Citizens Consultation for the Smart Cities Mission
On 25 June 2015, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi launched the Smart Cities Mission to enable the holistic development of Indian cities. This bold new initiative under the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) aims to drive economic growth and improve the quality of life of people by enabling local development and harnessing technology as a means to create smart outcomes for citizens. According to MoUD, the core elements of a Smart City include: adequate water and electricity supply, suitable sanitation and solid waste management, efficient public transportation, affordable housing, robust IT connectivity and digitalization, e-governance with citizen participation, sustainable environment, and safety and security of citizens with health and education for all. These objectives are proposed to be attained through a judicious mix of retrofitting, redevelopment and greenfield development.
Citizen consultation is an important pillar of the first phase of the Smart Cities Mission. The Ministry encouraged local governments to engage citizens as they worked on their city’s Smart City Proposal, and recommended MyGov as the core platform for citizen consultation. Municipal governments supplemented their online MyGov activities with meetings, discussions, and other public interactions in their respective cities.
MyGov facilitated citizen consultation for the Smart Cities Mission in two stages. During the first round, it offered cities a range of citizen consultation methodologies, such as discussion forums, tasks, online polls, public talks, and blogs. These tools served as a catalyst for citizens to participate in the Smart Cities Mission and the competition, also known as the India Smart Cities Challenge, and offer suggestions for the development of their city.
During the second round of the Smart Cities Mission, municipal authorities from the shortlisted cities used MyGov to collect suggestions from citizens on their vision for a Smart City to incorporate these into draft proposals. Of the 98 cities, 57 put the draft proposals online for further comments and inputs from the public. Overall, the proposals received a total of 1,42,895 comments.
The 98 cities adopted a range of measures to encourage citizen engagement. Municipalities reached out to young citizens by visiting schools and colleges to educate them about the Mission. Municipal corporations used popular social networking platforms like Facebook and Twitter to spread awareness about the mission. Still others created dedicated websites with detailed updates on progress. SMS campaigns, voice message campaigns, and airtime on radio channels helped expand a municipality’s reach. Many cities even created free Wi-Fi hotspots in crowded areas so that people could access Internet and submit suggestions. Advertisements in newspapers, pamphlets, hoardings, and the MyGov app played a significant role in making the Smart City Mission a nationwide phenomenon.
The Smart Cities Mission – MyGov collaboration is an unprecedented exercise in urban planning, which has transformed planning from a top-down centralized activity into a democratic consultative process, taking the citizens’ perspective as the foundation stone on which the city plan is built. MyGov looks forward to partnering with more cities and citizens in the subsequent rounds of the Smart Cities Mission play its part in developing Smart Cities across India.
– Gaurav Dwivedi,
CEO, MyGov
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Sir SMART CITIES need to have SMART URINALS, CLEAN WASHROOMS etc for all (women,children) at Government Schools, Busstands, Crowded places like Markets,
Vegetable markets etc. New technologies that use less water but keep clean the
urinals can be implemented.
Sir SMART CITIES need Good Public Toilets, Washrooms for Women at major City Busstands, or Railway station circles important Locations Hotels etc where crowded people are there. SMART CITIES need to build Toilet Complexes for Slums,
Govt Schools. It can use innovative systems that use less water and can keep clean like SULAB complexes. SAVE ENVIORNMENT BY CLEAN ENVIRONMENT.(No open Urinals)
Sir SMART CITIES Need SMART linkage. MMTS or SPEED RAIL systems can be developed
Railways also need to help to connect CITIES.FOR Example Visakhapatnam to Hyderabad or Vizag to Bangalore, Trains are taking much than expected time due to infrastructure problems at Railway stations.Train that come to City very fastly waits for 30 to 45 minutes at Outer Signals. People are vexing.Include
additional facilities of Railways in SMART CITY Projects.
Sir I have observed in Piligrim Centers like Vijayawada, Mantralayam, Kovvur IN Andhrapradesh, where some towns are nearby Lakes, Rivers are releasing Municipal Discharge into rivers.This should be contained strictly. Apart from SMART cities
Govt needs to look into such small towns and assist Panchayats etc to construct Effluent Treatment plants etc to avoid River water pollution.SAVE OUR RIVERS.
Sir Govt needs to propagate Use of Bio Degradable Plastic covers in Shopping complexes etc. If possible it should make aware that Pastics will turn Oceans of Earth into plastic oceans by 2050 endangering Atmosphere.So We need to carry
Jute Bags,Covers etc while going to Shops. Govt need to spread message of cultivating Carrying own bags to Shops,Supermarkets etc.to avoid Plastic covers.
REDUCE PLASTIC USAGE in SMART CITIES.
Sir for Efficient Public Transport following can be studied
1. Tramways or BRTS if Roads are widened.
2. Electricity driven bus systems.
3. Cycle Pathways along all major roads.
4. Rental Apartments by govt bodies at lesser rents for low income private sector employees.
Sir For Smart cities I request following factors to include 1. Green Spaces around Cities and Parks where ever possible.(Neem,Banyan,Peepal etc)2.All Roads
to have Trees (should not be cut by Electricity Department, and Shop owners)
3.Rainwater harvesting methods along all Roads also.
4.Multistories Apartments with Green house concepts for all at lower rates
(Private sector employees, govt employees etc) Singapore Housing Development Board achievments can be studied.They built them 1970s
Recent Nellore and Chennai floods in November are really sad,tears roll in my eyes for the plight of people there.Are our blind development activities corrupted with illusioned ideas blocked the natural water flows of Cities?
Are Plastics Clogged the Drainage systems in Chennai.
Are our corrupt politicians colluded with corrupt municipal town planners
raised the blockades for free flowing canals ?
People need to follow the scientific way of development giving respect to
nature.
Even after spending Rs.4200 cr on Welfare schemes on Slum improvement,
there is no considerable solution as per news report "City Slums stay still"
THE HANS INDIA dt.28.12.2015 Hyderabad edition. I feel lack of scientifc approach regarding this problem lead to this situation.Government need to study Singapore solution this issue , and developa Multistroried Complexes with all ameneties pooling available Land.(instead of distributing to few individuals).
During the first round, it offered cities a range of citizen consultation methodologies, such as discussion forums, tasks, online polls, public talks, and blogs. These tools served as a catalyst for citizens to participate in the Smart Cities Mission and the competition, also known as the India Smart Cities Challenge, and offer suggestions for the development of their city. that is not the proper way of evaluating the smart city criteria,Advertisements in newspapers, pamphlets, hoardings etc