Smart Cities: Promoting Urban Governance in India

The Smart Cities Mission (SCM) has influenced Indian urban governance by introducing Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) for flexible project implementation and Integrated Command and Control Centres (ICCCs) for data-driven decision-making. By allowing cities to define their own 'smart' project portfolios, the SCM has enabled diverse interventions in ecology, mobility, and economic growth tailored to local needs.

• The Smart Cities Mission (SCM) differs from other federal urban programmes by allowing cities to create their own project portfolios and routing finance through Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs), which are corporate bodies jointly owned by the province and the city.
• As of June 30, 2023, the Government of India released ₹38,581 crore ($4.76 billion) and State Governments/Union Territories released ₹34,411 crore ($4.16 billion), totaling ₹72,992 crore (approximately $9 billion). Work orders worth ₹1.80 lakh crore ($22 billion) have been issued for 7,973 projects, with 73% completed.
• Integrated Command and Control Centres (ICCCs) have been established in all 100 smart cities to enable data-driven governance by integrating services from different departmental silos into a centralized platform for monitoring and management.
• Indore has implemented a circular economy model by producing Bio-CNG from bio-waste to fuel 400 buses and has become the first municipal corporation in India to trade carbon credits internationally, earning over ₹9 crore ($1 million) since 2017.
• Coimbatore utilized SCM funds to rejuvenate eight major tank sites, deploying approximately 35% of its total SCM funds toward lake projects to improve water security, reduce flooding, and create public recreation spaces.
• Surat developed a comprehensive public bus transportation system, including the country's longest Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) corridor at 108 kilometres, increasing daily average ridership from 65,000 in 2017 to about 200,000 in 2023.
• Chandigarh implemented a Public Bike Sharing (PBS) system costing $2.42 million, featuring 3,750 bicycles and 265 kilometres of dedicated cycle track, the longest in India.
• The SCM has supported economic growth through diverse projects, including the 'Make in Moradabad' project to introduce CNG-fuelled brass furnaces and the creation of a boat building yard in Kakinada to support local fishing communities.
• Srinagar has focused on rejuvenating its central business district, notably the Polo View High Street retail market, which is the city's first pedestrian and wire-free market.
• During the COVID-19 pandemic, ICCCs served as 'war rooms' to coordinate disease control, track infected individuals, and manage hospital capacity in real time.

APA

World Economic Forum (2023). Smart Cities: Promoting Urban Governance in India. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Smart_Cities_Promoting_Urban_Governance_in_India_2023.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Smart Cities: Promoting Urban Governance in India. 2023. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Smart_Cities_Promoting_Urban_Governance_in_India_2023.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Smart Cities: Promoting Urban Governance in India |date=October 2023 |url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Smart_Cities_Promoting_Urban_Governance_in_India_2023.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2023smart, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Smart Cities: Promoting Urban Governance in India}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2023}, month = oct, url = {https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Smart_Cities_Promoting_Urban_Governance_in_India_2023.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }