Basu,I. and Kalra, R. 2022. The Democratic Prospects of Digital Urban Futures: Lessons from India's Smart Cities Mission. Journal of Indian and Asian Studies. 3 (2), pp. 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1142/S2717541322400071
| Title | The Democratic Prospects of Digital Urban Futures: Lessons from India's Smart Cities Mission |
|---|---|
| Type | Journal article |
| Authors | Basu,I. and Kalra, R. |
| Abstract | This paper explains the potential implications of digital interventions for social accountability through the Smart Cities Mission in India. The SCM represents India’s transition to a new political economy based on rapid urbanisation and wide scale application of digital technology to reform public service delivery while simultaneously creating new markets for urban transformation. Within this wider context, the paper considers the future of democratic practices in urban governance. We argue that while citizen-led accountability practices were trialed by civil society organisations since 1990s, the SCM presented a unique opportunity and challenge to institutionalise these tools within the framework of multi scalar governance – between central, state and local level institutions and between communities, private vendors and public bodies. Zooming into 4 smart city projects – Indore, Kakinada, Panaji and Ranchi we explain how each city engaged with citizens groups, communities and civil society and what their experiences tell us about the prospects and challenges of democratising digital urban futures. |
| Keywords | Digitised Governance, Urban Development, Social Accountability, Smart Cities, India |
| Journal | Journal of Indian and Asian Studies |
| Journal citation | 3 (2), pp. 1-25 |
| ISSN | 2717-5413 |
| 2717-5766 | |
| Year | 2022 |
| Publisher | World Scientific Publishing |
| Accepted author manuscript | File Access Level Open (open metadata and files) |
| Publisher's version | License CC BY 4.0 File Access Level Open (open metadata and files) |
| Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1142/S2717541322400071 |
| Web address (URL) | https://www.worldscientific.com/doi/pdf/10.1142/S2717541322400071 |
| Publication dates | |
| Published | Jul 2022 |
| Supplemental file | File Access Level Open (open metadata and files) |