India’s traditional focus on rural altered dramatically with the launch of the JNNURM scheme for a makeover of India’s urban landscape. The scheme design sought to combine investment support with reform of city governance systems. This case study examines JNNURM implementation in the city of Shimla to uncover the extent to which the flawed design jinxed outcomes from the beginning.

About the Case Author
Deepak Sanan is a civil servant with an over three decade involvement with public policy in various sectors. He has a special interest in the incentives generated by schemes for inter governmental transfers in India. He has written extensively on the subject particularly in relation to water supply and sanitation.