Metro cities have been trying to create structured systems—incinerators, waste treatment facilities, color-coded bins, strict monitoring. But move beyond the metros, and the story changes. Around 80-85% of medical waste is non-hazardous, and only 15% is hazardous. However, owing to improper segregation and mixing the entire waste can turn into hazardous materials.
Read MoreMobility in India’s smaller cities is paradoxical. Urban plans and infrastructure policies have been prioritising cars, while ignoring the fact that around 60% of the people in smaller cities rely on walking or cycling to get around and only 3% rely on cars. In Gwalior, for instance, two out of five people get around just by walking.
Read MoreWho Makes the Decisions? The Bureaucrats or the Elected Leaders?
Another aspect that colours the experience of the local elections is the tension between bureaucratic control and elected representation. While councillors are elected, the administration is run by national/state-level bureaucrats. This leads to a strange paradox: citizens think that they are electing representatives who will carry out actions that represent their aspirations. However, most critical actions in their cities, such as land acquisitions, infrastructure projects, and transport policies, get driven by bureaucratic orders rather than public mandates.
Read MoreAs the clock struck midnight on New Year's Eve, cities - both big & small - around the country came alive with celebrations! Traditionally, New Year festivities in India vary greatly, reflecting the country’s diverse cultures & calendars. Festivals like Vaisakhi, Ugadi, Bihu, and Navreh mark the start of a new year for different communities along with the festivities on 1st January.
Read MoreThe Indian coffee market is growing 10.15% year on year which is approximately more than three to four times faster than the global increase of 2.5 to 3%. This rise is attributed to the growing popularity of coffee culture. The expansion of homegrown coffee chains like Barista and Café Coffee Day from metros to Tier-II cities and beyond, initially drove this shift. The arrival of global coffee giants like Starbucks, along with the growth of local brands such as Blue Tokai Roasters and Black Baza, has further popularised coffee culture across the country
Read MoreWhen you think of Kancheepuram, Firozabad, or Khurja, what comes to mind? Most likely, it's Kanjivaram sarees, glass bangles, or ceramics. Across India, small, family-run businesses and cottage industries have become deeply rooted in the cities they call home, shaping their unique identities. At their core, small businesses in handloom and similar sectors are more than economic units, they are the soul of smaller cities. Their survival means preserving a part of India’s history and identity. Supporting them isn’t just about economics; it’s about safeguarding stories, legacies, and lives!
If you are as captivated by the magic of smaller businesses, read our full report: “Threads of Identity: How Small Businesses Sustain Local Economies and Culture.”
After months of unending rain, before the seasons change to cool winters, there is often a season of rampant vector borne diseases. While malaria was common, some of these diseases such as Dengue and Japanese Encephalitis Virus (JEV) are new entries to the geographies of smaller cities. Monsoon has led to severe disease outbreaks in several Indian states, with Kerala and Bihar among the worst hit. Assam is facing a dual-layered challenge of flooding and a rise in JEV cases.
Read MoreAs we prepare to release this report, India’s Himalayan region faces heavy rainfall & high alert, creating widespread panic among citizens. These geologically fragile areas frequently experience extreme weather events such as heavy rainfall and cloudbursts, triggering landslides, flash floods, & land subsidence.
But why are these hazards increasing? How equipped are these communities to tackle disasters? Can traditional knowledge & technology boost their resilience? Are government risk reduction efforts yielding results?
Read MoreUttarakhand has only one town planner against the requirement of twenty six. Such a lack of trained professionals makes hill towns prone to disasters adding to fragile geography, haphazard construction and increased tourism. Despite SC’s mandate for Master Plans and carrying capacity studies, these towns still lack them. It was only after NGT’s order, that Shimla banned construction in core green areas and restricted building heights in non-core and sinking zones.
Read MoreThough most of the urban population may now know about Blinkit and Instamart, does your city have them? Or a local version of the same? Or it doesn’t need it-yet? BlinkIt’s footprint is in 23 cities, but their 90% Gross Order Value comes from top 8 cities! Its CEO recently said that the focus of their expansion is in these 8 cities. Instamart and Zepto are operating in 26 and 10 cities respectively.
Read MoreIn India, Haats are essentially open-air markets that originally emerged as rural retail hyper-markets, which have also transcended into urban spaces by facilitating trade among villages, cities and towns. These periodic markets occur weekly or fortnightly, and have historically played an important role in the transformation and growth of smaller towns. For instance, West Bengal’s Rampurhat has immensely developed from a small haat-based town into a large municipality.
Read MoreTier-2 cities like Jaipur, Chandigarh, and Coimbatore are witnessing a surge in demand for these flexible workspaces. Many factors are leading to increased demand for co-working spaces beyond the metros making their way to smaller cities. In contrast to the rising cost of living and rental charges in Tier-1 cities, the affordable rental charges, improved connectivity, and digital infrastructure have enabled entrepreneurs to establish their enterprises in smaller cities.
Read MoreThere is a rise of coaching culture not only in metropolitan cities but also in smaller cities and towns that cater to rural youth. For example, Ranchi had only 200 coaching centres in 2012. But in just a span of six years, this number shot up 10,000 according to the Jharkhand Coaching Association. Cities like Nagpur, Bhubaneswar, Patna, and Madurai have witnessed a rise in coaching institutes.
Read MoreDid you know that fewer than 6,000 single-screen theatres remain today, and of those, only about 1,000 are still operating as theatres? For a nation where theatres have been the primary source of mass entertainment for decades, these numbers signify the end of an era. In the post-independence period of the 1960s-80s in India, coinciding with the peak careers of stars such as Amitabh Bachchan and Sridevi, watching movies was far from a passive experience.
Read MoreThis month on the 23rd, Rajasthan’s Barmer witnessed the highest temperature in the country with 48°C. Other smaller cities in the state with high temperatures include Phalodi (47.8°), Churu (47.4°), and Jaisalmer (47.2°). Elsewhere in India, intense heat shot up to 47.7° in Sirsa, 46.6° in Bhatinda, 46.1° in Kandla, 45° in Ratlam and Jhansi, along with 44.8° in Akola. It is evident just by skimming through the latest news articles how more and more smaller cities in India are grappling with rising temperatures and heatwaves.
Read MoreCurrently, Tier-II and Tier-III cities account for about 50 percent of the over 115,000 startups registered under the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) as of December 2023. As per the Economic Survey 2022-23, these DPIIT registered startups have created over 9 lakh direct job opportunities since 2017, with a notable 64% increase in 2022 over the average number of new jobs created in the last three years.
Read MoreFor International Museum Day 2024, the ICOM has invited people to “Rethink education and imagine a future where knowledge sharing transcends barriers, where innovation unites with tradition.” Through family history archives, thematic exhibitions, and technological innovation, museums in smaller cities and towns of India have begun to play a vital role in creating spaces of social change and cultural enrichment.
Read MoreThe WHO recommends having 3 psychiatrists and 1.5 psychologists for every 1 lakh people. However, in India, there is less than 1 psychiatrist for every 1 lakh people. According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India currently has 898 psychologists, which falls short of the required 20,250.
Read MoreWith a fertility rate under 2.0 and life expectancy reaching above 70+ years, India is witnessing an exponential growth in the number and proportion of elderly people. A study by Kumar et al. (2024) revealed that advanced health facilities were more concentrated in metropolitan cities, while smaller cities lacked good health facilities which were not easily accessible. NIMHANS has collaborated with HelpAge India to train 10,000 workers and volunteers to provide geriatric mental health care through ‘Sarthak’, a community-based initiative. Likewise, Ivory Health - an age-tech startup is focusing on addressing cognitive decline among the elderly through cutting-edge technology and personalised interventions.
Read MoreThere’s an increasing trend of individuals establishing mini-libraries and fostering a culture of reading in smaller towns and rural areas. Sathyanarayan Mundayoor from Kerala, also known as Uncle Moosa, has been instrumental in promoting education in Arunachal Pradesh. He has organised book exhibitions and set up 13 Bamboosa Library libraries as part of the Lohit Youth Library Movement in a town called Tezu.
Read MoreOur work has ensured that smaller cities become part of policy agendas of urban policy making. With an extremely small and talented team, we have been putting our best efforts to produce this knowledge. We continue striving to create quality and reliable publicly available knowledge that can can empower decisions of citizens and city governments.
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