Being smart globally: Bhubaneswar needs to brace up

Bhubaneswar: Even as ‘Smart City Bhubaneswar promises core infrastructure, decent quality of life and clean environment to its denizens, there are several milestones that the city is striving to meet to get qualified under the globally accepted Smart City norms.

Have a look at few of these benchmarks

• Mixed use: Different kinds of land uses in the same places; such as offices, housing, and shops, clustered together.

• Compactness: Encouraging development to be compact and dense i.e. buildings within a 10-minute walk of public transportation and located close together to form concentrated neighbourhoods and centres of activity around commerce and services.

• Open Space: Sufficient and usable public open spaces, promoting exercise and outdoor recreation for all age groups. Public open spaces of a range of sizes dispersed throughout the City so all citizens can have access.

• Housing and inclusiveness: Sufficient housing for all income groups and promoting integration among social groups.

• Transportation & Mobility: No requirement of an automobile to get around; short distances, buildings accessible from the sidewalk, plenty transit options and attractive to people of all income levels.

• Walkable: Designing roads equally for pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles; overriding road safety and sidewalks to street design. Shops, restaurants, building entrances and trees line the sidewalk for encouraging walking and ample lighting so the pedestrian feels safe day and night.

• IT connectivity: Robust internet network allowing high-speed connections to all offices and dwellings as desired.

• Intelligent government services: Enabling easy interaction (including through online and telephone services) with its citizens, eliminating delays and frustrations in interactions with government.

• Energy supply: Reliable 24/7 electricity supply.

• Energy source: At least 10% of electricity generated by renewables.

• Water supply: Reliable 24/7 supply of water

• Waste water management: Advanced water management programs, including wastewater recycling, smart meters, rainwater harvesting, and green infrastructure for managing storm water runoff.

• Water quality: Treating all of its sewage to prevent polluting water bodies and aquifers.
• Air quality: Air quality meeting international safety standards.

• Energy Efficiency: Promoting state-of-the-art energy efficiency practices in buildings, street lights, and transit systems.

• Underground electric wiring: Underground electric wiring system for reducing blackouts due to storms and eliminate unsightliness.

• Sanitation: No open defecation, a full supply of toilets based on the population.

• Waste management: Removing household and commercial garbage and disposing it in an environmentally and economically sound manner.

• Safety: High levels of public safety, especially focused on women, children and the elderly; citizen of all ages feeling safe on the streets at all hours

“We have already come a long way and are consistently working towards meeting all the benchmarks required under the global standards,” said BMC Mayor Ananta Prasad Jena.