NGO flags accountability, citizen participation gaps in CURE Bill

The 271-page Core Urban Region (Integrated Governance) Bill, 2026 mentions the word ‘consultation’ seven times, ‘participation’ five times and ‘accountability’ only once. In contrast, ‘government’ appears 475 times and ‘commissioner’ 780 times. While the word ‘public’ is used 290 times, it refers only to citizens as passive recipients rather than active participants, according to a presentation by voluntary organisation Janaagraha summarising the Bill.

Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Janaagraha representatives Anita Kumar, V. R. Vachana and Srikara Prasad, who were part of the study team, explained how they assessed the CURE Bill against the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) Act, 1955, and the recently promulgated Greater Bengaluru Governance (GBG) Act, 2024.

They scored all the three, based on city planning, power to elected representatives, transparency and accountability, citizens’ participation and the ability of the institutions to deliver. The CURE Bill scored 5% over the age-old GHMC Act, but 10% less than the latest GBG Act, which leaves ample scope for improvement, they said.

While crediting Hyderabad as only the second city after Bengaluru to have a legislation for metropolitan governance, the team led by Anita Kumar flagged lack of clarity on the roles of the new authorities and institutions, absence of coordinating bodies and insufficient provisions for public participation as major drawbacks. Instead of legislating on key urban reforms required for a futuristic city, the Bill leaves it to the government to form the rules.

Janaagraha recommended that the metropolitan region be planned as a single unit, with clearly defined roles for the Metropolitan Planning Committee (MPC), the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) and the Chief Minister-led Apex Governance Council. It also called for adequate representation of elected local bodies in the Apex Council to ensure metropolitan coordination and implementation remain democratically anchored.

It said the roles, powers, funding and staffing of the over 15 authorities, committees and cells proposed under the Bill should be clearly defined to avoid overlaps and ensure accountability.

It recommended strengthening the powers of mayors and municipal councils, creating meaningful avenues for citizen participation, and establishing independent oversight mechanisms to ensure accountability. It also urged that key governance reforms be made mandatory and implemented within fixed timelines.