New Delhi, Sept 2, 2025: As India looks toward a predominantly urban future, experts say state-level urbanization policies will be critical in bridging gaps in how cities are defined, governed, and planned. 

Highlighting Kerala’s comprehensive urban policy report, Dr Debolina Kundu, Director at National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) said, “Around 35% of India’s population is urban, one-third is rural, and the rest lives in transitional spaces. This is where state urban policies become crucial—by identifying transitional areas and adopting definitions that are more dynamic and future-ready.” 

Speaking at the Plenary Session at WRI India’s flagship event, Connect Karo 2025, she further said, “Take Kerala, for instance: while 48% of its population was effectively urban in 2011, only 26% was classified as such by administrative definition, with the rest spread across census towns that form the urban agglomeration.” She also added that while the Census provides a static snapshot once every decade, states can complement this with continuous assessment of urban and peri-urban transitions. This would allow for timely spatial planning, targeted infrastructure investments, and resource mobilization.

Addressing the role of building climate-resilient infrastructure in cities, Dr Umamaheswaran Rajasekar, Advisor, Urban Resilience, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), said, “70% of losses to infrastructure are due to hydrometeorological events—a number that will only rise with climate change, making management increasingly complex. Storm drains, for example, require sustained investment and maintenance. Building resilience is not just about hard infrastructure; it’s also about enabling communities to withstand and recover from these shocks.”

Connect Karo 2025 brings together leaders committed to critical issues related to sustainable cities, clean energy, food, land and water, and climate action and finance. The two-day convening is hosting more than 150 thought leaders, experts, academics, scientists and civil society members to discuss the most urgent development and environmental challenges of our times.

The convening offers a diverse range of sessions, exploring themes like urban resilience and economic development, air quality, India’s clean energy transition, food loss and waste, public spaces, heat mitigation, flood management, green skilling and much more. The convening also included, “Stories that Matter,” a vibrant exhibition highlighting the power of people-centered approaches in tackling climate and development challenges. 

Speaking about the significance of the convening, Madhav Pai, CEO, WRI India, said, “At Connect Karo, WRI India brings together important stakeholders and convenes conversations on clean energy, food systems, public spaces, mobility and net zero transitions — the building blocks of India’s low-carbon, resilient and equitable future.”

“We are not just on track but ahead in meeting our climate committements,” BVR Subrahmanyam, CEO, NITI Aayog at Connect Karo 2025

Speaking at the plenary session on ‘Financing India’s Transition’, NITI Aayog CEO, BVR Subrahmanyam said, “India is undertaking an unprecedented experiment to become a developed nation by 2047, while walking a low-carbon path. No country of our size has ever attempted this, and the India Development Model can become a role model for the world.” He further said, “Despite contributing only 3-4% of cumulative global emissions, India is among the most climate vulnerable nations, facing devastating floods, heatwaves and other impact every year. We are not just on track but ahead in meeting our climate commitments. The challenge now is making projects viable to unlock the trillions needed for a green transition.” 


Media Contacts:
Tanushree Venkatraman | tanushree.venkatraman@wri.org 
Satbhan Singh | satbhan.singh@wri.org

About WRI India 
WRI India, an independent charity legally registered as the India Resources Trust, provides objective information and practical proposals to foster environmentally sound and socially equitable development. Through research, analysis and recommendations, WRI India puts ideas into action to build transformative solutions to protect the earth, promote livelihoods and enhance human well-being. 

Know more: wri-india.org

ANNEXURE | Key Launches at Connect Karo 2025 

  • Alliance | CI-nergy: WRI India and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) launched the CI-NERGY Alliance—Steering Energy Transitions. This marks the beginning of a unified, national effort to accelerate clean energy adoption across India’s commercial and industrial sector.
  • Tool | Advanced Scenario Carbon Emissions Navigation Tool (ASCENT): ASCENT promises to help state governments plan and achieve their climate targets with greater accuracy and efficiency. It also guides decision-makers in identifying the most effective pathways to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while supporting economic growth.
  • Report | How Cities Can Support India's Energy Transition: The report analyses energy transition initiatives and programs in 10 cities—Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi NCT, Indore, Kochi, Nagpur, Pune, Rajkot, Surat and Shimla—charting the areas where they have made the most progress and the challenges faced in their respective energy transition pathways.
  • Framework I The Public Spaces Assessment Framework (PSAF):  Co-created with adolescents from Jaipur and Bhubaneshwar, the PSAF is designed to equip adolescents, city agencies, experts and residents to evaluate public spaces through the lens of adolescents and identify actionable solutions to make urban spaces safer, more inclusive and engaging for all.
  • Working Paper | Perceptions and Enterprise-Level Strategies in the Indian Automotive Manufacturing Industry Amid the Projected EV Transition: India is targetting 30% EV uptake by 2030. This projected transition could create longer-term adaptational challenges for India’s conventional automotive sector manufacturing. This paper uses 58 key informant interviews to investigate the transition perceptions of, and strategies used by, Indian automotive enterprises.
  • Report | Nature-Positive Energy Principles Environmental Siting and Permitting of Solar, Wind, and Grid Infrastructure: Developed by the IRENA Coalition for Action, which brings together leading renewable energy players from around the world with the common goal of advancing the uptake of renewable energy, the paper proposes guiding principles to develop solar and wind energy and associated infrastructure in line with ecosystem conservation and restoration.
  • Report | Towards Ecosystem Restoration and Climate Resilient Communities: Findings from a Restoration Opportunities Assessment in Gadchiroli: In the backdrop of India’s commitments to restoring degraded land and enhancing forest and tree cover, WRI India applied a landscape-based approach in Gadchiroli to identify priority areas for restoration.
  • Report | Safer Streets in Mumbai: Reflecting on a Decade of Processes & Solutions for Road Safety: The report is a formative evaluation, providing valuable insights into the evolving nature of road safety in Mumbai. These insights are crucial for scaling up walkable infrastructure in Indian cities and achieving systemic changes in planning and designing safe and resilient urban infrastructure.
  • Report | Scaling RTS Adoption in India’s SMEs through Demand Aggregation and Machine Learning: Pilot Study from Haryana: India’s 500 GW non-fossil fuel capacity target by 2030 hinges on a crucial, often overlooked sector: its 63 million MSMEs. The report provides a step-by-step model that enables SMEs to become a driving force in the nation’s clean energy transition while boosting their economic competitiveness.
  • Expert Note | Towards a Framework to Support Better Decision-Making in Indian Mobility: Supply, Demand and Performance: India’s urban mobility planning has seen major investments in metros and electric buses, aligning with the national goals. Yet, rising private vehicle use is worsening air quality, safety and equity due to a lack of holistic planning and a lack of commuter data. This note addresses the need for a holistic, data-driven framework to guide future mobility decisions.

For more information on the launches, please reach out to tanushree.venkatraman@wri.org and satbhan.singh@wri.org.