Indian Cities

Online travel services provider, MakeMyTrip on Wednesday said it plans to grow its franchise base by over 50 per cent this year to expand its reach in smaller cities and towns across India. The company is seeking to tap into the opportunities provided by the government's initiative to increase the number of airports in India by adding 80 airports over the next three years, taking the number to 220 by 2025, MakeMyTrip (MMT) said in a statement. MMT said it started 2023 with 146 active franchisees and the aim is to grow by more than 50 per cent to reach 220 by the end of the calendar year. "The franchise network expansion is part of our broader strategy to serve customers in the top 100 plus cities of India. The franchise network will help serve those customers who may be more comfortable talking to someone they trust," MakeMyTrip Co-Founder and Group CEO Rajesh Magow said. On the opportunities in the country, he said India has emerged as one of the world's fastest-growing aviation .

Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri released on Wednesday draft guidelines for a new ranking system of cities based on financial performance and beautification. "India has embarked on the most ambitious plan for urban rejuvenation undertaken anywhere in the world. A healthy sense of competition gives the best performing cities a sense of pride," he said at the launch event. City Finance Rankings 2022 aim to evaluate, recognise and reward urban local bodies (ULBs) on the basis of their strength across three financial parameters -- resource mobilisation, expenditure performance and fiscal governance systems. According to Manoj Joshi, Secretary of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, it is also an effort to analyse and help the ULBs in identifying areas in their financial performance where they can make further improvements, to be able to deliver quality infrastructure and services, and hence a good quality of life to its citizens. "The city finance ..

Singapore-based Princeton Digital Group (PDG), which recently opened a data centre in Navi Mumbai with an investment of USD 300 million, is exploring opportunities to expand its footprints to other Indian cities. Last week, PDG unveiled a data centre in Navi Mumbai with 48 MW capacity in two buildings spread over a 6-acre. India's current operating capacity of data centres is over 650 megawatt. "India is a key market for us, and with our Navi Mumbai data centre becoming operational, we are exploring to expand to (other) cities, including Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Pune. Each of these data centres will be of 48 MW capacity with over USD 300 million investment," PDG Managing Director, India, Vipin Shirsat told PTI, without disclosing the timeline. The company is investing in a renewable energy plant in Maharashtra, which will fulfil 40 per cent power requirements of the data centre with minimal water consumption. "An additional 200 KW of the solar power plant will be .

To give it a distinct identity, the temple town of Ayodhya will soon have a uniform colour coding for various establishments

The top 8 cities include National Capital Region, Mumbai Metropolitan Region, Bengaluru, Hyderabad Pune, Chennai, Kolkata, and Ahmedabad

Municipal bonds account for a marginal share in debt financing, says the report

With an expected urban population of close to 630 million by 2030, the emphasis should not be on urbanisation alone but on planned urbanisation

Economist Intelligence Unit on June 24 released its Global Livability Index 2022, which ranks cities across the world on their 'livability' quotient

Among structural changes needed for proper urbanisation are directly elected mayors, a sensible property tax system, citizen- and bicycle-friendly designs, and clear FAR rules, writes T N Ninan

Most households in top-10 cities have been sharing concerns related to rising fuel prices and their focus on budget while shopping during this festive season.

Property consultant JLL India says mortgage rates continue to trend at their lowest in 15 years, thereby leading to reduced EMIs for homebuyers, thereby having a significant bearing on affordability

Four Indian cities -- New Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru -- witnessed a significant drop in their rankings in the global listing of smart cities that was topped by Singapore

Covid impacts medical research, infections rise in Indian jails, and what Pune's sero-survey tells us--a roundup of news on how the country is coping with the pandemic

Bengaluru (171) and Kolkata (185) are the least expensive Indian cities in the rankings, the survey said.

The national capital witnessed a slight dip in air quality after the effect of rain subsided but it remained in the satisfactory category.

Bengaluru with 15.3 million square feet and Hyderabad with million square feet were the second and third largest office markets in the A-Pac region in terms of office leasing transactions.

India is set to dominate the list of fastest growing cities by taking all the top ten spots

Financial and business services projected to be the fastest growing sector