Visakhapatnam will be the first city to be taken up for development as a smart city by Cisco Systems, the global IT networking major and the implementing company. Cisco informed Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday that its development model for Visakhapatnam would be adopted in the other smart cities — Allahabad and Ajmer.
Cisco chief technology officer Padma Warrier and president (globalisation and smart+ connected communities) Anil Menon said the company would focus on setting up a skill development centre and providing training through its global talent tracker. The company is also keen on working with the state government to digitise education and healthcare.
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Cisco is mulling setting up an incubation centre, either at Tirupati or Visakhapatnam, and living labs on the lines of those in Barcelona. Naidu said a task force would be set up for the purpose. [related-post]
Cisco has also evinced interest in working on disaster management technologies as the state is hit by at least two cyclones every year.
Stating that Visakhapatnam has great potential to transform into a financial, IT powerhouse and a logistics hub, Naidu said the Centre has recently sanctioned the Sagar Mala project which envisages development and modernisation of all existing seaports including Vizag Port — one of the biggest in the country.
Naidu said the issues identified by the parliamentary standing committee like pollution and violation of Coastal Regulation Zone Act would be addressed shortly.
Following the India-US business conclave on smart cities held in New Delhi last November, an American delegation visited and interacted with officials of the Vizag Urban Development Authority to discuss the issue.
Having learnt its lesson from cyclone ‘Hudhud’, which affected all power and communication lines, the state government has gone in for massive underground wiring and cabling network. This is to be extended to all coastal towns over the coming years.
Sreenivas Janyala is a Deputy Associate Editor at The Indian Express, where he serves as one of the most authoritative voices on the socio-political and economic landscape of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. With a career spanning over two decades in mainstream journalism, he provides deep-dive analysis and frontline reporting on the intricate dynamics of South Indian governance.
Expertise and Experience
Regional Specialization: Based in Hyderabad, Sreenivas has spent more than 20 years documenting the evolution of the Telugu-speaking states. His reporting was foundational during the historic Telangana statehood movement and continues to track the post-bifurcation development of both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
Key Coverage Beats: His extensive portfolio covers a vast spectrum of critical issues:
High-Stakes Politics: Comprehensive tracking of regional powerhouses (BRS, TDP, YSRCP, and Congress), electoral shifts, and the political careers of figures like K. Chandrashekar Rao, Chandrababu Naidu, and Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Internal Security & Conflict: Authoritative reporting on Left-Wing Extremism (LWE), the decline of the Maoist movement in former hotbeds, and intelligence-led investigations into regional security modules.
Governance & Infrastructure: Detailed analysis of massive irrigation projects (like Kaleshwaram and Polavaram), capital city developments (Amaravati), and the implementation of state welfare schemes.
Crisis & Health Reporting: Led the publication's ground-level coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic in South India and major industrial incidents, such as the Vizag gas leak.
Analytical Depth: Beyond daily news, Sreenivas is known for his "Explained" pieces that demystify complex regional disputes, such as river water sharing and judicial allocations between the sister states. ... Read More
