Pillars of Smart City : Civic sense and infrastructures
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: December 02 2015 -

Indeed, infrastructures are important but what is more important is mentality of citizens.

There is no clear cut definition of a Smart City.

The conceptualisation of Smart City, therefore, varies from city to city and country to country, depending on the level of development, willingness to change and reform, resources and aspirations of the city residents.

A smart city would have a different connotation in India than Europe. Even in India, there is no one way of defining a smart city.

Our human capital, our economic resources, our aspirations, the State’s commitment and of course, level of civic sense among citizens would definitely be the major determining factors of how ‘Smart’ a city Imphal is.

Yes, Imphal has taken the first step towards transforming itself into a Smart City by making it to the list of 98 cities selected from across the country.

From these 98 cities, 20 would be selected for implementation of the Smart City project in the first phase, the urgency of which has been noted with due attention by the NDA Government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

So far the State Government seems quite keen not to miss this opportunity of transforming the State capital into an ultra-modern city if the Chief Secretary’s open invitation for public opinions and suggestions on the concept, structure and lay-out of a futuristic Imphal city is any indication.

At the moment, we must admit that Imphal does not qualify to be classified as a city if one goes by the classic Indian concept of bazaar-turned-city.

At the same time, there is nothing to be envious about Indian cities which are invariably characterised by congested streets, haphazard market centres and colonies of slums.

With the exception of a few cities, sanitation is still a major problem in most cities of India including Delhi.

If we must suggest, planning for a Smart City should start with a proper sanitation system.

A Smart City, if properly developed with a vision, can become a reliable engine for economic development of the whole State.

As the name suggests, a Smart City should have highly advanced infrastructure as compared to ordinary or unplanned cities.

Its infrastructure should have the capacity to attract investment and sustain its own economic growth. This is one fundamental aspect which must be taken into account while planning for a Smart City at Imphal.

The urgency for development of Smart Cities in India is driven by the growing pace of migration from rural areas to urban areas.

Along with economic growth and increasing pace of urbanisation, population density of Imphal town is only bound to multiply.

This imminent possibility should be another guiding principle while planning for transformation of Imphal town into a Smart City.

The State Government is already working on a special economic zone based on Information Technology.

This seems to be in sync with the Smart City movement for information technology is the principal infrastructure and the basis for providing essential services to residents.

As stated in the very opening sentence, a Smart City cannot be realized even after presuming that all ultra-modern infrastructure and facilities are there if the denizens of Imphal town cannot behave as smart as what a Smart City demands.

A healthy civic sense and ultra-modern infrastructure are the twin towers on which a Smart City can be built.

Since it is their pet project, the Government of India may arrange necessary funds for installation of modern infrastructure but cultivating a healthy civic sense rests with us, the denizens of Imphal town and no one else.