First list of 20 smart cities publicized with Bhubaneswar on Top

Bhubaneswar capital city of Odisha has outpaced all other rivalry cities of the nation by clinching the top rank in Smart Cities contest, which had received proposals for 97 cities from state governments.

• Recently, Union Cabinet has publicized the names of the first 20 urban areas that will be developed as smart cities including 5 capital cities.
• Bhubaneswar is followed by Pune (Maharashtra) and Jaipur (Rajasthan) which is placed at 3^rd.

Here is the list of 20 smart cities

Criteria of qualify for Smart City:
Smart City Challenge required cities to come up with integrated proposals with maximum analysis and planning. The plan should demonstrate how integrated planning and smart technologies can deliver better quality of life.

• Citizen participation has been mandatory for preparation of smart city plans for which a weightage of 16% was given.

Smart City Plans were prepared by the urban local bodies and the states with no role for urban development ministry.

About Smart Cities Mission
It is flagship scheme of Modi led Government under which 100 smart cities would be built across the country in different states.

• Each selected city would get assistance of 100 crore rupees per year for five years from Union Government to implement the scheme.
• The selected cities will be equipped with basic infrastructure, efficient urban mobility and public transport, IT connectivity and e-governance mechanisms.

In the future, the government plans to announce 40 cities each to be developed as a Smart City.