Report Cards On Smart Cities To Be Released – Economics

Table of Contents

CURRENT AFFAIR

The Government of India will release a report card on 100 selected smart cities by June 2020.
The cities are to be assessed based on public performance index, ease of living and climate in June.
The initiative is being undertaken as the Smart City Project completes 5 years in June.

The cities are also to be assessed based on education, economic ability, safety, housing, development, mobility and health.
Of these factors, 35% of weightage is to be given to quality of life, 20% to sustainability, 20% to economic viability and 30% to citizen participation.

The Smart Cities Mission is an innovative and new flagship initiative by the Government of India to drive economic growth and improve the quality of life of people by enabling local development and harnessing
The Mission will cover 100 cities and its duration will be five years from 2015 to 2020.
The Mission is implemented by the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD).
SCM is operated as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS).

Smart cities have vital role to play in tackling the urban problems in India and create a sustainable and inclusive urban space.
Establishing an Efficient Urban Management Systems
Minimizing Conflicts in the Urban Environment
Creating Enabling Conditions for Inclusive and Equitable Urbanization

Engines of inclusive economic growth: Of the 121 crore Indians, 83.3 crore live in rural areas while 37.7 crore stay in urban areas, i.e approx 32 % of the population.
Traffic: With overcrowding in the cities, traffic congestion becomes a problem, increasing the time it takes to commute over even small distances.
Share in GDP: Cities contribute to 63 % of Indian GDP. The increasing population has caused extreme stress of urban
Health problems: The concentration of a large population living in squalor in slums in the urban sprawl makes it a haven for the spread of diseases.
Environmental concern: Vulnerability to risk posed by the increasing man-made and natural disaster is increasing.

Finding The Right Model for Smart Cities in India’s Socio-Political Context.
Lack of Convergence with Other Urban Sector
Lack of funding for Smart Cities.
Lack of IT infrastructure
Lack of citizens’ participation
Inability of shifting cities toward low carbon trajectory and emission reduction actions.

Total city Covered: 100
Total Urban Population Impacted: 99,630,069
Total Cost of Project (Including Other Cost – O&M, Contingency, etc.): Rs. 203172cr
Total Area Based Development Cost Rs. 164,204 cr
Total Pan City Solution Cost Rs. 38,914 cr.

Ensure mechanisms for convergence of programme and projects
There is no ‘one size fits all’ model for smart cities that can be adopted in India
What are smart cities? Examine their relevance in urban development and challenges faced by them.