This case study is part of the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose’s (UCL IIPP) publication series.
Explore more working papers, case studies and policy reports here.
India’s National Urban Governance Platform: Leveraging digital infrastructure thinking to build smart city capabilities at scale | UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (IIPP) | Case Study No.1.
Authors:
- Jordyn Fetter | MPA 22/23 Alumna | UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose
- David Eaves | Associate Professor and Deputy Director | UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose
Case Summary:
Location and time period
2015-2019 India
The policy problem
Many Indian cities are faced with the challenge of rising populations amidst a lack of physical infrastructure elements such as water and electricity supply, sanitation, and urban transport. This is further exacerbated by missing IT infrastructure which could be leveraged at the state- and city-level to improve service delivery to residents. In 2019, Kunal Kumar, Joint Secretary and Mission Director of the Smart Cities Mission, supported a new digital infrastructure-oriented solution to this capacity challenge by leveraging India Stack1 and the biometric ID system Aadhaar. But for a country with a federated government system, how to provision a highly scalable platform from the national level to states and cities became a big question for the Indian Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and National Institute for Urban Affairs-Centre for Digital Governance (NIUA-CDG) to grapple with.
Main topics/themes in this case
- Digital Public Infrastructure
- State Capacity
- Service Delivery
- Smart Cities
Read this case if you…
- Are seeking lessons on overcoming the hurdles of implementing large-scale digital initiatives, including tackling ownership issues, infrastructure gaps, and resourcing.
- Want to understand the dynamics of public-private collaboration in creating and sustaining digital infrastructure, with insights on how such partnerships can accelerate innovation and reach.
- Want to explore how a digital public infrastructure approach may transform service delivery.
Reference:
This case study can be referenced as follows: Fetter, J., and Eaves, D. (2025). India’s National Urban Governance Platform: Leveraging digital infrastructure thinking to build smart city capabilities at scale. Case Study No.1. Available at https://www.ucl.ac.uk/bartlett/public-purpose/CS-01
This case study is part of the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose’s (UCL IIPP) publication series.
Explore more working papers, case studies and policy reports here.