India, March 18 -- India's urban footprint expanded by 2.5 million hectares through unplanned sprawl between 2005-06 and 2022-23, Janaagraha's 'Shaping Urban India: By Design, Not by Default' report released on Wednesday stated.

By 2050, 723 million people are projected to live in urban India, which is more than the combined population of all ASEAN countries, it added.

During the launch, CEO of Janaagraha Srikanth Viswanathan, said India's largest cities have grown into economic powerhouses, comparable to middle-income economies in both population and output, driving jobs, GDP and private prosperity.

"Yet, the lived experience of mobility is worsening for citizens every day. At the same time, smaller cities offer cleaner air, more open...