Which is India’s best and fastest growing city? Realty consultant Knight Frank compared India’s six biggest metro regions on parameters ranging from ease of living, income and employment, health and education, real estate value, physical infrastructure and governance accessibility.
The winner will surprise you.
While the different categories had their own individual toppers, the overall top city turned out to be Hyderabad, Telangana. The city on the Deccan also scored when it came to rising real estate prices, its cohort of high net worth individuals and proactive socio-economic profile.
Bengaluru, considered one of the fastest growing cities in the world since India’s liberalisation, ended up runner-up. The Silicon Valley of India scored big with its exceptional talent pool and dynamic business ecosystem fuelling entrepreneurship.
Gulam Zia, Senior Executive director, Knight Frank India, said, “India’s emergence as a global economic powerhouse is underpinned by the exceptional performance of a select group of cities that have transformed into economic and cultural hubs. Each of the six cities have distinct opportunities to accentuate sustainable and inclusive urban development in the country.”
Mumbai (Mumbai Metropolitan Region or MMR in real estate parlance, which includes Navi Mumbai and outlying areas) maintained steady growth across all metrics, reaffirming its position as India’s financial capital, while Delhi-NCR (including Gurugram and Noida) ranked highest for its superior physical infrastructure and governance.
While Bengaluru may have lost out on the crown of being the nation’s fastest growing city, the IT capital did score big on the crucial socio-economic metrics. It has the lowest unemployment rate amongst all of India’s big cities, and the highest workforce participation rate in the country at 76 per cent.
“The city continues to solidify its reputation as a prime destination for global investments and talents,” says a statement issued by Knight Frank, “Despite recent challenges in the start-up ecosystem, Bengaluru’s economic profile remains resilient due to its diverse business activities as evidenced by strong real estate sales in recent years.”
While what might have swung the crown in Hyderabad’s favour is its robust realty sector with more residential launches than any other city and its desirability amongst investors, the local government’s massive investments in improving transport infrastructure was also pivotal. Delhi, meanwhile, not only scored on its superior physical infra and user-friendly access to public services, it came up trumps when it came to information security and privacy as well.