Twice the size of Mumbai, the 'smart city' of Dholera is one of dozens planned in India but critics say it will be built in a flood zone and will dispossess farmers. As investors pull out, will India's utopian experiment end in chaos?

Imagine yourself in an Indian city where every home is connected to internet, gas, water and electricity via a smart grid. All citizens are linked to each other and to civic facilities in real time. The city uses renewable energy and its transport systems are controlled via central command centres to reduce traffic and pollution. In this city, there are no offensive smells, no noise, no dust, no heaving crowds. It is a smart city, the ideal city.

And it exists: on paper. Its name is Dholera, and it is a key part of what you might call Indias 21st-century utopian urban experiment. Economists argue that the country desperately needs new cities: its urban population is expected to rise from 28% in 2001 to almost 36% in 2026, bringing the total number of people living in its cities and urban regions to 590 million.