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Smart Cities: Closer to execution, but challenges galore

Funding

Many MNCs and countries have shown interest in helping some cities as the projected benefits are very high. A high-powered expert committee (HPEC) on investment estimates in urban infrastructure has assessed a per-capita investment cost (PCIC) of Rs 43,386 for a 20-year period. Using an average figure of 1 million people in each of the 100 smart cities, the total estimate of investment requirement for the smart city comes to Rs 7 lakh crore over 20 years (with an annual escalation of 10 per cent from 2009-10 to 2014-15). This translates into an annual requirement of Rs 35,000 crore.

Multi-layer co-ordination

The Centre has handed over the planned urbanisation to the state governments, including land acquisition. The states have to manage the funds on one hand and on the other, they may have to face opposition from local civic bodies as development of cities and provision of infrastructure and utility services etc are in the arena of the local municipality.

Legal Framework

The three-tier authorities with their varied powers, PPP format of project with multiple permissions, newer concept and lot of investor interest etc create a big list of stake holders in the mission. Though there is an Special Purpose Vehicle, there are chances of legal issues emerging at any stage. In the absence of a special or separate legal framework, the issues could grow out of proportion engulfing the entire process.

“A regulatory body should be set up for all utility services so that a level-playing field is made available to the private sector and tariffs are set in a manner that balances financial sustainability with quality,” Adds Padode. According to Pradip Bhattacharya, chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs, cyber security crime will be a major challenge for Smart Cities, making it imperative to replace traditional laws with modern ones focusing on crimes related to digital information.

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