Local governments in Indian cities face mounting pressure to meet the needs of the growing urban corporate sector and of the emerging "middle class", with demands for greater visible involvement in urban governance. In an innovation justified to fill this void, the Bangalore Agenda Task Force introduced its version of the Public-Private-Partnership as one such model for private sector participation in urban governance. However, PPPs must be evaluated in the broader context of urban politics and planning. And as this case study shows, it is critical to follow the trajectory of private sector involvement into the broader arenas of policy-making. Although the BATF did not include interventions for the majority of the population - the poor - its activities have played a critical role in developing the urban reform programmes at the state and national levels. The policies proposed by the BATF members based on their experiences in Bangalore require much greater analysis and debate, rather than simply riding on the merits of their alleged success.
