Ghaziabad fails to make it to smart city list

In a major setback to the district, Ghaziabad failed to make the cut for Smart City tag in the fourth and the final city list released by Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.

The city, which competed in the race for the fourth time, failed to meet the benchmark set by the government.

Interestingly, the list included three cities from Uttar Pradesh-Bareilly, Moradabad, and Saharanpur.

On Friday, Puri announced the name of nine more smart cities, taking the total to 99.

The mission of hundred smart cities was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June 2015.

Silvassa in Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli topped the list of winning cities in this round of competition.

The other cities include Erode in Tamil Nadu, Diu in Union Territory of Daman and Diu, Biharsharif in Bihar, Bareilly, Saharanpur and Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh, Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh and Kavaratti in Lakshadweep.

Briefing reporters in New Delhi, the minister said, the nine cities have proposed an investment of Rs 12,824 crore rupees to develop 409 projects.

Giving details of the progress made in smart cities scheme, Puri said, Smart City Centers have become operational in Pune, Surat, Vadodara and Kakinada and work is in progress in another 18 cities.