The Chief Secretary, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta today chaired a meeting to review the progress of the Smart City Mission in Jammu and Kashmir.
Administrative Secretary Housing &UD, Divisional Commissioners of Kashmir and Jammu divisions and Chief Executive Officers of Jammu Smart City Limited and Srinagar Smart City Limited participated in the meeting.
CEO, SSCL informed that out of 137 projects to be executed under the project, 42 projects have been completed while 35 projects are ongoing. Out of the remaining projects, 23 projects have been tendered out while in respect of 47 projects, detailed project reports are being prepared.
Giving details of the heritage sites being developed under Smart City Mission, CEO, SSCL informed that Khanka-i-mosque, Naqshband Sahib, Raghunath temple, Saint Luke’s church and Jamia masjid are being developed to leverage the heritage tourist potential of the area.
Further, beautification drive underneath Jehangir chowk-Rambagh flyover is also underway at a cost of Rs. 0.68 cr.
It was further informed that integrated command and control centre is being set up under the Smart City Mission at a cost of Rs. 48.11 cr.
This will help in the development of property development approval system. PS, U&DD informed that under the project, software applications have been installed and installation of hardware will be completed and the project made functional by 31st December, 2021.
It was informed that 2 lakh properties have been mapped so far and mapping of all the properties will be completed by April 2022.
CEO, SSCL further informed that an intelligent traffic management system will also be taken up for execution at a cost of Rs. 35 cr in Srinagar city. This will enable smooth traffic management in the city and help reduce travel time for the residents of the city.
The CEO informed that testing and calibration of various junction points is being done andthe project execution will be expedited.
The Chief Secretary expressed concern at the delay in the execution of the projects saying that even after 4 years of commencement, many projects are far from completion.
Dr Mehta asked the department to develop the entire ensemble of the surroundings along with the heritage sites in the downtown Srinagar to create real aesthetic impact for the visitors.
“If one or two heritage sites are developed in isolation and its ambience remains underdeveloped, this will not lead to any positive gains from the perspective of development of heritage tourism potential of the area,” he added.