River Cities Alliance

About River Cities Alliance

• It was launched in 2021.
• It is a first-of-its-kind Alliance in the world, symbolising the successful partnership of the two Ministries i.e., the Ministry of Jal Shakti and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. 
• Objective: To provide the member cities with a platform to discuss and exchange information on aspects that are vital for sustainable management of urban rivers, sharing best practices and supporting innovation. 
• The Alliance is open to all river cities of India. Any river city can join the Alliance at any time.
• The alliance has been launched initially with 30 cities namely Dehradun, Rishikesh, Haridwar, Srinagar, Varanasi, Kanpur, Prayagraj, Farrukhabad, Mirzapur, Mathura, Bijnor, Ayodhya, Patna, Bhagalpur, Begusarai, Munger, Sahibganj, Rajmahal, Howrah, Jangipur, Hugli-Chinsurah, Behrampore, Maheshtala, Aurangabad, Chennai, Bhubaneshwar, Hyderabad, Pune, Udaipur and Vijaywada.
• It focuses on three broad themes- Networking, Capacity Building and Technical Support.
• The Secretariat of the Alliance is set up at the National Institute for Urban Affairs (NIUA).

Q1) What is the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA)?

It is an institute for research, training and information dissemination in urban development and management in New Delhi, India. It was established in 1976 as an autonomous body under the Societies Registration Act. The Institute is supported by the Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India.

Source: India’s River Cities Alliance Goes Global as NMCG forges alliance with MRCTI, USA at the ongoing COP28 in Dubai