Smart Cities Mission

General Studies Paper-3

Context: The Smart Cities Mission (SCM), a flagship programme has taken a back seat in this year’s list of poll promises and achievements.

About

• Smart cities were defined by urban practitioners as new Silicon Valleys built with a strong integration of a network of airports, highways, and other types of communications, a so-called intellectual city with advanced ICT.
• It is an initiative of the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry, launched in 2015.
• 100 cities have been selected to be developed as Smart Cities through a two-stage competition for five years.
• The Mission is operated as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.
• 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’.
• The six fundamental principles on which the concept of Smart Cities is based are:

Key Features

• The SCM had two main aspects: area-based development consisting of three components — redevelopment (city renewal), retrofitting (city improvement), and green field projects (city extension); and pan-city solutions based on ICT.
• These further comprised some six categories that would include e-governance, waste management, water management, energy management, urban mobility, and skill development.
• Four pillars: Social Infrastructure, Physical Infrastructure, Institutional Infrastructure, Economic Infrastructure.
• Integrated Command and Control Centre: These ICCCs are designed to enable authorities to monitor the status of various amenities in real time.
  • The ICCC acts as a smart city and acts as a “nerve center” for operations management.
• Other steps taken under the SCM for digital infrastructure are;
  • Adaptive Traffic Control System (ATCS), Red Light Violation Detection (RLVD), and Automatic Number Plate Recognition System (ANPR),
  • Digital assets for solid waste and waste-water management and water distribution management,
  • CCTV surveillance systems, smart education and smart health systems.

Status of the SCM

• 8,033 projects sanctioned under the SCM have seen a fall in the total outlay from the expected ₹2 lakh crore, which is 16% less than the projected capital flow in 100 cities.
• The SCM grant funded 5,533 projects have been completed, while 921 projects are still ongoing.
• As many as 400 projects being undertaken by about 10 cities under the Mission are unlikely to meet the extended deadline of June 2024.
• The funding pattern shows that not more than 5% has come through the PPP route.

Challenges

• Diversity in Urban India: The selection of 100 cities on a competitive basis was flawed due to the diversity in existing urban realities.
  • The scheme was divorced from the ground realities of urban India — the urbanisation here is dynamic and not static like the West.
• Financial Constraints: Keeping the funds and finances flowing in for the smart cities mission is a challenge. Most Urban Local Bodies are not even financially self-sustainable.
  • According to McKinsey, to make Indian cities liveable, a capital expenditure of $1.2 trillion is required by 2030. In this context, ₹1,67,875 crore is less than $20 billion in nine years.
• Displacement: Urban India, according to the World Bank has more than 49% of the population living in slums.
  • There was displacement of people living in poorer localities. Street vendors, for example, were displaced and urban commons were disrupted.
• Infrastructure Development: Many Indian cities lack basic infrastructure, such as efficient public transportation, waste management systems, and reliable water and electricity supply.
  • Implementing smart solutions requires significant upgrades to existing infrastructure.

Way Ahead

• Data protection: A robust system is required to protect digital platforms from cyber attack and safeguarding sensitive public and private data adequately.
• Pan city projects: SCM should emphasize more on pan city projects to ensure comprehensive and holistic development.
• Strengthening ULBs: A plan should be made to strengthen ULBs’ capabilities in small cities.
• Public Private Partnerships: The government should analyse the reasons behind low private investments and take remedial steps towards the same.
• Completion of Projects: The Committee recommended that the ministry’s role should not be confined to transfer of share and asked them to remain watchful to ensure execution and completion of the projects by intervening to facilitate with inputs and expertise.