Sustainable development of Smart Cities

Context

According to the report released by President at the Annual Smart Cities Conclave in Indore, over 70% of projects under the Smart Cities Mission (SCM) are in alignment with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on cities, clean water and sanitation, clean energy and economic growth.

The SDGs are a set of 17 targets part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which was adopted by all UN member states, including India, in 2015.

About the event:

During the event, the President handed out the Smart Cities awards for 2022.
Indore being named the overall best Smart City and Madhya Pradesh the best state.

Highlights of the Report:

Theme: “Smart Cities Mission, India: Localising Sustainable Development Goals”.
Prepared by: The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry and UN-Habitat.
Objective: The report demonstrates tangible and measurable impact towards the achievement of SDGs, relying not solely on data but also human stories and perspectives.

Sustainable Goals achieved:
- According to the report, while the SCM projects have largely contributed, in one way or the other, to 15 of the 17 SDGs.
- Nearly 44% were in line with the aim of SDG 11 — to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
- Around 13.3% of the SCM projects contributed to SDG 6 (Clean water and sanitation);
- 6% to SDG 7 (Affordable and clean energy) and
- 4% to SDG 8 (Decent work and economic growth).
The report mentioned that the SCM, with a total of 7,846 projects across 100 cities showcases successful implementation of a national-scale urban mission that aligns comprehensively with global agendas and empowers cities to drive sustainable development.
Key Projects highlighted:
- The report cited as an example a project in Ahmedabad, where sensor-based monitoring of the water network resulted in an additional supply of 50 million litres a day (MLD) by detecting leakages.
- The Mudasarlova Reservoir Floating Solar Plant in Visakhapatnam, which led to an annual electricity generation of 3,613 MWh and saved $0.28 million, the report said. The project prevented emission of over 3,000 tonnes of CO2.
- The project in Indore, which used a gravity-based network to prevent 205 MLD of untreated sewage from entering the Kahn River, the Saraswati River and the network of 25 drains.

About Smart Cities Mission:

The Smart Cities Mission, launched in 2015.
It is an initiative of the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry.
Aim: Cities across the country were asked to submit proposals for projects to improve municipal services and to make their jurisdictions more liveable.
- The projects were supposed to be completed within five years of the selection of the city, but in 2021 the Ministry changed the deadline for all cities to June 2023.
But the Ministry extended its deadline to June 2024.
Funding:
- The Mission is operated as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.
- Central Government will give financial support to the extent of Rs. 48,000 crores over 5 years i.e., on an average Rs.100 crore per city per year.
- An equal amount on a matching basis is to be provided by the State/ULB.
- Additional resources are to be raised through convergence, from ULBs’ own funds, grants under Finance Commission, innovative finance mechanisms such as Municipal Bonds, other government programs and borrowings.