more-in Thiruvananthapuram tops among the 30 new cities added to the Centre's Smart Cities Mission. The list of the new cities was announced by Union Urban Development Minister, M. Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi on Friday. With 30 new cities making it to the list, the total number of smart cities in the country has gone up to 90. Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of Kerala, edged Naya Raipur in Chhattisgarh, Rajkot in Gujarat, Amravati in Andhra Pradesh, Patna in Bihar, Karimnagar in Telangana, Muzaffarpur in Bihar, Puducherry, Gandhinagar in Gujarat, Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir, Sagar in Madhya Pradesh, Karnal in Haryana, Satna in Madhya Pradesh, Bengaluru in Karnataka, Shimla in Himachal Pradesh, Dehradun in Uttarakhand, Tirupur in Tamil Nadu, Pimpri Chinchwad in Maharashtra, Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh, Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu in J&K, Dahod in Gujarat, Tirunelveli, Thootukkudi and Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu, Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, Aizawl in Mizoram, Allahabad and Aligarh in U.P. and Gangtok in Sikkim to make it to the top of the list. A total investment of 57,393 crore was also announced by Mr. Naidu. Another 20 cities will have to compete for the remaining 10 slots. Better public utilities, smart bus stops, efficient and diverse use of land, and projects to revive the cultural heritage of the capital city are part of the Smart City proposal for Thiruvananthapuram. Announcing the next batch of 30 new #SmartCities, selected under 3rd round of #SmartCity Mission, taking total number of Smart cities to 90. pic.twitter.com/PSFhUcFiw0 — M Venkaiah Naidu (@MVenkaiahNaidu) June 23, 2017 The vision is for ‘a vibrant and alluring capital city that is inclusive, safe and accessible; and which respects its natural environment and celebrates its heritage and culture.’ Of the ?1,521.9 crore, around 90% — ?1,369.8 crore — has been allocated to the Area Based Development component, which will focus on the core city area, comprising the East Fort- Chala- Thampanoor-Chenkalchoola stretch. Projects under this component have been classified on the basis of five pillars — urban basic services, land-use efficiency, cultural identity and heritage, resilience and eco-friendliness, and socio-economic inclusiveness.

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