Raising 100 smart cities across the country is the cherished programme of the Prime Minister. He has often hinted at this project in the course of his election campaign and after forming the Government. So far the project was not formally announced nor have been its contours made public. The plan is to identify cities in different States that meet the criterion fixed for turning an identified city into a Smart City. We understand that under this scheme, once cities are identified in accordance with the criterion laid down, experts will work out the plan of providing such facilities and amenities to the city so as to make it worthy of being considered a Smart City. In simpler language it means developing its infrastructure in a manner that all modern requirements are met and all facilities are provided to the inhabitants of the city. This is no small a programme.
Four cities have been identified by the State administration and recommended to the Centre for taking them to be converted into Smart Cities. Srinagar and Anantnag in Kashmir valley and Jammu and Katra in Jammu region have been earmarked for the big change. Although Anantnag and Katra do not fulfill the criterion of at least one lakh of population, yet the Governor has taken the matter of including the two cities in the programme by making relaxation in the rules. The basis on which relaxation is demanded seems very cogent. Both are pilgrims’ cities, Katra for pilgrimage to Mata Vaishno Devi and Anantnag for pilgrimage to Shri Amarnath ji. Hopefully the Union Minister for Housing and Urban Development will be convinced and Governor’s suggestion will be accepted.
India is an ancient country and some of its more famous cities have great history at their back. Most of these cities have come up in close proximity of rivers or lakes. Ancient Indians attached great significance to water bodies because ancient India was essentially agrarian country and water was the very life line for the crops and human beings. None of these ancient cities is planned in modern sense of the term. With the passage of time population grew and the cities expanded on all the sides where space was available. The concept of town planning with wide criss-crossing streets and space utilization etc. was not there and these cities grew haphazardly, some even looked ugly and anaesthetic. After motor car production received boom in our country and the purchasing power of the people increased, today we find millions of vehicle running on narrow streets causing jam and pollution and great obstruction to normal flow of life. No doubt the work of expanding the streets within certain limits is going on but firstly it is an expensive exercise because the amount of compensation to be paid to the property holders whose property will be acquired is forbidding. Secondly, it is a time consuming process in which political pressures are brought about by agencies with vested interest.
The idea of converting the identified cities is a big task involving huge money, planning and execution. A smart city when put in simpler words is almost renovating a given city and making it qualify for a modern city with wide streets, wide and beautiful pavements, parks, parking lots over-ground as well as underground, highly regulated traffic, play grounds, community centres, wide spacious and clean hospitals, efficient power supply system and hundreds of other things. Extensions are also possible and infrastructural improvements in the downtowns and heart of the cities is also an option. The municipalities are empowered to take charge of sanitation, water supply and other civic amenities and these have to be regulated in a way that no disruption of day to day life is allowed.
We believe this is Herculean job and enormous planning has to go into use before the blue print is ready for implementation. Once that is done, the old and ancient India will be converted into a young and youthful modern India comparable with any modern city in developed countries. Of course heritages are not to be disturbed because these have the importance for the archaeologists, historians, antiquarians and the tourists. We believe that Centre has been in touch with a number of developed friendly countries who have expressed their willingness to assist the Government in this prestigious project. It is an encouraging development. In particular for our State where two capital cities are still far below the level of many cities in the country in terms of facilities and infrastructure, the Smart City Programme will be a boon. There is complete rationality in asking for relaxation of rules in the case of Katra and Anantnag. And hopefully, once the scheme is floated and progresses satisfactorily, it could be possible to bring major towns in all the three regions of the State into the fold of Smart Cities.
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