BW_SMART_CITIES_September_October_2016

Guest Column

T

HE Smart Cities Mission has already

taken off, with 33 cities already selected in

the first two rounds of selection. The fi-

nancing pattern indicated by the Mission

Guidelines proposed a Central Grant of

Rs. 500 crore for each selected city, provided the City or

the State concerned raise at least an equal amount.

Thus, the first 20 cities selected in January 2016, were to

propose projects worth at least Rs. 10,000 crore. How-

ever, these 20 selected cities proposed a slew of infra-

structure projects that would cost close to Rs. 50,

crore. That showed the enthusiasm of the cities.

However, the smart city saga has only just begun. All

the 4,041 statutory towns and cities in the country have

started dreaming of becoming smart, sooner than later.

That vision has percolated even among many villages.

Thanks to the growing outreach of the information &

communication technology, efficiently harnessed by the

media, every aspect of smart city programme is now

shared in all parts of the country, from Kashmir to Kan-

yakumari- literally. But the dream needs to be matched

with adequate financial resources too.

Assessment of the investment required for the cities

The investment required for bringing the urban infra-

structure and services to the levels set by the Bureau of

India Standards and similar other expert bodies is to the

By Sudhir Krishna

SMART

APPROACH FOR

FINANCING

SMART CITIES