INDIA

There are also highly urbanised and populated areas across the country that did not attain city
status, but are sometimes referred as cities. Officially, these areas are classified as
municipalities or townships.
Penang
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George Town became a city on 1 January 1957 by a royal charter granted by Her Majesty
Queen Elizabeth II, becoming the first town in the Federation of Malaya to become a city
(Singapore became a city in 1951). The royal charter stated that:

… the said Municipality of George Town shall on the First Day of January in the year of Our Lord
One thousand nine hundred and fifty-seven and forever after that be a city and shall be called
and styled the CITY OF GEORGE TOWN instead of the Municipality of George Town and shall
thenceforth have all such rank, liberties, privileges and immunities as are incident to a City.

However, local government elections were abolished by the federal government in 1965, and
the functions of the City Council were transferred to the Chief Minister of Penang in 1966. A
Municipal Council for the whole of Penang Island, the Penang Island Municipal Council, was set
up between 1974 and 1976.

Although the city status of George Town was never officially revoked, George Town’s existence
as a corporate entity was in doubt, let alone as a city. This is similar to the position of the former
city of Rochester in England, the site of England’s second-oldest cathedral, which had been a
city from 1211 until 1998 when it was merged with a neighbouring borough. As the new council
was not granted city status, and the city, through oversight, failed to appoint charter trustees to
inherit the city charter, the city ceased to exist.

Most residents disagreed with this view and held that as George Town’s city status has never
been revoked, it remains a city to this day. According to lawyer Datuk Anwar Fazal, George
Town “legally has been and is still a city because the City of George Town Ordinance 1957 had
not been repealed”.As city status is a matter of law, the actual legal position will depend on an
analysis of the City Council of Penang (Transfer of Functions) Order 1966 and the Local
Government Act 1976.On 1 January 2015, the Malaysian federal government upgraded the
Penang Island Municipal Council into the present-day Penang Island City Council, thereby
expanding the city limit of George Town to encompass the entirety of Penang Island, as well as
a handful of surrounding islets.Subsequent cities
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The royal charters for Kuala Lumpur, Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, Shah Alam, Malacca City, Alor
Setar and Miri were from the Malaysian head of state, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, while Ipoh,
Johor Bahru, Iskandar Puteri and Subang Jaya were granted by their respective state sultans.
Malacca City was declared a “historical city” prior to being granted city status in 2003.Kuala
Lumpur, the largest city, is the national capital and a federal territory, but as of 2012, most
government ministries have relocated to the new administrative capital of Putrajaya.The local
government must administer a region that is an administrative centre of a state;
The region must have a population of more than 500-thousand people;
The local government must be financially sustainable, with an annual income of not less than
100-million ringgit, and has the ability to afford stable administrative expenditures;

The local government must have an efficient bureaucratic structure, while maintaining public
services at the highest-level, e.g. tax collection, development approvals, legal enforcement, and
other necessary functions;
Urban developments planned by the local government should be sustainable;
The local government should give further emphasis on resolving social issues, i.e. squatting,
pollution, safety, affordable housing, and environmental conservation. Studies conducted by the
Malaysian Urban Indicators Network (MURNInet) would also be taken account of.
The local government must promote an urban image that is applicable towards the national
identity as a representation of the country’s heritage, and preserve any local objects or places of
historical, cultural, or artistic significance;
The region must contain adequate resources and institutions of finance and industry to easily
facilitate trade and foreign investments;
The region must be a local hub of education, complete with universities, colleges, museums and
public libraries;
The region must be a centre of culture, sports, and recreation;
The local government should have the ability to host conventions of national and international
level;