As the smart cities initiative gets under way in India, U.N. Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change Michael Bloomberg has cautioned that global financial institutions are increasingly coming under pressure not to assist any development activity that does not adequately address environment and climate change concerns.
During a meeting with Union Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu, Mr. Bloomberg, who has agreed to assist the Ministry in organising a ‘City Challenge’ competition for assessing cities and towns for inclusion in the smart cities development programme, emphasised that smart cities should be environment friendly.
Mr. Bloomberg pointed out that carbon emissions in New York had been reduced by 19 per cent and life expectancy increased by three years in the past few years.
A senior UD official said Mr. Naidu gave a broad account of the various initiatives being undertaken by the Centre, including the building of smart cities, new urban development mission for 500 cities, development of heritage cities and Swachh Bharat Mission, among others.