Union Minister of Urban Development Venkaiah Naidu on Tuesday announced the 13 winners of the Fast Track Smart Cities competition, reported ANI. The list comprises Lucknow, Warangal, Dharamsala, Chandigarh, Raipur, New Town Kolkata, Bhagalpur, Panaji, Port Blair, Imphal, Ranchi, Agartala and Faridabad. Lucknow emerged on top in the contest, which had 23 cities competing for a spot on the list.
The first list of 20 smart cities out of 97 that will be funded and developed by the Centre was declared on January 28. The cities that made it to the list were Bhubaneswar, Pune, Jaipur, Surat, Kochi, Ahmedabad, Jabalpur, Visakhapatnam, Solapur, Davangere, Indore, New Delhi, Coimbatore, Kakinada, Belgaum, Udaipur, Guwahati, Chennai, Ludhiana and Bhopal.
The selected cities will be developed to have basic infrastructure, including water and power supply, sanitation management, efficient public transport, e-governance and IT connectivity. The cabinet had approved the smart cities plan in 2015. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced that there will be smart cities in every state, with Uttar Pradesh getting the most at 13. Each state will have a number of smart cities depending on its size, population and other factors.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!