3 NORTHEASTERN STATES MANAGE TO MEET MISSION REQUISITES

Itanagar, June 23: After missing the smart city bus for two consecutive rounds, the centurion town of Pasighat has finally made it to the list this year.

Along with Pasighat, Aizawl in Mizoram and Gangtok in Sikkim comprise the trio from the Northeast to make it to the list of 30 cities to be included under the Smart City Mission announced today in New Delhi by Union minister for urban development and housing M. Venkaiah Naidu.

The inclusion of Pasighat, Aizawl and Gangtok has taken the number of cities in the Northeast to be included in the smart city list to four.

Guwahati was included in the mission last year.

Pasighat, with a population of around 50,000, is the only town from Arunachal Pradesh to figure in the list, ahead of even capital Itanagar. It is the headquarters of East Siang district, located 264km away from Itanagar. Situated at 155 meters above sea level, it is one of the oldest towns in the state.

Naidu said a total of 45 cities had competed for the 40 available smart city slots in the third round, however, only 30 were selected this time to ensure viable and practical plans that match the aspirations of the denizens as well as that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

With this list, the total number of cities picked so far by the Centre to be developed as smart cities is 90.

Smart Cities Mission is an urban renewal and retrofitting programme by the Centre with an aim to develop 100 cities (the target has been revised to 109) all over the country making them citizen-friendly and sustainable. Naidu said Rs 57,393 crore would pumped in by the Centre to make the smart cities project a reality.

Established in 1911, Pasighat, along with 97 other cities, had been selected for the first round of the smart city race in 2016.

The news, which has left the citizens of Arunachal Pradesh elated did not last long as only 20 cities were selected in the first round for financing during 2016-17 based on a competitive model designed by the Union ministry of urban development.

Pasighat was then ranked 37th. However, it secured sixth position among the 23 cities selected to be upgraded in fast track mode with a score of 56.2 per cent.

The latest selection round, too, had not brought good news for Pasighat as only 27 cities were selected by the government.

The efforts of the state government, Pasighat Municipal Council, the MPs, legislators and especially that of the citizens of the state and Pasighat in particular helped to realise the long-felt dream of turning Pasighat into a smart city.

"Without their support and initiative, this would not have had been possible," said deputy chief councillor Kaling Darang over phone.

Chief minister Pema Khandu and Union minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju were quick to congratulate the people on the achievement.

"This the result of team effort of the local community, administration and public leaders. I salute the people of Pasighat for their hard work and determination," Khandu wrote on his Facebook page. Rijiju expressed the hope that Itanagar, too, would be selected as a smart city in the next round.

"I am sure in next round my state capital will manage a better consultant to get selected in the absolutely transparent selection system. The Itanagar Municipal Council also needs to be more united and professional," Rijiju wrote on social media.

Pasighat residents celebrated the announcement by bursting crackers this evening. The Mizoram capital, Aizawl, was equally elated.

Reacting to announcement, Mizoram urban development secretary C. Vanlalramsanga, told The Telegraph this evening, "We are happy and fully prepared to implement the Smart City project. Our focus will be to improve urban mobility in the congested areas. We have proposed multi-level car parking, underground road and ICT-based public service delivery."

Aizawl, which is prone to landslides, has a population of about 4.5 lakh.

Itanagar, Imphal and Shillong, an official said, would be in the reckoning for inclusion in the smart city list in the fourth round of selection, to be held sometime next year.