of urban groundwater recharge in Bengaluru, India. Urban Water Journal, 20(10), 1627–1634. https://doi.org/10.1080/1573062X.2022.2077221
  38. World Air Quality Report. (2024, 10 December). World Air Quality Index (AQI) Ranking | IQAir. https://www.iqair.com/sg/world-air-quality-ranking.
  39. World Bank. (2025, 22 July). India Has a Critical Opportunity to Drive Resilient Urban Development, Says New World Bank Report. World Bank Group. https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/07/22/india-has-a-critical-opportunity-to-drive-resilient-urban-development-says-new-world-bank-report.
  40. Yadav, Nikita. (2025, 30 October). Climate Change Intensified India’s Heatwaves in 2024 - Lancet Study. BBC. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yp8r4ryvmo.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.