Recently, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has publicized a new list of nine smart cities taking the total number to 99. Of the nine cities, 3 are from Uttar Pradesh, 1 from Bihar, 1 from Tamil Nadu, 1 from Daman & Diu, 1 from Arunachal Pradesh and 1 from Lakshadweep.
Below is the list of nine cities announced in the fourth round
- Silvassa, Dadra, and Nagar Haveli
- Erode, Tamil Nadu
- Diu, Daman & Diu
- Biharsharif, Bihar
- Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh
- Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh
- Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh
- Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh
- Kavaratti, Lakshadweep
A senior official said Shillong will be the 100th Smart City provided it submit its proposal to the Centre in next three months. The official further added that the nine cities were selected from 15 cities that had submitted their proposals to the ministry.
Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad, Rampur, Meerut and Rae Bareli were among cities that were unsuccessful to get the Smart City tag. But Silvasa topped the list of winners in this round.
These cities have proposed to take up the various project, including “smart” roads, cycle tracks, walking paths, smart classrooms, rejuvenation of water bodies, skill development centers, up gradation of health facilities and pan-city projects like integrated command control center.
These cities have planned 409 projects which would get around 61 percent funding from the Centre and the state, according to the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.
In January 2016, 20 cities were announced under the Smart Cities mission, followed by 13 cities in May 2016, 27 cities in September 2016 and 30 cities in June 2017. The total proposed investment in the 99 Smart City Mission would be Rs 2.03 lakh crore
Key features
So, what would smart cities of future do? According to the ministry, they would
• Provide equal housing opportunities for all
• Endorse mixed land use in area-based developments
• Preserving and evolving open spaces
• Promoting a variety of transport options
• Provide a new identity to the city
• Applying smart solutions to infrastructure and services in area-based development to expand them
• Create walkable localities and lessen blocking, air pollution, and resource depletion, apart from improving local economy
• Make governance citizen-friendly, technologically advanced and cost-effective