The period of rapid economic growth over the past 50 years was exceptional and will not be repeated without an unprecedented acceleration in productivity growth, according to a new report from the McKinsey Global Institute.

Urban Sustainable Index (USI) 2013 builds upon the work carried out in USI 2011. USI 2013 has expanded and upgraded the indicators used in USI 2011. The analysis deploys 23 metrics, which cover four categories: economy, society, resources and environment.

The very severe cyclonic storm Phailin, a category-5 hurricane, was developed over the north of Andaman and Nicobar Islands on 9 October 2013. Subsequently, it propagated towards north-northwest and made landfall at the Gopalpur coast, Odisha on 12 October. Chilika lagoon, the largest brackish water lagoon in Asia, is in close proximity to Gopalpur.