- India’s urban population is expected to reach nearly 600 million by 2036, increasing housing demand.
- Vertical development is seen as essential due to shrinking land and rising infrastructure costs in cities.
- Higher Floor Space Index norms could unlock housing supply and support denser, efficient urban growth.
Every day, thousands of people move to India's urban centres in search of jobs, education, healthcare and better opportunities. The result is visible everywhere -- packed roads, shrinking open spaces, rising property prices and growing pressure on infrastructure.
The numbers tell an even bigger story.
India's urban population is expected to touch nearly 600 million by 2036. Housing demand is projected to reach around 30 million units by 2030. With land becoming increasingly scarce in major cities, urban planners and developers say the debate is no longer about whether cities should grow vertically. The real question is how quickly they can make the shift.
"India's urban transition is accelerating at a pace that requires a fundamental rethink of how our cities grow," says Sudhanshu Dutt, CEO of Elevate Homes.
According to Dutt, cities such as Delhi are already hitting the limits of horizontal expansion. Developable land is shrinking, infrastructure costs are rising and urban efficiency is becoming harder to maintain. In such a scenario, building upward is emerging as the most practical solution.
"Vertical urbanisation will not merely be a planning preference -- it will be an economic, demographic and environmental necessity," he says.
The Urban Land Crunch
The challenge facing Indian cities is straightforward. More people need homes, but cities cannot keep expanding endlessly into surrounding areas.
Ashish Agarwal, Director at AU Real Estate, points out that India's population, currently estimated at 146 crore, is projected to peak at nearly 170 crore in the early 2060s. At the same time, urban areas are expected to contribute close to 70 per cent of the country's GDP.
This combination of population growth and economic concentration is creating unprecedented pressure on urban land. "The case for rethinking how Indian cities grow has never been stronger," Agarwal says.
Photo Credit: Reliance MET City
The Economic Survey 2025-26 has also highlighted low Floor Space Index (FSI) norms as a structural constraint. Many Indian cities continue to build outward rather than upward, leaving significant room for densification.
For developers and urban planners, higher-density development is increasingly being seen as the most efficient way to accommodate future growth.
Why Vertical Development Makes Economic Sense
Building upward offers several advantages beyond simply creating more homes.
High-rise projects allow cities to accommodate more residents on the same parcel of land. They also make better use of existing infrastructure such as roads, metro networks, sewage systems and public utilities.
Robin Mangla, President of M3M India, believes rationalising FSI norms could transform urban development.
"A calibrated increase in FSI can support higher-density, well-planned developments, unlock additional housing supply and help cities accommodate future growth without proportionately increasing their physical footprint," he says.
Deepak Sangwan, Chairman of Origen Realty, says cities such as Gurugram already demonstrate how vertical development can absorb rising housing demand while optimising limited urban land.
According to him, rising land costs, overstretched infrastructure and unsustainable land consumption are naturally pushing Indian cities toward vertical growth. "High-rise developments directly address these constraints by concentrating density upward," Sangwan says.
More Homes, Smaller Carbon Footprint
The benefits are not limited to housing supply. Several industry leaders argue that vertical development can also support sustainability goals.
Ashish Agarwal notes that high-rise developments reduce land consumption while creating opportunities for solar energy integration, rainwater harvesting and compact urban planning.
Deepak Sangwan echoes that view, saying vertical projects can lower the carbon footprint associated with unchecked urban sprawl.
Santosh Agarwal, Executive Director and CFO of Alpha Corp Development, says integrated high-rise ecosystems are redefining urban living by combining homes, recreation and daily conveniences within a single development. "The format supports compact planning and creates scope for sustainable practices," he says.
In simple terms, taller buildings mean shorter commutes, lower infrastructure duplication and more efficient use of urban resources.
Policy Is Finally Catching Up
The push toward vertical development is also finding support from policymakers.
Several experts point to initiatives such as Delhi's proposed Master Plan 2041 and Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) framework, which encourage higher-density development around transport corridors.
Jason Samuel, Managing Director at House of Swamiraj, says these policies reflect a broader shift toward smarter urban planning.
"Well-planned vertical communities with strong connectivity and social infrastructure will be critical to meeting future housing demand while ensuring cities remain sustainable and liveable," he says.
The Centre's recent indication that it may revisit height restrictions and other regulations governing vertical development has also been welcomed by the real estate industry.
Many believe regulatory reforms could unlock substantial housing supply in major cities without requiring additional land acquisition.
Vertical Growth Alone Isn't Enough
Yet experts caution that skyscrapers are not a silver bullet. Shrivallabh Goyal, CEO and Whole-Time Director of Reliance MET City, argues that India's urban future must be built on two parallel tracks.
The first is vertical growth within major metros. The second is the development of self-sustaining satellite towns that create jobs and attract residents on their own merits.
Photo Credit: Assetz Project
"Cities need density to function. Satellite towns need employment that allows them to grow on their own merit," Goyal says.
He believes treating satellite towns merely as spillover zones for crowded metros would be a mistake. Instead, they should evolve as independent economic centres supported by industrial corridors, manufacturing hubs and service-sector jobs.
That approach would give families greater flexibility in choosing where and how they want to live.
Learning From Global Cities
India is not the first country to confront rapid urbanisation. Sunil Pareek, Executive Director at Assetz, points to cities such as Singapore and Shanghai, which successfully combined higher-density development with strong transit networks and civic infrastructure.
The lesson, he says, is that taller buildings alone do not create better cities.
"The opportunity today is not simply to build taller buildings, but to create better-planned urban centres that can accommodate future population growth while preserving quality of life," Pareek says.
Infrastructure, connectivity and employment ecosystems must grow alongside residential development.
The Ageing Population Challenge
Another factor is often overlooked in conversations about urban growth -- ageing.
Adarsh Narahari, Founder and Managing Director of Primus Senior Living, notes that India's senior population is expected to double from around 15 crore to more than 30 crore by 2050.
Photo Credit: Primus Senior Living Project
As cities build higher, they must also become more accessible. "Vertical development is a practical necessity for accommodating growth while optimising limited urban land. However, cities must also become more age-inclusive," Narahari says.
This means integrating accessibility features, healthcare access, safety measures and community spaces into future residential developments.
A Trillion-Dollar Opportunity
India's real estate sector is expected to become a trillion-dollar market by 2030.
Ashish Sharma, AVP Operations at Brahma Group, says the sector is entering a period of both immense opportunity and responsibility. "Well-planned high-rise and vertical residential developments are emerging as the most viable path forward," Sharma says.
The demand is unlikely to slow anytime soon. As millions continue to migrate to cities over the coming decades, India faces a choice. It can continue expanding outward and strain land, infrastructure and resources. Or it can embrace denser, smarter and more sustainable urban growth.
For a country preparing to house 600 million urban residents within the next decade, the answer increasingly appears to be pointing in one direction -- upward.
