By Staff Reporter

The Smart Cities Mission(SCM), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) is showcasing the achievements of the Mission at the ‘National Smart Cities Mission Pavilion’. The National Pavilion showcases models of some of the most impactful projects, including the Chappan Dukaan of Indore Smart City, Connecting Past with Future of Surat Smart City, Area-Based Development of Udaipur Smart City and Digitization of Manuscripts of Prayagraj Smart City.

City Leader’s Conclave is being organized on 19^th January, 2024 which will bring forth city leaders as well as private entrepreneurs on the same platform, to discuss city initiatives identifying suitable solutions for building liveable and sustainable cities. Smart Cities India Awards will be held on 19^th January, 2024 recognizing projects that have made impact by making our cities liveable, sustainable and economically viable by honouring best practices in the 100 Smart Cities.

The 9^th Smart Cities India Expo is being held at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi from 17th to 19th January, 2024. The three-day expo, being organized by India Trade Promotions Organization (ITPO) and the Exhibitions India Group, features key verticals of smart city framework including Smart ICT, Smart Energy, Buildings, Transport, Water, and Clean India, etc. and provide a platform to enable deeper communication and a practical approach towards making smart cities a reality.

Smart Cities Mission Overview:

1. The Smart Cities Mission was launched by the Hon’ble Prime Minister on 25 June 2015 with the objective to promote cities that provide core infrastructure, clean and sustainable environment and give a decent quality of life to their citizens through the application of ‘smart solutions’.
2. As part of the Mission, all 100 Smart cities have established Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) for implementation of Smart City Projects. These 100 SPVs are developing around 8,000 multi-sectoral projects worth more than ₹1.7 lakh crore. As on 15^th January 2024, the 100 SPVs have completed 6,650+ projects worth more than ₹1.32 lakh crores.

Notable achievements of Smart Cities Mission:

1. Smart Infrastructure Development: All 100 smart cities have operational Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) which are utilizing data to make data-based decisions. The use of technology towards urban management has increased. The urban services in each of the 100 cities have significantly improved in diverse fields like crime tracking, safety & security of citizens, transport management, solid waste management, water supply, disaster management etc.
2. Citizen Safety and Security: Integration of ITMS (Intelligent Traffic Management Systems) having surveillance systems for improved road safety, including CCTV cameras and emergency response mechanisms, to enhance public safety. More than 76,000 CCTV surveillance cameras have been installed in 100 smart cities which helps in crime monitoring. 1,884 emergency call boxes, 3,000+ public address systems, and traffic enforcement systems for red light violations, automatic number plate recognition, etc. have also been installed which have improved public safety.
3. Towards boosting urban mobility, smart cities have completed around 1,300 smart mobility projects and 383 projects are nearing completion. The total investment in development of smart mobility projects is worth more than ₹40,000 crore. 2,500+ km of Smart roads with universal accessibility, utility ducts and proper signages. 7,500+ new buses deployed (including 2000+ electric buses), 5,000+ bus stops developed/ retrofitted. More than 600 kms of cycle tracks developed. Further, Intelligent Transport Management System (ITMS) have been implemented and monitored through the ICCCs improving traffic operations, enforcing traffic violations and improving journey time.
4. Integration of technology in urban services management: Implementation of smart infrastructure projects such as 600+ Smart Energy and 1,250+ Water and Sanitation projects have been completed. More than 50 Lakhs Solar/LED Streetlights have been installed and over 89,000 kms of underground electricity cabling constructed. More than 700 TPD of waste to energy processing capacity installed. Adoption of technology-driven solutions like SCADA for efficient water supply, sanitation etc. More than 50 cities are managing Solid Waste Management with increased usage of technology, which has improved Route Management, Efficiency of Collection and Daily Management. Around 5,000 vehicles have been RFID enabled for Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) to digitalize and improve the efficiency of solid waste management. More than 6,800 kms of water supply system are being monitored through SCADA, reducing the non-revenue water and leakages.
5. Towards making our cities more liveable and sustainable, 700+ social infrastructure projects have been completed. 6,855 numbers of smart classrooms have been developed and 40 numbers of Digital Library developed, 1,600+ Anganwadis (for un-privileged children) developed. For health, the smart cities have developed 308 e-health centers and clinics have been developed (without dedicated beds) and 255 numbers of health ATMs installed.
6. Development of Vibrant Public Spaces: 1377+ projects on public spaces are being developed across 100 smart cities including 180+ waterfront projects developed in 47 cities, 170+ projects developed focusing on Cultural heritage, and 200+ markets redeveloped across 68 cities. 155 numbers of environmental sensors installed and more than 5,300 personnel and volunteers trained for disaster response.
7. Towards establishing smart cities as growth hubs which attract investments and create jobs through establishment of start-up incubation centers and market redevelopment projects, 674 economic infrastructure projects have been completed and another 263 projects are under implementation with a total investment worth more than ₹ 13,800 crore. 37 incubation centers/skill development centers have been developed and over 50 market redevelopment projects completed.
8. Recognizing the need for collaborations/partnerships with private sector to bring efficiencies 186 PPP projects have been completed and 20 projects under progress with total investments worth around ₹11,000 crore.

Other Key Initiatives of the Smart Cities Mission include:

• Assessment Frameworks created under the Smart Cities Mission include Ease of Living Index, Municipal Performance Index, Data Maturity Assessment Framework and Climate Smart Cities Assessment Framework. These multiple indices and frameworks have been integrated into the Urban Outcomes Framework, creating 100,000+ Datapoints in 250+ cities across 14+ sectors.
• National Challenges: The Smart Cities Mission has continually adapted itself with emerging needs and provided cities with choice on how to respond. For instance, when the COVID-19 pandemic raised global awareness about the importance of open spaces in having active and healthy lifestyles, the Mission launched campaigns such as India ‘Cycles4Change’ and ‘Streets4People’ in a challenge format. To ensure even the most vulnerable citizens have access to public spaces, especially young children and caregivers, cities participated in ‘Placemaking Marathons’ and the ‘Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge‘. Other challenges like ‘Transport4All’ and ‘EatSmart cities’ are promoting startups in public transport and improving food hygiene in smart cities, respectively.
• National Urban Digital Mission: pilot launched in February 2021 to foster a national urban digital ecosystem that delivers accessible, inclusive, efficient and citizen centric governance in all towns and cities of the country. NUDM has onboarded 2000+ ULBs and all targets to onboard all ULBs by 2028.
• The Urban Learning Internship Program (TULIP)– India has a substantial pool of technical graduates for whom exposure to real world project implementation and planning is essential for professional development. ‘ULBs and Smart Cities, with their complex and large operations provide a promising environment for real world learning for young minds. It is with this objective that MoHUA and MHRD launched ‘The Urban Learning Internship Program (TULIP)’ to match opportunities in ULBs and Smart Cities with learning needs of recent graduates. The program intends to fulfil the twin goals of providing hands-on learning experience to recent graduates as well as benefitting States, ULBs and Smart Cities with infusion of fresh energy and ideas to solve critical challenges. More than 40,000 internships have been posted and over 6,000 completed.