As the Smart Cities Mission deadline of June 30 approaches, the effectiveness of the projects will soon be revealed through 50 research papers produced by students and faculty from premier institutes, including IITs and IIMs. In a groundbreaking initiative for a national urban mission, independent assessments will cover a range of topics, from the initiation of the Mission with the establishment of special purpose vehicles by cities to execute projects, to the final stages showcasing the impact of completed projects.
The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs indicates that the research, involving 23 institutes, has commenced this month and is expected to yield 50 papers by March-end. Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri expressed optimism that the Mission will achieve its targets by 2024. The research covers various aspects such as the impact of area-based development (to be conducted by IIT-Roorkee), the influence of waste-to-energy plants (IIT-Bombay), and the Mission’s role in enhancing the overall quality of public spaces (School of Planning and Architecture in Delhi). IIM-Kashipur will delve into the role of firms as design and project management consultants for the Mission.
Miranda House, the only Delhi University college that is part of the initiative, will research on whether Smart Cities projects like parks are inclusive for people with disabilities, senior citizens, and children; and IIM-Bangalore on the impact of the projects on real-time tracking of criminal activities, especially against women. The institutes will be provided with Rs 6 lakh stipend for each research paper, said officials.
Kunal Kumar, Mission Director, Smart Cities, said, “The latest initiative is part of the larger outreach by the Smart Cities Mission, to academia. There was the Smart cities and Academia with regards to Action and Research initiative in 2022… Now, we have tied up with 23 institutes to conduct independent outcome studies.”
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