Now, MCs to vie for smart city tag

Naveen S Garewal

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 12

The Directorate of Urban Local Bodies, Haryana, has served a time-bound notice on all municipal councils to stake claim to the smart city status.

The civic bodies have been asked to submit details within a week. Out of 100 such cities across the country, the Government of India has chosen two towns in Haryana under the Smart City Project.

The Director, Urban Local Bodies, has asked all executive officers to participate in stage one of the competition for selection by giving details highlighting how the MC qualifies over others for the smart city tag.

Citing the criteria for selection of smart cities, “The first stage of the competition will be intra-state, in which cities in the state will compete on conditions precedent and the scoring criteria laid out. These conditions precedent have to be met by the potential cities to succeed in the first round of the competition and the highest scoring potential smart cities will be shortlisted and recommended to participate in stage two of the challenge.”

The cities will score on 13 questions carrying 100 marks. These are increase over Census 2011 or Swachh Bharat baseline on number of household sanitary latrines (whichever is less) – 10 marks, making operable online grievance redressal system with response being sent back to complainant (5 marks), at least first monthly e-newsletter published (5 marks), electronically place project-wise municipal budget expenditure information for the last two financial years on the website (5 marks), levy of compensatory penalty for delays in service delivery (5 marks), collection of internally generated revenue (e.g. taxes, fees, charges) during the last three financial years (2012-15) (10 marks), payment of salaries by ULB up to last month (5 marks), audit of accounts for financial year 12-13 (5 marks), percentage contribution of tax revenue, fees and user charges, rents and other internal revenue sources (10 marks), percentage of establishment and maintenance cost of water supply (10 marks), percentage contribution of internal revenue sources (self generated) used for capital works during financial year 2014-15 (10 marks), percentage of city-level JNNURM reforms achieved (10 marks), percentage of completion of projects sanctioned up to March 2012 under the JNNURM (10 marks).

The state government is required to make a commitment to developing the selected city on these terms. It will also have to give an undertaking that the scoring has been fair and verified to be authentic. Based on the score, the cities will enter round two.

Although there is no defined outline for a smart city, according to the mission statement of the Union government, a smart city will have adequate water supply, assured electricity supply, sanitation, including solid-waste management, efficient urban mobility and public transport, affordable housing, especially for the poor, robust IT connectivity and digitalisation, good governance, especially e-governance and citizen participation, sustainable environment, safety and security of citizens, particularly women, children and elderly, health and education.

In Haryana, so far cities like Gurgaon, Faridabad, Panipat and Ambala are considered to be among the front runners, but even these cities do not meet the specified criteria fully. The notice to MC has said that “if the report is not received by July 17, 2015 then it will be presumed that the report from your office is nil and your council will not be considered in the process for selection of a smart city”.