Indian PM Narendra Modi said private property developers should not decide how a city should grow and the decision should be taken by residents and the city leadership, as he unveiled three mega flagship urban schemes aimed at developing cities as engines of growth. Urbanisation should be viewed as an opportunity and urban centres should be viewed as growth engines, he said launching the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), Smart Cities Mission, and Housing for All (Urban) here. “Under these schemes we can go ahead and we can do it together (Centre and state). India is rapidly urbanising. Every year Hindustan gives birth to a small country,” he said. While 500 cities will be developed under AMRUT scheme, there would be 100 Smart Cities over five years and Housing for All aims construction of 2 crore houses in urban areas in the next seven years.
