Smart City Challenge: Erode 2nd among 9

Only Silvassa of Dadra and Nagar Haveli is ahead of Erode in the top nine, while three contenders from Uttar Pradesh made it to the list. With this, the number of cities slated to become “smart” has swelled to 99. 

“It is heartening to note that the winning cities have improved the quality of their Smart City Proposals by 19 per cent (average) to become eligible for selection,” said Puri. 

Besides the top two, Diu, Daman and Diu; Biharsharif, Bihar; Bareilly, UP; Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh; Moradabad, UP; Saharanpur, UP; and Kavaratti, Lakshwadeep were the other seven cities selected to be developed as smart cities. 

“Nine cities selected have proposed an investment of Rs 12,824 crore, of which Rs 10,639 crore would be in Area Based Development and Rs 2,185 crores in ‘pan city’ initiatives which would be impacting 35.3 lakh persons living in these areas,” the minister added. 

With the selection of these nine cities, the total estimated investment in the 99 proposed smart cities will be Rs 2,03,979 crore, according to the statement. In the earlier rounds, 20 cities were selected in January 2016, 13 cities in May 2016, 27 cities in September 2016, and 30 cities in June 2017.