Indore (Madhya Pradesh): The Chappan Dukan model of street food hub would be replicated in 100 smart cities of the country, said principal advisor of India Smart Cities Mission, Jeenal Sawla, while talking to Free Press at the inauguration of the two-day India Smart Cities Conclave at Brilliant Convention Centre here on Tuesday.
“Street food and authentic regional food would be served at these hubs so that visitors and even local people can get a taste of the local cuisine in one place,” she said.
Union urban development minister, Kaushal Kishore, inaugurated the exhibition showcasing the achievements of 100 smart cities across the country to mark the formal opening of the conclave. Around 2,000 guests are expected to attend the conclave.
Droupadi Murmu to head ISAC 2023
The President will grace the India Smart Cities Conclave 2023 on Wednesday and she will give away 66 awards to winners of the fourth edition of ISAC-2022. Five states, union territories, 31 cities and 7 partner organisations will be honoured with awards.
The conclave will be attended by Governor Mangubhai Patel, Hardeep Singh Puri (Minister, MoHUA), Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, ministers Bhupendra Yadav, Ashwini Vaishnav, Kaushal Kishore and others.
Smart City projects to be completed by 2024
Smart Cities Mission director and joint secretary at the ministry of urban and housing affairs Kunal Kumar said that all projects under Smart Cities Mission are expected to be completed by June 2024.
Of the total allocation of Rs 1.70 lakh crore, Rs 1.10 lakh crore has already been spent on the development of smart cities across the country. The remaining Rs 60 lakh crore would be utilised by June 2024," said Kumar.
The central government launched the Smart Cities Mission (SCM) on June 25, 2015. In all, 100 smart cities were selected after several rounds of competition held between January 2016 and June 2018.
In response to a question on the sustainability of the projects, Kumar said, "Most of the smart cities have established projects on a self-sustainable model. Surat Municipal Corporation has taken the lead by starting consultancy services to other agencies. Several other smart cities have taken several innovative steps to develop self-sustainable models of sewage treatment plants, integrated command centres, waste management systems, etc."
Smart Street full of fun
A Smart Street has been developed on a 100-metre stretch at the event site. The Smart Street has an EV charging station, a sports arena where visitors can play basketball, food stalls, and an anganwadis. The street itself was decorated with attractive colours.
Udaipur following Indore’s footsteps
The City of Lakes Udaipur, which is a known tourist destination, has followed Indore’s footsteps in waste management, and the results have been fantastic, said Karnesh Mathur, assistant engineer at Udaipur Smart City Project.
“Our lakes are cleaner than before, attracting more tourists,” he said
He said that Udaipur is following the Indore model of door-to-door garbage collection, and segregation and having a bio-methanation plant to convert the bio-degradable waste. Initially, we started it in 17 wards and now we have launched it in 70 wards.
“We were given Rs 1000 cr and 95 per cent of the work is complete. Of the 118 projects, 108 are complete and three are near completion,” Mathur added.
