The Government of India is in the process of developing 100 smart cities in India which it sees as the key to the country's economic and social growth. This blog post gives an overview of the Smart Cities project currently underway in India. The smart cities mission in India is at a nascent stage and an evolving area for research. The Centre for Internet and Society will continue work in this area.
By Vanya Rakesh
Overview of the
100 Smart Cities Mission
The Government
of India announced its flagship programme- the 100 Smart Cities mission in the
year 2014 and was launched in June 2015 to achieve urban transformation, drive
economic growth and improve the quality of life of people by enabling local
area development and harnessing technology. Initially, the Mission aims to
cover 100 cities across the countries (which have been shortlisted on the basis
of a Smart Cities Proposal prepared by every city) and its duration will be
five years (FY 2015-16 to FY 2019-20). The Mission may be continued thereafter
in the light of an evaluation to be done by the Ministry of Urban Development
(MoUD) and incorporation of the learnings into the Mission. The Mission aims to
focus on area-based development in the form of redevelopment of existing
spaces, or the development of new areas (Greenfield) to accommodate the growing
urban population and ensure comprehensive planning to improve quality of life,
create employment and enhance incomes for all - especially the poor and the
disadvantaged. [1] On 27th
August 2015 the Centre unveiled 98 smart cities across India which were
selected for this Project. Across the selected cities, 13 crore population (
35% of the urban population will be included in the development plans. [2] The
mission has been developed for the purpose of achieving urban transformation.
The vision is to preserve India's traditional architecture, culture &
ethnicity while implementing modern technology to make cities livable, use
resources in a sustainable manner and create an inclusive environment. [3]
The promises of
the Smart City mission include reduction of carbon footprint, adequate water
and electricity supply, proper sanitation, including solid waste management,
efficient urban mobility and public transport, affordable housing, robust IT
connectivity and digitalization, good governance, citizen participation,
security of citizens, health and education.
Questions
unanswered
- Why and How was the Smart Cities
project conceptualized in India? What was the need for such a project in
India?
- What was the role of the
public/citizens at the ideation and conceptualization stage of the
project?
- Which actors from the Government,
Private industry and the civil society are involved in this mission?
Though the smart cities mission has been initiated by the Government of
India under the Ministry of Urban Development, there is no clarity about
the involvement of the associated offices and departments of the Ministry.
How are the
Smart Cities being selected?
The 100 cities
were supposed to be selected on the basis of Smart cities challenge[4] involving
two stages. Stage I of the challenge involved Intra-State city selection on
objective criteria to identify cities to compete in stage-II. In August 2015,
The Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India announced 100 smart
cities [5] evaluated
on parameters such as service levels, financial and institutional capacity,
past track record, called as the 'shortlisted cities' for this purpose. The
selected cities are now competing for selection in the Second stage of the
challenge, which is an All India competition. For this crucial stage, the
potential 100 smart cities are required to prepare a Smart City Proposal (SCP)
stating the model chosen (retrofitting, redevelopment, Greenfield development
or a mix), along with a Pan-City dimension with Smart Solutions. The proposal
must also include suggestions collected by way of consultations held with city
residents and other stakeholders, along with the proposal for financing of the
smart city plan including the revenue model to attract private participation.
The country saw wide participation from the citizens to voice their aspirations
and concerns regarding the smart city. 15th December 2015 has been declared as
the deadline for submission of the SCP, which must be in consonance with
evaluation criteria set by The MoUD, set on the basis of professional advice. [6] On the
basis of this, 20 cities will be selected for the first year. According to the
latest reports, the Centre is planning to fund only 10 cities for the first
phase in case the proposals sent by the states do not match the expected
quality standards and are unable to submit complete area-development plans by
the deadline, i.e. 15th December, 2015. [7]
Questions
unanswered
- Who would be undertaking the task
of evaluating and selecting the cities for this project?
- What are the criteria for selection
of a city to qualify in the first 20 (or 10, depending on the Central
Government) for the first phase of implementation?
How are the
smart cities going to be Funded?
The Smart City
Mission will be operated as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) and the Central
Government proposes to give financial support to the Mission to the extent of
Rs. 48,000 crores over five years i.e. on an average Rs. 100 crore per city per
year. [8] The
additional resources will have to be mobilized by the State/ ULBs from
external/internal sources. According to the scheme, once list of shortlisted
Smart Cities is finalized, Rs. 2 crore would have been disbursed to each city
for proposal preparation.[9]
According to
estimates of the Central Government, around Rs 4 lakh crore of funds will be
infused mainly through private investments and loans from multilateral
institutions among other sources, which accounts to 80% of the total spending
on the mission. [10] For
this purpose, the Government will approach the World Bank and the Asian
Development Bank (ADB) for a loan costing £500 million and £1 billion each for
2015-20. If ADB approves the loan, it would be it will be the bank's highest
funding to India's urban sector so far.[11] Foreign
Direct Investment regulations have been relaxed to invite foreign capital and
help into the Smart City Mission. [12]
Questions
unanswered
- The Government notes on Financing
of the project mentions PPPs for private funding and leveraging of
resources from internal and external resources. There is lack of clarity
on the external resources the Government has/will approach and the varied
PPP agreements the Government is or is planning to enter into for the
purpose of private investment in the smart cities.
How is the
scheme being implemented?
Under this
scheme, each city is required to establish a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)
having flexibility regarding planning, implementation, management and
operations. The body will be headed by a full-time CEO, with nominees of
Central Government, State Government and ULB on its Board. The SPV will be a
limited company incorporated under the Companies Act, 2013 at the city-level,
in which the State/UT and the Urban Local Body (ULB) will be the promoters
having equity shareholding in the ratio 50:50. The private sector or financial
institutions could be considered for taking equity stake in the SPV, provided
the shareholding pattern of 50:50 of the State/UT and the ULB is maintained and
the State/UT and the ULB together have majority shareholding and control of the
SPV. Funds provided by the Government of India in the Smart Cities Mission to
the SPV will be in the form of tied grant and kept in a separate Grant Fund.[13]
For the purpose
of implementation and monitoring of the projects, the MoUD has also established
an Apex Committee and National Mission Directorate for National Level
Monitoring[14], a State
Level High Powered Steering Committee (HPSC) for State Level Monitoring[15] and a
Smart City Advisory Forum at the City Level [16].
Also, several
consulting firms[17] have
been assigned to the 100 cities to help them prepare action plans.[18] Some of
them include CRISIL, KPMG, McKinsey, etc. [19]
Questions
unanswered
- What policies and regulations have been put in place to account for the smart cities, apart from policies looking at issues of security, privacy, etc.?
- What international/national
standards will be adopted while development of the smart cities? Though
the Bureau of Indian Standards is in the process of formulating
standardized guidelines for the smart cities in India[20],
yet there is lack of clarity on adoption of these national standards,
along with the role of international standards like the ones formulated by
ISO.
What is the role
of Foreign Governments and bodies in the Smart cities mission?
Ever since the
government's ambitious project has been announced and cities have been
shortlisted, many countries across the globe have shown keen interest to help
specific shortlisted cities in building the smart cities and are willing to
invest financially. Countries like Sweden, Malaysia, UAE, USA, etc. have agreed
to partner with India for the mission.[21] For
example, UK has partnered with the Government to develop three India
cities-Pune, Amravati and Indore.[22] Israel's
start-up city Tel Aviv also entered into an agreement to help with urban
transformation in the Indian cities of Pune, Nagpur and Nashik to foster
innovation and share its technical know-how.[23] France
has piqued interest for Nagpur and Puducherry, while the United States is
interested in Ajmer, Vizag and Allahabad. Also, Spain's Barcelona Regional
Agency has expressed interest in exchanging technology with the Delhi. Apart
from foreign government, many organizations and multilateral agencies are also
keen to partner with the Indian government and have offered financial
assistance by way of loans. Some of them include the UK government-owned
Department for International Development, German government KfW development
bank, Japan International Cooperation Agency, the US Trade and Development
Agency, United Nations Industrial Development Organization and United Nations
Human Settlements Programme. [24]
Questions
unanswered
- Do these governments or
organization have influence on any other component of the Smart cities?
- How much are the foreign
governments and multilateral bodies spending on the respective cities?
- What kind of technical know-how is
being shared with the Indian government and cities?
What is the way
ahead?
On the basis of
the SCP, the MoUD will evaluate, assess the credibility and select 20 smart
cities out of the short-listed ones for execution of the plan in the first
phase. The selected city will set up a SPV and receive funding from the
Government.
Questions
unanswered
- Will the deadline of submission of
the Smart Cities Proposal be pushed back?
- After the SCP is submitted on the
basis of consultation with the citizens and public, will they be further
involved in the implementation of the project and what will be their role?
- How will the MoUD and other
associated organizations as well as actors consider the implementation
realities of the project, like consideration of land displacement,
rehabilitation of the slum people, etc.
- How are ICT based systems going to
be utilized to make the cities and the infrastructure "smart"?
- How is the MoUD going to respond to
the concerns and criticism emerging from various sections of the society,
as being reflected in the news items?
- How will the smart cities impact and integrate the existing laws, regulations and policies? Does the Government intend to use the existing legislations in entirety, or update and amend the laws for implementation of the Smart Cities Mission?
[1] Smart
Cities, Mission Statement and Guidelines, Ministry of Urban Development,
Government of India, June 2015, Available at : http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/SmartCityGuidelines.pdf
[2] http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-08-27/news/65929187_1_jammu-and-kashmir-12-cities-urban-development-venkaiah-naidu
[3] http://india.gov.in/spotlight/smart-cities-mission-step-towards-smart-india
[4] http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/Process%20of%20Selection.pdf
[5] Full list
: http://www.scribd.com/doc/276467963/Smart-Cities-Full-List
[6] http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/Process%20of%20Selection.pdf
[7] http://www.ibtimes.co.in/modi-govt-select-only-10-cities-under-smart-city-project-this-year-report-658888
[8] http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/Financing%20of%20Smart%20Cities.pdf
[9] Smart
Cities presentation by MoUD :
http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/Presentation%20on%20Smart%20Cities%20Mission.pdf
[10] http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/smart-cities-projectfrom-france-to-us-a-rush-to-offer-assistance-funds/
[11] http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/funding-for-smart-cities-key-to-coffer-lies-outside-india/#sthash.5lnW9Jsq.dpuf
[12] http://india.gov.in/spotlight/smart-cities-mission-step-towards-smart-india
[13] http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/SPVs.pdf
[14] http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/National%20Level%20Monitoring.pdf
[15] http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/State%20Level%20Monitoring.pdf
[16] http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/City%20Level%20Monitoring.pdf
[17] http://smartcities.gov.in/writereaddata/List_of_Consulting_Firms.pdf
[18] http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=128457
[19] http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/49242050.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst
[20] http://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/in-a-first-bis-to-come-up-with-standards-for-smart-cities-115060400931_1.html
[21] http://accommodationtimes.com/foreign-countries-have-keen-interest-in-development-of-smart-cities/
[22] http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-11-20/news/68440402_1_uk-trade-three-smart-cities-british-deputy-high-commissioner
[23] http://www.jpost.com/Business-and-Innovation/Tech/Tel-Aviv-to-help-India-build-smart-cities-435161?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=socialnetwork
[24] http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/smart-cities-projectfrom-france-to-us-a-rush-to-offer-assistance-funds/#sthash.nCMxEKkc.dpuf
