On October 31, former Nagpur Mayor Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in as Maharashtra’s Chief Minister. That Mr Fadnavis was a Mayor before becoming Chief Minister, aligns with the global trends everywhere, especially Asia, where city Mayors are heroes and increasingly, presidential or prime ministerial candidates. The rise of the two Mayors of Shanghai — Jiang Zemin and Zhu Rongji — to President and Premier of China respectively, is well known. Globally, metropolitan cities are becoming powerful centres that sustain entire countries — as London sustains the UK. Life is increasingly urban: Over 30 per cent of India is urban, and by 2030, nearly 600 million Indians will be urban.