City Lights: India needs to take Tier-II route to propel its urbanisation

City rankings are a flourishing business. The Economist Intelligence Unit has put out its latest this week, on the most expensive cities and the cheapest ones. Ahmedabad figures in the Top 10 of the latter, in the undistinguished company of places like battered Damascus and Tripoli. Earlier the government put out its update on India’s cleanest cities, with Indore once again claiming top honours. The government also puts out its list of cities ranked on ease of living – Bengaluru tops, followed by Pune, while Srinagar and Dhanbad are the worst. A similar listing by the Centre for Science and Environment also puts Bengaluru at the top, followed by Chennai (which is fourth in the government ranking). A smart city