Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement to set up 100 ‘smart cities’, beginning with the national capital, Spain has presented a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to spell out the technical support it will offer to the Ministry of Urban Development for construction of the world-class project.
Reportedly, Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu had held a meeting with officials of the ‘Barcelona Regional’ five months ago after a brief visit to Spain to seek “technical expertise” to construct the smart city, which will be spread over 20-24 hectares.
Sources said officials from Spain met the vice-chairman of the Delhi Development Authority recently with the MoU, explaining the terms of cooperation, which the department will now process and submit to the urban development ministry.
According to the MoU, the coordinators for the project will be the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of the Government of the Kingdom of Spain, ICEX Spain Trade and Investments and the urban development ministry.
Sources said the memorandum states that expertise will be provided on issues of urban planning and management, infrastructure, water management, housing, waste management, mobility, energy and utilities, sanitation, environment and public goods and services.
Sources said a Joint Working Group meeting will be held alternatively in India and Spain every year, as part of the terms.
“The project has been proposed to de-congest the capital and facilitate it with all amenities. Focus will be to build global educational and health institutes and entertainment facilities. The city will be zoned out of Dwarka, Rohini and Narela and will be equipped with the latest technologies and waste management techniques,” a ministry official said.
Twenty-four hours’ water supply, WiFi, green technology, rainwater harvesting and waste management techniques will also be part of the project. Naidu, at a public function, had said apart from its modern buildings and the fact that it is an “advanced city”, Barcelona “has preserved its old architecture. We also want to preserve our traditional architecture, that India is so richly endowed with, even as we embrace modernity”.