The exclusion of Tiruchi Corporation in the second list of 27 Smart Cities announced by the Ministry of Urban Development has disappointed residents.
Having failed to make it in the first list of 20 Smart Cities announced in January, it was widely expected that Tiruchi would make it in the second list. Officials had expressed hope that there would not be difficulty for the city figuring in the second list. But, it has once again lost in the race.
Madurai, Salem, Thanjavur and Vellore from Tamil Nadu figure in the second list. Of them, Madurai and Thanjavur are believed to have entered the list in their capacity as tourism centres. Many wondered what is lacking in Tiruchi.
“While a part of Tiruchi is relatively well developed, another part requires a massive push to address many issues. It should have made it in the first list. I expected that it would make it at least in the second list. It is disappointing to note that it has once again failed to make it,” says A. Aleem, former Vice Principal, KAP Viswanatham Medical College, who won the first prize in essay competition for writing on “My City My Dream”.
Recollecting the active participation of citizen forums on Smart City proposal, he said that the city was one of the top cities that saw intensive community participation.
They had given a number of ideas with illustration. It should have been figured in the second list in its capacity as one of the cleanest cities in the country.
Some others felt that the officials had once again failed to present a well documented proposal.
S. Viswanathan, a civic activist, said the city had once again lost an opportunity. However, based on the lesson learnt in the first leg of smart city challenge, the officials and consultants appointed for drawing the Smart City Proposal should prepare a better proposal.
