Mangaluru, Tumakuru, Shivamogga and Hubballi-Dharwad figure among the 27 cities selected in the third round of ‘Smart Cities Challenge’ announced by the Union Ministry of Urban Development on Tuesday.
However, Bengaluru, which had also participated in the third round of the programme, failed to make the cut. Bengaluru had proposed an area development plan of Whitefield and a metro service from Marathahalli to Hope Farm Junction.
With this, the total number of proposed smart cities in the State has gone up to six, as Belagavi and Davanagere were selected in the first round in January.
The four tier-II cities will receive a funding of Rs. 500 crore from the Union government and matching grants from the State government to implement their smart city proposal.
Mangaluru Mayor Harinath sought the cooperation of officials to make the proposals a reality. “The officials will have to cooperate to make Mangaluru more smart,” he said.
In Shivamogga, a celebratory mood prevailed on Tuesday. K.V. Vasanth Kumar, secretary of the Shivamogga Nagarika Hitarakshana Vedikegala Okkuta, told The Hindu that a sizeable chunk of the funds released by the Centre under the project should be reserved for projects to enhance the green cover in the city and to maintain cleanliness of waterbodies, including the Tunga.
