Election appeal to Rural and Urban areas
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Indian cities comprise 100 LS constituencies and another 31 seats are majorly (40-49%) urban. As urban areas have risen in importance, political strategists are tasked to make wide-ranging policies to entice city dwellers with their unique concerns and the hodgepodge demographics. For example, BJP, which has traditionally performed well in urban areas, has asserted the strong leadership of PM Narendra Modi and national security—a message that can transcend class, caste, language and gender. 

Rural vs Urban policies of BJP and Congress
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Parties will make policies and filter the message based on the level of urbanisation of the target voters. It is more meaningfully done in state elections. Thus, in the highly urbanised Gujarat, the emphasis is on urban dwellers whilst the same can't happen in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. The sheer number of non-urban seats in 543 LS constituencies means that most parties will have policies that favour farmers and emphasise rural welfare. In the past, winners have used rural roads, guaranteed rural employment, loan waivers and high MSPs.

In the last 5 years, the Modi-led government has worked on village development, asset development through NREGA, universal sanitation, utility connections to all households, social security, direct bank payment of subsidies, digital services, etc. For farmers, there is also better fertilizer supply, low-cost credit, irrigation, freer food markets, better logistics, food processing, etc. BJP has recently started income support of Rs 6000-/pa for all small farmers and guaranteed MSPs at 150% of input costs (for all crops backed by strong procurements). For LS 2019, it has pledged zero-interest loans to farmers, fishermen and livestock farmers. It has pledged subsidised pensions for farmers and low-paid workers. Congress has proposed a high basic income of Rs 72,000-/pa for poorest 20% of households.

BJP's efforts are aimed specifically at rural upliftment and farmers welfare including lower input costs, higher productivity, higher farm prices and higher incomes. Higher farm prices will increase food prices for poor urban consumers. Govt will have to deal with over-production and overstocking of some farm produce, eg by encouraging exports.

In contrast, Congress's policy aims at both rural and urban poor with a broad brush income pledge. Of course, Congress lacks credibility and it is known to steal large sums of the allocated money. There are also fundamental issues with the policy such as labour shortages (it is an incentive for people to not work or reduce hours worked), reduced economic activity (higher taxes on the middle class and businesses), lower development (diversion of infrastructure funds), social unrest (uncompensated loss of subsidies like food, fuel, fertiliser, etc), political strife (sharp demarcation will be resented by those who miss out), and regionalism (massive funds transfer from richer states to the poorest states with bad governance)

Tackling poverty through good governance and better infrastructure
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From BJP's view, most deprived areas of the country can be uplifted by a targeted approach.  via the "aspirational districts programme". It uses a variety of existing Centre and State schemes to fund improvements. and benefits both rural and urban areas through better cooperation and good governance. Areas of deprivation are identified and all aspects are addressed wherever voids are found- in physical development and in socio-economic fields like banking, business credit, new industries and small enterprises, skilling, social security, housing, access to utilities, sanitation, nutrition, health, education, law & order and security. It helps that Centre under PM Modi has released funds and done outstanding work on the ground.

Urban poverty can be tackled by increasing jobs—by making cities attractive to inward investment—by impacting and improving areas such as efficiencies, competencies, living conditions and the breadth of economic activity these cities perform. Improvements can be categorised under large infrastructure projects, city buildings and functional and social improvements.

Examples of urban infrastructure promoted by NDA govt
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1. Large infrastructure: Suburban rail, metro & bullet trains, sea-bridges, coastal roads, major tunnels & flyovers in Mumbai (eg); faster intercity railways (eg doubling tracks, electrification, signaling, Train-18 trainsets); expressways, orbital roads and link highways; waterways and efficient ports; dry docks, logistic parks; new cities, area development in smart cities, riverfront development; economic corridors, industrial clusters, business & financial centres; etc

2. City buildings: Railway and bus station modernisation, tourist attractions, exhibition centres, educational institutes, district hospitals, primary health centres, piped water and gas connections, underground electricity wiring, dense Wifi & fibre-to-the-home telecommunication connections, safety & security infrastructure eg, cameras, street lighting, sewage treatment plants, waste-to-energy plants, water-treatment plants, desalination plants, housing, green buildings, low pollution devices on power plants, charging stations for electric vehicles, etc.

3. Functional and social improvements: Urban Swachh Bharat including solid and liquid waste collection, city beautification & tourism, 24/7 power, strong cellular & broadband connectivity, easy access to financial institutes, quality schools, safer cities through smart cities tech infusion, easy transportation incl multi-modal travel card, clean rivers, adequate supply of water, clean drinking water, healthy air eg clean vehicle fuels, electric buses, etc.
April 20th, 2019

Decoded: The concerns and aspirations of the urban electorate in seven Indian cities