India currently has over 360 million people in living cities; by 2030 this number is estimated to grow to 590 million. Increasing rate of urbanization is one of the greatest challenges faced by local governments in India. Rapid migration from rural hinterland in past to unorganized cities has resulted in inept service delivery in terms of utilities such as electricity, street lights, water supply, sanitation and waste. Service delivery provided by local governments has not kept up with the expectations of the city dwellers.
There exists significant investment opportunities in development of smart cities to address present urban sector challenges. It is brought out that almost all major cities having a population of more than 4 million in India are expected to see their satellite cities develop as smart cities.
Development of smart cities would call for creation of a dynamic platform for various elements or components to function in an integrated manner. These components include efficient and reliable transportation, communication & connectivity infrastructure, utilities, efficient buildings, timely services for citizens and simple but yet effective regulatory climate.
The success of a smart city thereof, apart from being dependent on smart planning, is also dependent on how comprehensively is industry able to respond to the dynamically changing needs of city administrators and dwellers.
The CII-PwC document details a system wide view and an integrated approach that characterizes technological requirements in smart cities. The report was released against the backdrop of the CII Karnataka Conference on “Infrastructure and Technology Opportunities in Smart Cities” organised by CII on 7 October, 2014 at Bangalore.