A city which is two steps ahead of its citizen's needs is a smart city, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the launch of the 100 Smart Cities Mission on Thurdsay.

"As the world looks to India, we have to work towards reaching the world standard. We can't feel disheartened that the world has progressed and we missed the bus," Modi said at Vigyan Bhawan here.

He also launched the Housing for All by 2022 and Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT).

PPP model

The country will now look to public private partnership model and innovative ways of financing to make these schemes successful, he said.

The Cabinet had in April approved about 1 lakh crore investment on urban development under Smart Cities Mission and the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation of 500 cities (AMRUT) with outlays of Rs 48,000 crore and Rs 50,000 crore, respectively.

'City Challenge Competition'

Each smart city, selected through a ‘City Challenge Competition’, would get a Central assistance of Rs 100 crore per year for five years.

Each state will shortlist a certain number of smart city aspirants and they will prepare smart city proposals for further evaluation for extending central support, a statement from the Ministry of Urban Development had said. It will be followed by a city challenge.

The project intends to promote adoption of smart solutions to enhance the quality of urban life and provide a clean and sustainable environment.

'Area based approach'

It will be implemented through ‘area based’ approach consisting of retrofitting, redevelopment, pan-city initiatives and development of new cities.

Under retrofitting, deficiencies in an identified area will be addressed through necessary interventions, the statement added. Pan-city components could be interventions like Intelligent Transport Solutions that benefits all residents by reducing the commuting time.

The focus will be on core infrastructure services such as adequate and clean water supply, sanitation and solid waste management, efficient urban mobility and public transportation, affordable housing for poor, power supply, robust IT connectivity, governance, especially e-governance and citizen participation, safety and security of citizens, health and education and sustainable urban environment.

Under Housing for All, the Government aims to build 2 crore houses by 2022. AMRUT targets upgrading urban infrastructure across 500 towns and cities.

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