Centre to celebrate the 6th anniversary of Smart Cities Mission, AMRUT, PMAY-U today

As per an official release by the ministry, the three schemes were part of a visionary agenda for urban rejuvenation and were designed as part of a multi-layer strategy to meet the aspirations of 40 percent of India’s population living in cities.

The infusion of overall investments to the tune of Rs 12 lakh crore can gauge the focus on the urban sector during the last six years, as compared to Rs. 1.5 lakh crore in the period between 2004-2014. The projects implemented under these three Missions have brought about a perceptible change in the lives of India’s urban residents.

The Missions have not only led to the development of urban infrastructure, whether be it better water supply, sanitation, housing for all but also have pioneered the use of data, technology, and innovation in the planning and management of our cities. During the COVID-19 epidemic, these Missions were crucial in providing relief to those who were affected by the virus’s whims.

The anniversary event will highlight some of the important initiatives being implemented by MoHUA. Hardeep S Puri, Minister of State (Independent Charge), Housing and Urban Affairs, will preside at the event. Durga Shanker Mishra, Secretary, Housing and Urban Affairs has invited all key urban stakeholders from Central and State Governments to join the event, including inter alia, Principal Secretaries of States/UTs, Municipal Commissioners of Cities, MDs/CEOs of Smart Cities, State Level Nodal Agencies/ Mission Directorates, along with their officials and team members, professionals, industry representatives, media, and members of academia.

The date also marks 45 years of establishment of the National Institute of Urban Affairs, an autonomous body of MoHUA, tasked to bridge the gap between research and practice on issues related to urbanization.

PMAY-U, under the aegis of ‘Housing for All’, addresses urban housing shortage among the EWS/LIG and MIG categories including the slum dwellers by ensuring a ‘pucca’ house to all eligible urban households by the year 2022, when the nation completes 75 years of its Independence. A total of 1.12 crore houses have been sanctioned under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (U), of which 82.5 lakh houses have been grounded and around 48 lakh have been completed.

At the event to mark the anniversary, a short movie contest on PMAY-U will be declared open for students, youths, non-governmental organizations, institutions, and individuals/groups in the run-up to India’s 75th year of Independence. Fortnight-long workshops on Awas Par Samvad (Townhall) are planned to be initiated for Schools/Colleges/Institutions in 75 cities.

Atal Mission for Rejuvenation & Urban Transformation (AMRUT) was launched to address the issues of Water Supply, Sewerage, and septage management, Storm Water Drainage to reduce flooding, Non-motorized Urban Transport, and creating green space/parks in 500 cities with more than 1 lakh population.

Smart Cities Mission is a transformational mission aimed to bring about a paradigm shift in the practice of urban development in the country. Of the total proposed projects under SCM, 5,890 projects (114 percent by number) worth Rs 1,78,500 crore (87 percent by value) have been tendered so far, work orders have been issued for 5,195 projects (101 percent by number) worth Rs 1,45,600 crore (71 percent by value). 2,655 projects (51 percent by number) worth Rs 45,000 crore (22 percent by value) have also been fully completed and are operational.

Projects developed under the Smart Cities Mission are multi-sectoral and mirror the aspirations of the local population. As of date, 69 Smart cities have developed and operationalized their Integrated Command and Control Centres (ICCCs) in the country. These operational ICCCs functioned as war-rooms for COVID management, and along with other smart infrastructure developed under the mission, helped cities in fighting the pandemic through information dissemination, improving communication, predictive analysis, and supporting effective management.

During the 6th Anniversary event, MoHUA will be announcing the results of the India Smart Cities Awards Contest (ISAC) 2020. The much-awaited results under the Data Maturity Assessment Framework (DMAF) and India Smart Cities Awards Contest India Smart Cities Awards Contest (CSCAF) will also be released during the event. The event will also feature the release of, inter alia, the India Smart Cities Fellowship Report, the TULIP annual report, and knowledge products developed by the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA).

(ANI)