D&B's City Vitality Index (CVI) Redefines Urban Analytics to Assess Economic Impact

Mumbai, 27 February 2025: Dun & Bradstreet, a leading global provider of business decisioning data and analytics, released its report, City Vitality Index - Q1 2025, a comprehensive analysis that identifies and ranks India’s most economically dynamic cities. This innovative report leverages cutting-edge satellite imagery to identify and rank India’s most economically vibrant cities. Using NASA’s Black Marble, a daily calibrated and validated product suite of night-time light data, the index offers an unparalleled look at economic activity, city vibrancy, and business potential across over 700 cities in India. By analyzing artificial lighting at night, a uniquely human signal captured by satellites, the City Vitality Index provides a new lens for understanding the interactions between human systems and the environment, making it an invaluable tool for evaluating economic dynamics.

“The City Vitality Index offers near real-time insight into economic momentum across Indian cities,” said Dr. Arun Singh, Global Chief Economist, Dun and Bradstreet. “By integrating diverse data, we capture the pulse of India’s microeconomies, providing actionable intelligence. The index reflects traditional metrics and emerging growth drivers, with an 80% correlation to nominal GDP, which will serve as a cornerstone of monitoring economic expansion. Across highly urbanized cities, this correlation rises to ~99%.”

“This quarter’s findings emphasize the evolution of India’s regional economies,” Dr. Singh continued. “The CVI uncovers new growth centers, with tier-2 and tier-3 cities such as Warangal and Varanasi now ranking in the top 100 emerging cities, highlighting the decentralization of India’s growth narrative.”

Highlights of the City Vitality Index (CVI) - Q1 2025 Report:

• The CVI encompasses data for over 700 cities; the top 25 emerging cities span across Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Odisha, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, and Maharashtra, reflecting widespread growth across the length and breadth of the country.
• Cities from the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have seen significant growth and have moved either to the top 100 or the top 50 list.
• Gandhinagar, Thane, and Surat have experienced linear growth trends, supported by significant state-driven investment plans. Notably, the Surat Economic Region is being developed with industrial clusters and tourism growth initiatives.
• Key changes across cities’ CVI rankings from Q4 2024 to Q1 2025:
  • Thane’s economic expansion has been catalyzed by the development of a ring metro line, connecting industrial areas with the main city.
  • North Goa has seen the highest growth since 2021, driven by increased investments in the hospitality sector and rising tourism. It rose 27 positions, moving from 51^st in Q4 2024 to 24^th in Q1 2025.
  • Karimnagar has emerged as a potential hub for IT services and Global Capability Centers in recent years.
  • The largest improvement in CVI ranking was seen in Baramulla, rising from 379^th to 159^th, potentially due to railway infrastructure projects.
  • Kishanganj’s ranking improved from 107^th to 31^st bringing it among the list of top 100 districts, while that of Indore declined from 37^th to 79^th rank.