Equi-City’s Contribution to Smart City progress

It may be mentioned that political development, democratic growth and administrative capabilities of a nation would depend largely upon the quality of ‘leadership’ at various levels namely, central, state and local. In fact, every organisation (governmental or otherwise), whether a political party or a group, needs high quality of ‘leadership’ at its core, to inspire and motivate as well as guide all its members in the collective pursuit towards their desired objectives. It is in such a context that the concept of ‘leadership’ has assumed much significance

The question of municipal leadership is of great significance in urban governance in India. There are various models of the position of leadership of an urban local body (ULB), predominantly tilting towards the ‘strong mayor’ model either through presidential system in the local body or through a ‘mayor-in-council’ system. In India, it is the ‘state-appointed municipal commissioner’ model that holds sway.
A Leadership Workshop was conducted under the Equi-City Project in order to build capacities of elected representatives and municipal officials to play a leadership role in participatory forums and development of the city. The focus of this workshop was to hone the skills of municipal officials and elected representatives to act as leaders and to think innovatively and holistically about the challenges they face. It also worked to synergize between administrative and deliberative wing for performance improvement of the Corporation.
This Leadership Workshop on Smart City – Vision and Progress was organised under the Equi-City Project by All India Institute of Local Self-Government (AIILSG) along with Nagpur Municipal Corporation on December 13, 2019 at Hotel Centre Point, Nagpur. The Workshop commenced with an introductory speech by Ravi Ranjan Guru, Deputy Director-General, AIILSG briefing the guests about the project timeline, work and achievements along the four years of the Equi-City Project. Shouvik Datta, Senior Programme Manager, European Union addressed the guests with a warm welcome and had an interactive session introducing the audience to the European Union and its past work and collaborations in different parts of India and the world.
Jayant Pathak gave a small introduction to the objectives of the Leadership Workshop and introduced the speakers to the guests. Further, the speakers were presented with mementos followed by special remarks from Sandeep Joshi, Mayor, Nagpur and Abhjit Bhangar, Commissioner, NMC. The workshop was inaugurated by Sandeep Joshi along with Abhjit Bhangar. Manisha Kothe, Deputy Mayor, Nagpur and Ruling Party Leader were also present at the occasion along with Sandeep Jadhav, Opposition Party Leader, Tanaji Wanve, Regional Director, AIILSG, Nagpur, Jayant Pathak, Ashok Wankhade, Managing Editor, Urban Update, and Dr Amrita Anand, Project Head, Equi-City. The workshop saw large participation by around 54 elected representatives and 41 Nagpur Municipal Corporation officials.
The first technical session started with Mahesh Moroney, Deputy CEO, Nagpur Smart and Sustainable City Development Corporation Ltd who gave a brief presentation on the ongoing projects under Smart City Nagpur and explained its progress and current achievements. He explained the vision of Nagpur Smart City which is to e3i – To transform Nagpur into the most livable eco-friendly, edu-city that electronically connects people with the government to create an inclusive ecosystem. He also explained various impactful projects under the Nagpur Smart City Proposal such as TenderSURE Concept for Area Based Development, Project Green Light which involved installation of LED lights in the Nagpur city, Nirmal Nag River Project and the Pan City Proposal which consists of city-wide solutions such as installation of fibre-based network connecting the entire city, smart kiosk terminals, accessible internet connectivity for general public, a regular city surveillance through CCTV cameras, mobile vehicles and drones.
Further in technical session Sulakshana Mahajan, former consultant at Mumbai Transformation Support Unit (MTSU) for urban planning, housing, transport and environmental issues related to Mumbai Metropolitan Region conducted a session on Global Smart Cities with special reference to Smart City project in India -Concept and Progress. She has conducted research and written about Indian urban issues. Mahajan is also the author of various books on urban issues such as Jag Badalay! (2004), Arthasrushti, Bhav Ani Swabhav (2004) ‘London Nama’ (2010), ‘Concrete chi Vanarai’ (2013), ‘Smart City–For All’ (2016) and translated ‘Cities for All’ by Jan Gehl in Marathi as ‘Asaavi Shahare Apuli Chaan’(2015), and ‘SMART’ by former Deputy Mayor of Barcelona, Spain as ‘Tumhi Bi Ghada Na’ (2019). She mentioned technology conversion all over the world in last 150 years and things which make a city smart like Safety and Security of citizens, particularly women, children and the elderly; Health and Education; Good Governance; Sustainable Environment; Efficient Urban Mobility; Public Transport; Affordable Housing and various other factors. Mahajan also spoke about the smart cities like Amsterdam, Barcelona, Madrid, Columbus, Copenhagen and Singapore and discussed their major problems related to air quality, transport, solid waste, public safety, social problems and next generation innovation to solve these problems. She mentioned the concerns and challenges faced by developed and developing smart cities. The last session was conducted by Dr Kapil Chandrayan, Expert Member, Vidharbha Statutory Development Board who gave an insight on Smart Leaders for Smart City and what should be the approach of leaders for Smart City Missions. He explained the elements of core infrastructure in a Smart City, various characteristics of a Good Leader and Leadership Qualities required for achieving the expected results. The Leadership Workshop concluded with a valedictory note by Ashok Wankhade. Wankhade presented his views on how the elected representatives and officials should work together for the betterment of the citizens and take ownership of the city by citing examples from Indore’s performance in Swachh Bharat Mission. Finally, Jayant Pathak delivered the vote of thanks to all the participants, speakers and guests for attending the Leadership Workshop.