The 100 smart cities have set up an integrated command and control centre, which controls functions such as streetlighting, traffic management, traffic congestion management during monsoons, camera network, solid waste management and public address system. The report shows 62,568 cameras have been installed across 100 cities. Most of them have integrated this camera system with the city police network, leading to several criminal cases being solved within a few hours.
Several cities have identified traffic junctions and installed cameras to ensure zero tolerance to red light violations. Ahmedabad, for instance, has issued 53 lakh challans at 92 junctions for red light violations and recovered Rs 42 crore over the last three years. Kalyan-Dombivali and Ahmedabad have also installed sensors to gauge water logging hotspots and prevent water logging during monsoons and prevent traffic jams. The biggest achievement is the installation of 22.49 lakh LED streetlights across 100 cities.
A senior ministry official told ET: “This vast network of streetlights is managed through the command and control centre. This gives real-time information if streetlights malfunction. This network across city has an impact on controlling crime as public spaces are well-lit and discourage common crimes like snatchings.”
The internal audit follows the gruesome incident of a young girl being dragged after being hit by a car in Delhi in January. As first reported by ET in its January 12 edition, PM Modi had sought an audit of all security-related infrastructure created under the Smart City Mission at a Cabinet meeting on January 4. The housing and urban affairs ministry had asked Quality Council of India (QCI) to conduct a third-party audit.
‘Saakshy’ is a separate report which collates the performance of the 100 smart cities. QCI is expected to wrap up its audit of security systems by month-end.
