India is a budding country of
millions of youth with soaring aspirations and beckoning futures. It becomes
but necessary for the socialist country which they call their homeland to
support these aspirations with the bare necessitates they need to fly high.
Smart Cities – a mission mode
project undertaken by the government of India in 100 qualifying cities – is an
endeavor to realize these very aspirations. In times, when smart technologies
have knocked the world over with their performances, smart cities are a calling
of the hour. But how smart will these smart
cities be, is matter of debate.
As envisaged by the government
some features of smart cities would include promoting mixed land use in area
based developments, expanding housing opportunities and inclusiveness to all,
creating walkable localities – reduced congestion, pollution and resource
distribution, preserving and developing open spaces, promoting Transit Oriented
Development (TOD), public transport and last mile para-transport connectivity,
making governance citizen friendly and cost effective – increasing reliance on
online services, giving an identity to cities, applying smart solutions to
infrastructure and services in area-based development in order to make them
better.
In hind sight, what the project
promises to give shouldn’t have taken 70 years to take form and 70 years for
only the first one hundred, but as the proverbial saying goes, better late than
never. What also pinches one’s subconscious is whether the smart solutions are
really so smart? What the smart cities prophesize as smart are basic
fundamental rights that have been denied to millions in India over the years
and are now being offered gift-wrapped.
Land distribution which has been
contentious ever since independence and continues to be the cause of a bulk of
cases pending in civil courts, has been said to promote mixed use. But with
such scarcity do we have an alternative? Besides, with half of the 20 most
polluted cities in the world to talk of creating walkable localities appears to
be an open lie. While transit oriented development is crucial to give wings to
the citizens and enhance last mile connectivity, it would mean little without
optimal job creations, which India has been shoddy of.
Another debatable aspect is of
governance – laying emphasis on smart solutions and online services. The
government’s bid for a less-cash economy is in sync with the above. But with
the largest public sector bank, SBI, slapping charges on cash deposits beyond a
minimum limit, how can the state expect to go cashless? There are for instance,
many students migrating to other states who open a bank account not to deposit
money but merely to transact. Does the state owe no explanation to them? Secondly,
for online services to gain prominence one needs to put emphasis on digital
literacy which the traditional mode of education in many of our schools has not
yet adopted.
Giving identity to cities is
easier said than done when intellectual property rights and geographical
indicators are widely contested inter-state.
And while we talk of smart
infrastructure, there is news of ceilings of buildings falling in Connaught
Place, whole buildings losing ground in for example, Maharashtra and Kolkata, a
flyover in construction falling down killing the very same people they are
being created to serve. Corruption and lack of honesty has reduced the price of
a common man’s life to a paltry. Speaking of transparent governance, our
elected leaders continue playing the blame game as another child in some part
of India slips down a pit hole. Worse still, by the time you’d have finished
reading this, another person might have died in a road accident.
Despite the lacunae mentioned
above, one must appreciate the fact that an initiative of such magnitude has
come from the ruling government. The need of the hour is to INCLUDE – Involve
all stakeholders in decision making and more importantly those for whom the
services are being created, Negotiate the most plausible solutions offered by a
myriad contractors, Calculate the impact of the service to the last man,
Legally hold accountable any stakeholder involved in corruption or another
unethical practice, Utilize every asset to its maximum potential and
unanimously don the role of a caretaker, Democratically debate and give space
to dissent for citizens to voice their opinions in matters concerning them
within the ambit of Smart Cities and finally, Energize the youth to channelize their huge potential.
What’s also of prime concern is
the question of access. Smart infrastructure wouldn’t mean much if it is not
easily accessible to each and every enterprising citizen – needless to mention
regardless of place, sex, caste or physical abilities. Easy access coupled with
co-operation of office holders will go a long in realizing the ambition of a
smart city.
Amid all this due concern should
be laid on the environment which as the Mahatma said “has enough for everyone’s
need but not for everyone’s greed”. Our responsibilities further increase in
keeping with India’s INDC. These should not remain mere rhetoric but we head on
the way of hybrid transport technologies, green buildings and eco-friendly
techniques.
In essence, a Smart City would
remain a myth till every individual is guaranteed clean drinking water, three
square meals, competitive education facilities, institutional healthcare services,
minimum wages and a decent standard of living. A smart city wouldn’t be smart
enough if what’s consumed is not smartly disposed, if what’s earned is not
wisely spent and what’s gained is not adequately served. Smart cities are not a
bunch of online features or new technologies we can attribute to a city but a
comprehensive concept where in addition to the right to life with dignity, an
individual is given a voice and is empowered.
Lastly, for smart cities, we need
smart citizens. A responsible law-abiding citizen who is equally aware of her
duty towards the nation as about her rights shall rightly be the custodian of a
smart city. Who we need is an ethical human with an imbibed sense of belonging
to the nation and service to her neighbour. A smart citizen is no superhuman
with super powers but one with a civic sense, one who restrains self from
crossing traffic signals, does not honk in busy streets, stands in queue and
gives her turn to a needier one, not occupies seats reserved for the needy in
public transport, optimizes electric and fuel use and holds herself accountable.
To be a first-class citizen, one must be a first-class citizen.
To India the future beckons and
it is set to reach the highest echelons. When the aspirations of her citizens
become the aspirations of her rulers, smart cities would no longer be a myth
but a happy realization nurturing the dreams of its million many.
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