Transforming quality of life in India’s cities and towns

Welcome and registration

Context presentation

Panel 1 – Governing India’s Cities: Re-imagining Institutional Design

1. Anshul Mishra, IAS, Member Secretary, Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority
2. Barjor Mehta, President, CEPT University (Co-chair)
3. SM Vijayanand, IAS (Retd.), Former Chief Secretary and Chairperson, Sixth State Finance Commission, Government of Kerala (Chair)
4. Dr Shamika Ravi, Member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister and Secretary, Government of India
5. Prof. Vidyadhar Phatak, Former Dean, Faculty of Planning, CEPT University

1. Mriganka Saxena, Founding Partner, Habitat Tectonics Architecture and Urbanism (HTAU)
2. Nithya Ramesh, Director, Jana Urban Space Foundation

Lunch

Panel 2 – Participatory Governance: Imperative for Local Action on Environment and Equity

1. Abdul Wajid, President, District Congress Committee (Bengaluru North); Former Councillor and Leader of Opposition, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP)
2. Jasmine Shah, Former Vice-Chairperson, Dialogue and Development Commission, Delhi Government
3. Dr R Balasubramaniam, Member, Capacity Building Commission, Government of India and Founder, Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement (Chair)
4. Neha Awasthi, Chairperson, Sitapur Nagar Palika Parishad, Uttar Pradesh
5. Sowmya Reddy, General Secretary, All India Mahila Congress and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee and former Member of the Legislative Assembly

1. Anirban Ghose, Co-lead, Transform Rural India Foundation (TRIF)
2. Mamata Rani Adhikari, President, Sandhapur Slum Dwellers Association (SDA), Jatni Municipality, Odisha
3. Pallavi Sarma Talukdar, Secretary, Alodan Area Level Federation (ALF), Guwahati
4. S Vishwanath, Founder, Rainwater Club; Director, Biome Environmental Solutions; and Trustee, Biome Environmental Trust

Special Address

Suman Bery, Vice-Chairperson, NITI Aayog

Panel 3 – Building State Capacities: A Framework at the Intersection of People, Process, and Finance

1. Dr Joy Elamon, Former Director General, Member, Kerala State Disaster Management Authority; Former Director General, Kerala Institute of Local Administration
2. Kavitha Padmanabhan, IAS, Commissioner and Secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of Assam
3. Dr Santhosh Mathew, IAS (Retd.), Country Lead – Public Policy and Finance, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (Chair)
4. Usha Padhee, IAS, Principal Secretary, Housing and Urban Development Department, Government of Odisha

1. Dr Ajay Shah, Co-founder and Senior Fellow, XKDR Forum
2. Gaurav Goel, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Samagra
3. Dr Karan Nagpal, India Regional Director, IDInsight
4. Dr Mekhala Krishnamurthy, Associate Professor of Sociology and Anthropology, Ashoka University
5. Dr Vijay Pingale, IAS (Retd.), Chief Executive Officer, Centre for Effective Governance of Indian States (CEGIS Foundation)

High tea