1 November 2025 | India
Following its official launch in New Delhi during the Urban Infrastructure Finance Festival 2025, the International Urban and Regional Cooperation (IURC) Programme has been featured in multiple Indian newspapers, including The Earth News (Ladakh Daily) and Dainik Bhaskar Hindi.
The articles highlight the selection of six Indian pilot cities — Chennai, Pimpri Chinchwad, Jabalpur, Cuttack, Gangtok, and Leh — under the IURC Asia & Australasia Programme, which promotes cooperation between European and Indian cities on sustainable, resilient, and inclusive urban development. Regional coverage in both Ladakh and Maharashtra emphasized that the programme will strengthen EU–India collaboration on climate action, innovation, and circular economy, while providing Indian cities with opportunities to share expertise and learn from global best practices.
At the launch event in New Delhi, representatives of the European Union and Indian partners reaffirmed their shared commitment to advancing sustainable urbanisation. Viktorija Kaidalova (EU Service for Foreign Policy Instruments) noted that long-term cooperation between cities can translate global strategies into concrete local impact, while Lutz Köppen (DG REGIO) emphasised that cities are central to driving the green transition through innovation and data-driven planning. Smita Singh (EU Delegation to India) underlined that IURC’s city-to-city exchanges make the EU–India partnership visible at community level and help local governments accelerate inclusive and climate-resilient growth.
There 1 November 2025 articles in several newspapers can be seen below:
