India is undergoing an 'urban renaissance', says Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu

India is undergoing an 'urban renaissance’ but the success of smart cities is largely dependent on active involvement of the citizens and smart leadership for successful implementation of plans, feels Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu.

Naidu was speaking at the inaugural session of the three-day Smart City Expo India 2018 in Jaipur on September 26.

"Success of smart cities is dependent on smart vision,  smart implementation and smart execution," he said.

The event is being organised by Quantela, Jaipur Development Authority (JDA) and Fira Barcelona International, with CII as the industrial partner.

Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Smart City Mission, 100 smart cities in India will act as lighthouses to inspire, encourage and motivate other cities in India as well as across the globe, he said.

Addressing the gathering, Housing and Urban Affairs minister Hardeep Singh Puri informed the audience that

Currently, 433 smart city projects worth Rs 7958 crore have been completed in the country. Furthermore, over 800 projects worth Rs. 32,500 crore are being implemented. Puri said that 48 out of the 100 smart city projects in India are based on a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.

Governor of South Australia Hieu Van le AC said that the Smart City mission is a giant step towards improving the quality of life for millions in the country adding that through the use of technology, information and data, improved services can be provided to the citizens.

He said that an MoU was signed between Government of Rajasthan and Adelaide last year for smart city initiatives. The MoU facilitates mutual cooperation in the field of smart city initiatives between Jaipur and Adelaide in lighting and other environmental initiatives, tourism initiatives, transport, traffic management and car parking systems, among others.

Arun Chaturvedi, Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of Rajasthan, said smart cities must have robust government structures, sufficient outlets for recreation as well as sustainable mass transportation.

Four smart cities in the state have in place Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs). The Jaipur SPV – Jaipur Smart City Ltd – is working on three primary verticals – waste management, water management and energy management, he said.

Minister for Housing & Urban Development, Government of Rajasthan, Shrichand Kripalani said that in Rajasthan, smart city projects worth Rs 784 crore are under implementation in four cities – Jaipur, Udaipur, Kota and Ajmer.

Vaibhav Galriya, Commissioner of Jaipur Development Authority, said that delegates from more than 20 countries are participating at the Smart City Expo. These include global companies and experts.