From his two-bedroom flat in the Andheri suburb of Mumbai, Anurag Shah, a Delhiite turned Mumbaikar, watches a half-constructed building. “The project has been on hold for many months,” Shah recalls as the nearby tress with green leaves turned grey with the dust from the under-construction project. “A smoggy sky is now a part of my life,” he says. This has been the story of Mumbai for the past few years as the financial capital continues to witness the construction of innumerable buildings. “I have spent my life in Delhi. I moved to Mumbai two years back as I got a job offer in a bank,” Shah says as he closes his bedroom window to keep the grey dust away. Recalling Delhi’s pollution, Shah says that the grey skies were our enemies in the winter. “The sky that I see in Mumbai in the morning is what I used to see in Delhi’s winters. A little harsher,” Shah adds.

Just like Shah, Mumbai has been attracting youngsters and aspiring entrepreneurs from across the country. The financial capital of the country has provided a hospitable environment to those who aspire to be the next big thing in the world of business. Be it job opportunities, ease of doing business, or standard of living, Mumbai has fared better than Delhi.

For business and financial setup, several estimates and rankings, both global and national, have ranked Mumbai higher than Delhi. The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) ease of living report for 2020 showed that Mumbai’s ease of living score was 58.23, a little higher than Delhi’s 57.56. The quality-of-life score―reflecting the availability of all basic human needs―of Mumbai was at 51.12 versus 51.22 for Delhi. In sustainability, Mumbai outpaced Delhi with scores of 60.74 and 56.02 respectively. Mumbai remains a key city of the county as it is home to the National and Bombay Stock Exchange and other key financial institutions like the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The city has all major banks and financial institutions, which makes access to large loans, mortgage and equity financing processing easy, if not quick. The city also has some of the country’s premier education institutions like the Indian Institute of Technology (Bombay), Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, and several others that provide exceptional access to talent

GDP Contribution

A city’s contribution to the country’s economy shows how much volume it holds. It reflects what has been flourishing in the city and what has been dampening overall growth. Various estimates and data show that Mumbai contributes to nearly half of Maharashtra’s gross state domestic product (GSDP) and around six per cent to India’s gross domestic product (GDP). Data from the NITI Aayog, the Indian Government’s think tank, estimated that as of March 2024, Mumbai’s GDP is around Rs 12 lakh crore. Besides housing the stock exchanges, the city is also home to some of the country’s largest companies like the Tata Group, Reliance Industries Limited, State Bank of India, Godrej Industries, HDFC Bank, etc. With this, the city has seen its geography expand vastly in the past few decades, with adjacent areas like Thane, Raigad, Palghar, and the Greater Mumbai City i.e. the main Mumbai city, combining to form the Mumbai Metropolitan Region covering an area of 4,355 square kilometres (1,681 sq km). The prime reason to include the neighbouring areas in Mumbai was to accommodate the growing population. In the past few decades, the city has been dealing with problems related to overpopulation, improper civic management and infrastructural woes, which have, in turn, led to problems arising in the economic growth of the city. Dhaval Desai, Senior Fellow and Vice President at Observer Research Foundation, in a research paper, wrote that Mumbai has been facing uneven growth and development leading to a disparity in the overall growth of the city. “Once a bustling entrep?t that was the ‘gateway’ to India, today’s Mumbai is plagued by numerous physical and social infrastructure constraints, despite being India’s financial capital. Many of these shortcomings have resulted in uneven development where pockets of prosperity survive in a sea of deprivation. For one, nearly 42 per cent of Mumbai’s population resides in slums, largely deprived of adequate and clean water supply and sanitation,” Desai highlighted.

Coming to Delhi, the national capital territory’s GDP is around Rs 11.07 lakh crore and estimates show that it contributes to around four per cent of the country’s GDP. A major contributor to Delhi’s economy is the service sector which contributes 85.40 per cent, the Economic Survey for Delhi for 2023-24 showed. The secondary sector contributes 13 per cent and the rest is by the primary sector sector, which includes small businesses. The survey also showed that during the pandemic, the city was one of the worst affected cities but has since bounced back registering an average of 7-8 per cent growth annually. In March 2024, while tabling the survey, the then finance minister, Atishi Marlena, said that Delhi’s economy is expected to grow by 9.2 per cent in the fiscal year of 2024. While everything may seem optimistic, some key challenges can slow down this growth. These include overpopulation, pollution and infrastructure management. The economic survey highlighted that the planning authority has proposals to build an enhanced transport city connecting Delhi to neighbouring satellite towns. “To address the issues, meet organic future demand, as well as the mobility demand for unlocking the economic potential of the NCR, the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) had recommended the development of a multi-modal transport system with special emphasis on rail-based high-speed, high-frequency Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) for connecting major regional centers in Functional Plan on Transport for National Capital Region-2032,” the survey said.

Who Wins The Investment Game?

Investments from foreign and domestic investors often provide insights on the growth potential of a city. More investment towards investment projects, real estate, financial markets, etc. of a city indicates high trust in that city. In the last five years, Mumbai has been a favourable destination for foreign investors in India, with Delhi ranking fourth. Data from the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry’s Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade showed that Maharashtra received a total of Rs 6.08 lakh crore worth of investments from foreign investors, with a majority of this towards Mumbai. Maharashtra has one of the highest numbers of pharmaceutical manufacturing units and accounts for more than 14 per cent of the country's pharma industry. Mumbai is also home to two of the country’s major ports―the Mumbai Port and the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority―and contributes up to 20 per cent of the total exports of India.

And now for someone who is becoming a Mumbaikar from a Delhiite, the debate stands on which of the cities suits them. Shah aspires to live in Mumbai for a few more years. He says the reason is the passion the city has for everything―work, lifestyle and living in the moment. “My reason for living in Mumbai is to see more of what the city holds. I have seen in movies and heard what Mumbai gives to those who hold on. I will try my luck,” Shah says.