In Maharashtra, 44 cities, accounting for 75% of the state’s urban population, have pledged to become net-zero by 2050. These cities, central to Maharashtra’s economic ambition to become a $1 trillion economy by 2030, are also increasingly threatened by escalating climate-induced risks. Over the past decade, droughts have doubled, cyclones have tripled, and flood events have quadrupled. In 2023–24, the state spent ₹7,537 crore on disaster relief, underscoring the rising fiscal implications of climate-induced risks. The next five years are crucial for Maharashtra to show how economic ambition can be aligned with urban resilience.
Currently, most cities in Maharashtra are in the process of developing long-term climate action plans and sectoral strategies. The next essential step is translating these plans into implementable, bankable projects, where cities will need additional institutional and technical support. Bridging this gap requires a new state-level system — such as the Maharashtra Climate Project Preparation Facility (MHCPPF) linked to a financing facility that can help cities move from planning to project preparation and financing — thus ensuring the state has a robust pipeline of climate-aligned, investment-ready projects.
From planning to bankable projects
Maharashtra’s 2024 government resolution mandates all districts and cities to set up climate action cells to prepare and implement climate action plans (CAPs), build institutional capacity, and mainstream climate action at the local level. So far, four cities have CAPs, with five more cities set to roll these out soon. Several cities are also preparing development plans, master plans, and sectoral blueprints on mobility, water, and waste.
However, cities often find it challenging to translate these plans, prepared under different mandates and time frames, into a coherent pipeline of projects that can attract investment. Early-stage scoping, risk analysis, and financial structuring remain underfunded and technically demanding, leading to execution deficits.
At the same time, the landscape for urban investment is evolving, with new financing mechanisms such as the urban infrastructure development fund, strengthening infrastructure in tier 2 and 3 cities. However, such schemes demand DPR-ready projects; a threshold many cities cannot meet without adequate early-stage project development support. Without a pipeline of scoped, bankable climate-resilient projects, states and cities risk missing the opportunity to access these funds and drive impact. Many cities introduced digital tools for transport and services but lacked essential infrastructure, such as accessible bus stops, safe walkways, and integrated ticketing systems, to make them functional. A strong upstream mechanism in the form of a project preparation facility can bridge such gaps.
Building on these learnings and ongoing state initiatives, Maharashtra can move towards creating a complementary state-level instrument: the MHCPPF. This instrument would serve as an enabling platform to translate existing urban and climate action plans into a prioritized pipeline of investment-ready projects. A state-level CPPF can also pool projects across cities and sectors; the facility could help de-risk investments and enable financing at scale.
A strategic investment platform: Climate Project Preparation Facility
A key function of the MHCPPF will be to support the systematic prioritization of the state’s project pipeline. This could effectively attract public and private finance, enable cities to access urban funds like the urban infrastructure development fund (UIFD) and effectively meet net-zero targets. Acting as a centralized support system, it would improve coordination among state, city, and para-statal agencies for data, analysis, and project development. The Maharashtra CPPF could support with:
a. Scoping of the city’s urban infrastructure with integrated assessment of climate risks, vulnerabilities, and economic growth to identify priority projects.
b. Early-stage project conceptualization to embed a climate lens and sustainability at scoping and pre-feasibility stages.
c. Prioritization of projects identifying high-impact, climate-resilient urban infrastructure projects for immediate action.
d. Standardized feasibility with cost estimates and procurement formats that meet investor due diligence requirements.
e. Project structuring, financing strategy development, and pooling of similar projects.
The institutionalization of the MHCPPF can directly address the root challenges our cities face: Fragmented planning, overstretched resources, and weak climate framing in core urban infrastructure.
Building on the foundational infrastructure
The institutionalising of a CPPF doesn’t require Maharashtra to start from scratch. The Maharashtra Urban Infrastructure Development Company Limited (MUIDCL) already manages a project development fund focused on conventional urban infrastructure. A state-level CPPF could complement these efforts by building this institutional foundation, adding a dedicated climate lens. The MHCPPF would thus create a full-cycle ecosystem: One that prepares climate projects, ensures their technical and financial viability, and channels public and private capital for implementation.
Future-proofing Maharashtra’s urban growth
A CPPF offers a shift from fragmented projects to a cohesive growth story. It also opens a pathway for states to learn from one another, adapting successful models to build resilient, investment-ready cities across India.
This approach aligns with both national and global recommendations. Under India’s G20 presidency, the sustainable finance working group emphasized the need for project preparation facilities, even at the local level, to develop robust pipelines of investment-ready, impact-driven projects. The newly established national level CPPF sets the right direction, and a Maharashtra-level facility would complement this vision, addressing the state’s specific capacity and finance gaps, supporting high-exposure tier 2 and 3 cities, and aligning efforts across the Environment and Climate Change department, the Urban Development department, and key para-statals to accelerate a climate-aligned urban infrastructure program.
Abhijit Ghorpade is the Director at Maharashtra state climate action cell. Mukta Salunkhe is a senior program associate, WRI India. The views expressed are personal. With inputs from Nikhil John, head, climate finance, WRI India.
