The Hindu      27.01.2017   

Five-year action plan under Smart City project on cards

A five-year action plan is on the anvil as a part of the Smart City
project spending Rs. 1,602 crore and the government has released Rs. 349
crore, Municipal Commissioner M. Hari Narayanan has said.

Of the
total outlay, the State and Central Governments will foot Rs. 500 crore
each and the remaining would be mobilised through other sources, Mr.
Harinarayanan said after hoisting the tricolour on Republic Day at the
GVMC.

Continuous water supply, underground drainage, complete
streets, development of green spaces, underground cabling, measures to
prevent beach erosion and development of the beach front were among the
smart city proposals.

5th rank

After winning the 8th
rank in Smart City race from among 20 cities in the first round and 5th
rank in Swachh Bharat survey in 2016, it was making all efforts to get
into the top three ranks in 2017, Mr. Hari Narayanan said.

However, competition will be tough as 500 cities were being covered in the 2017 survey, up from 75 cities in 2016.

Unless
the staff worked with dedication and people also cooperated the city
could not come out in flying colours, the Commissioner said.

Awards for LED project

The
efforts of the corporation had been recognised, he said, adding that
the city received two awards at the national level for installing the
highest number of LED lights and maintaining them, he said.