Bhubaneswar/Rourkela, Sept. 20: Rourkela, a cultural melting pot that boasts of state's biggest steel plant in the public sector, is set to become Odisha's second smart city. It figures among the list of 27 smart cities released today in New Delhi by Union urban development minister Venkaiah Naidu.
Rourkela, which had missed the bus in the first round when the list of 20 smart cities with Bhubaneswar at the top was declared on January 28, has finally made the cut with Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation and Bhubaneswar Development Authority helping it in preparing a revised and upgraded proposal that was finalised in May.
In the initial stage, the project will be implemented in the city's main business district between Bisra Chowk and Panposh, which covers an area of 26sqkm.
The area houses major government offices and non-government establishments, besides sprawling residential colonies such as Civil Township and Basanti Colony. Sources said around Rs 2,500 crore would be spent on developmental projects in the city under the Centre-sponsored programme in a phased manner.
An official release from Delhi said that an investment of Rs 66,883 crore, including Rs 42,524 crore under area based development and Rs 11,379 crore for technology based Pan-city solutions, have been proposed to be spent on the 27 smart cities that made it to the list today.
Welcoming the announcement and greeting residents of the steel town, chief minister Naveen Patnaik promised all help from the state government to turn Rourkela into an ideal smart city.
The announcement by the Centre sparked off celebrations in Rourkela with local MLA Dilip Ray hailing it as a timely move that would open the doors for multiple development activities in the city.
"I am happy that we have got the smart city tag. It will open new avenues of development," said Ray.
Commissioner of Rourkela Municipal Corporation Akshaya Mallick sought everyone's cooperation to make the town the country's best smart city.
He said the smart city project involved some key features focusing chiefly on widening of existing roads and construction of new ones, developing parking facilities in the main business district, modern drainage system, citizen safety measures such as installation of CCTVs, footpaths for pedestrians, solid waste management and environment protection measures. He said though initially the focus would be on the Bisra Chowk and Panposh zone, drainage development and solid waste management activities would cover the entire city.
Rourkela resident Sreekumar said though it was celebration time, the authorities should take note of the challenges lying ahead.
"Unless we implement the project carefully with the cooperation of all, we are not going to succeed. Hopefully, both the residents here and the administrators would rise to the occasion," he said.
Former president of Rourkela Chamber of Commerce and Industries Subha Pattnaik said the move would help bring investments to the city that was one of the first to be industrialised in the state.
Bhubaneswar mayor Ananta Narayan Jena, too, hailed the move.
"We are very happy Rourkela has finally been included in the smart city list. We are glad that we could help them achieve this status. They should now focus on all around development," he said.
