Urban growth in Indian cities: Are the driving forces really changing?

Urbanization in India is happening at a rapid pace since past three decades. This paper examines the factors affecting the growth of Indian cities for three consecutive censuses. A database on Indian cities is constructed for the analysis. Eight variables are considered from classical economics and economic geography perspective to observe their effect on population size and growth. Regression analysis has been carried out for the same, and the results suggest that initial population and capital city status have a strong positive impact on city growth; proximity to cities causes nearby cities to be larger; these results are consistent throughout three years. The notable observation of our study is that there is a growing need for better policies for healthcare and infrastructure development for a sustainable growth of Indian urban agglomerations. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.