New Delhi: India must urgently expand investment in climate -resistant city development to protect its cities against growing climatic risks and unlock long -term economic growth, the World Bank warned.
Given that the city’s population of the country was almost doubled, from 480 million in 2020 to 951 million by 2050, Indian cities stand at a key moment, said the name of resistant and prosperous cities in India on Tuesday and called on the outlook, climatic city planning.
“With the doubling of the urban population, it was expected by 2050, from 480 million in 2020 to 951 million, more than half of urban growth in terms of new infrastructure, buildings and city services, is to come,” the report says.
“This gives Indian cities a huge opportunity to plan a durable development of cities and avoid great future damage and losses from the impact on climate and disasters,” he added.
The report is based on analytical work carried out from September 2022 to May 2025 and is supported by the World Bank Group and Global Facilities for Directing and Recovery of Disaster, including the Resistance Resistance Program.
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The bank stressed that it emphasized the high cost of additional urban infrastructure infrastructure and emphasized the need for cities to strengthen the defense against climate shocks, but also put resistance to future growth.
Such a shift, as they say, is necessary to improve the quality of life and ensure lasting economic dynamics.
The report warned of serious consequences unless timely measures were taken. Cities could face escalating losses of more frequent and intense climatic events such as floods, extreme heat and water lack.
“It is assumed that losses related to floods in the area of city or rainwater cruises, which currently stand between 0.5 and 2.5 % of gross domestic product per year, will double in the global scenario,” said the report.
“The effect of the urban thermal island will merge the impact of increasingly frequent and serious thermal waves. If nothing changes, it is assumed that the death of heat related to Indian cities will double,” he added.
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Indian cities that have been listed are particularly exposed to people and assets that are composed of weak planning systems that seek to keep up with urbanization and growing demand for services.
“Cities also face a higher impact compared to rural areas, from the impact on climate and shocks on disasters, as they are highly interconnected systems; when key infrastructure assets fall apart, chain reactions and cities may be crippled or experienced cascading infrastructure,” he said.
“For example, floods can cause road closure and disrupt the flow of operation, affect electrical lines and lead to damage and economic losses,” the report added.
The World Bank demanded targeted investments and immediate measures to build durable infrastructure, improve services and cities that remain growth and innovation engines due to climate threats.
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Meanwhile, the report emphasized that while climate change effects are likely to prove more and more demanding, timely actions can help avert the great impacts.
“Given the rapid urbanization, time is limited to performing the necessary planning and to expand investment in resistant city development, which is essential not only for streamlining and population, but also to reduce future impacts on climate and disaster,” he said.
“Better managed and durable city development has the potential to further improve access to urban equipment such as parks and recreation areas,” he added.
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