How Lucknow was selected as a Smart City

Politics may have had a hand in Lucknow’s selectioin: it is the Lok Sabha constituency of Home Minister Rajnath Singh who is considered the leading contender as the BJP’s chief ministerial candidate in UP for the assembly polls next year. After his election in 2014, the Centre had approved an Outer Ring Road project for Lucknow and the Ministry of Defence has given the go ahead to several state government projects that were awaiting clearance from it.

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Also, BJP’s national vice-president and Gujarat in-charge Dinesh Sharma has been the mayor of Lucknow for the last nine years — his second consecutive term will expire next year, just week after assembly polls. Sharma’s prestige was at stake when Lucknow was not selected in first list of 20 smart cities.

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Lucknow district magistrate Raj Shekhar credits the achievement to the infrastructure development undertaken in the city during the past few months. The DM said that the development of the metro rail is already work in progress and cycle tracks have been developed in the city. He said that there will be CNG buses for public transport and the sanctioning of new CNG filling stations. would make the environment healthier.

To get smart city status, a particular area of the city had to be developed holistically. The DM said that the Kaiserbagh area had been chosen for holistic development and facilities for proper parking, transport, safety of people, e-governance etc., were being ensured there.

Dinesh Sharma credited the Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC), a local body that he has been heading since 2006 with the success. “The LMC has improved in the fields of sanitation, road development and traffic management. We are going to draft a water policy. We have imposed a penalty on open defecation and burning of waste in the open,’’ Sharma said.

In the proposal sent to the Ministry for Fast Track Smart City Competition, the state government had highlighted projects including the metro rail and the Gomti riverfront development which are being developed at the initiative of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav.

Lucknow, that was the constituency of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, was earlier known as strong hold of the BJP, but presently the saffron outfit has only one MLA from the city.