With a common perception that the 100 smart cities plan mooted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi would pose some challenges, experts in a panel discussion at Chandigarh College of Architecture said that before looking at this status, cities should also work on improving what they already have in hand - talking in the context of Chandigarh.
"While the smart city is a welcome gesture, it is an irrelevant concept. We are wasting time talking about what's not even there. It will take years to put in place the plans, leave alone passing them," said Mumbai-based Hafeez Contractor at the discussion held on Saturday. "For another 20 years, we will only be talking about smart cities without being able to put the present house into perspective," he added.
Environmental engineer from New Zealand Eric Jansevvne had some suggestions for smart cities. "There should be cheap, cleaner energy enabling everyone to move everywhere - with the key being ecological footprint," he said.
Jansevvne added that smart cities should keep in mind areas like potable water, waste management and health issues arising out of development and water efficiency with more availability per capita.
While R Srinivas - head of the metropolitan and urban territories division, ministry of urban development - said that guidelines were being finalized for selection of smart cities, but cities' past performances in Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) will play a key role.
He also said that the four pillars - institutional infrastructure, physical infrastructure, social infrastructure and economic infrastructure - were also important. "E-governance and a PPP model that ensured viability of products were other deciding factors," he said.
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Quelle/Source: The Times of India, 12.04.2015
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