Union Ministry gives Surat 'global megacity' status

Surat, Feb 8 (UNI) Union Urban Development Ministry has included Surat city in the group of nine mega cities having global character and high growth potential, Corporation Deputy Mayor Sushma Agarwal said here today.

According to Ms Agarwal, Union Urban Development ministry in a conference organised in Hyderabad last week presented a concept paper in which 63 cities in the countries were selected for initiating a process of sharing knowledge on urban reforms and city governance.

The cities are divided into three categories, 'A', 'B' and 'C', and Surat is included in category 'A' along with Delhi, Greater Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Pune.

The concept paper is prepared by Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and is based on various factors like e-governance, city development plan, Municipal Finance Management, capacity building, public-private partnership and infrastructure management, Ms Agarwal said in a release.

UNI