Why do Cities Emerge?

May 05, 2023

The Research Department of Adani University hosted the second engaging research talk of the series, entitled “Why do Cities Emerge?” by Dr. Astha Agarwalla, Associate Dean-Faculty of Management Studies, Adani University. Dr. Agarwalla articulated the part of her Ph.D. thesis, focusing on the productivity-enhancing impact of urbanization across sectors in India. Moreover, she stressed urbanization, the population shift from rural to urban areas which is impacted by infrastructure, employment, governance, and economic concentration, and highlighted the strategies like: ‘Provision of Urban Amenities to Rural Areas’ (PURA), ‘Make in India’ an initiative by Govt. of India to promote rural development. The session concluded with unraveling students’ queries on dependent & independent variables and the other dignitaries which reinforced the significance of the research talk. Provost and others in the audience maintained that the problem with several variables like the one Dr Astha mentioned in her research talk is a fit one for deep learning using artificial neural networks, instead of simultaneous equations which has limitations. Research deliberations like such allow for interdisciplinary engagements.