Parliamentary panel presses for third-party assessment of projects under Smart Cities Mission

New Delhi: The Parliamentary panel on the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs suggested that the Ministry should roll out a third-party assessment of projects under the Smart Cities Mission to fill the gaps ahead of its next phase.

The committee also intends to emphasise that in the next phase of the Smart Cities Mission, the thrust should be on tier 2 cities located between 50 to 100 kilometers from capital cities and tourist cities, if not already covered. This will not only decongest the capital cities but also act as a fillip factor for tier 3 cities for their growth.

The Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs in its report on Action Taken by the Government on the recommendations contained in the Twenty First Report (Seventeenth Lok Sabha) of the Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs (2023-24) on the subject, ‘Smart Cities Mission: An Evaluation’ said that the majority of Indian cities are at a low level of development where city planning and governance need to be strengthened.

The Committee in its report tabled in the Parliament noted that 500 cities are covered under AMRUT Scheme and 4041 ULBs under DAY-NULM and, therefore, the Smart Cities Mission-like structure, after completion of SCM, may be useful for them, too.

The Committee, therefore, recommended that the Ministry should get the third-party assessment of the various projects undertaken in the Smart Cities Mission and thereafter, consider to launch next phase of the Mission.

Further, the Committee are of the opinion that the experience and expertise gained by the SPVs in Urban development initiatives must be leveraged and possibility should be explored for utilizing their expertise in other projects, such as AMRUT, DAY-NULM etc., undertaken for the growth and development of cities and sub-urban areas/satellite towns/growth centres around the city or elsewhere.