Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on September 25 said that cities need to reduce dependence on central funds for their financial needs to address climate change.
He said that there was a need to complement traditional revenue streams with innovative instruments and more diverse access to finance for climate action at the urban level.
Addressing the first Urban Shift Forum (Asia) programme here, Mr. Puri observed that for cities in the Global South, it is critical to localise the climate agendas. “No discussion on urban planning can be removed from fiscal health. Cities depend heavily on central grants to meet basic financial needs. This needs to change,” he said.
