Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is one of the visionary leaders India has ever witnessed in its politic fore.
Aside from gracefully honoring the highest portfolio in the Indian Parliament House, Modi is acknowledged even by his arch political rivals as a development-centric, creative, skillful and eloquent leader in whose leadership India would witness unprecedented growth on the front of infrastructure and affordable housing sectors.
Nowadays, Modi's dream project, "100 Smart City' is attaining media spotlight since the project received approval from the Union Cabinet recently.
In addition, Union Minister Mr.
Venkaiah Naidu said Modi's dream project will fetch a minimum of Rs 2 lakh crore investment flows for the next five years.
Therefore, the Cabinet's approval is considered imperative on various counts, especially in solving India's very old and often ignored issue - the urban livability or the urbanization to better serve the extensive migration from rural areas.
The mass-scale migration from rural areas into the urban areas worsened the ecosystem and housing conditions of urban cities in India.
Unfortunately, these cities witnessed fiasco on the front of infrastructure development, majorly because of "unsatisfactory initiatives" taken by erstwhile governments.
Over the years, substantial surge in urban population was noted.
The report backed by United Nations said India is reaching on the brink of urban revolution and country's urban population will reach 600 million by 2031.
The country witnessed surge in urban population from 217 million to 377 million in the last two decades.
The expected reach, as predicted by the New Climate Economy Report by The Global Commission on the Economy and Climate would ascend by 40% by the year 2031.
Sadly, the Indian urban cities lacked the requisite investment for large-scale development from the government so as to provide modern infrastructures against the corresponding population surge.
If the status-quo of today's urban areas is analyzed, we get unimpressive depiction of their plight - overcrowded cities reeling under reduced infrastructures, gridlocked traffic, polluted neighbors and the dismaying shortage of basic amenities! The dearth of basic amenities illustrates sorrowful depiction of the modern-day urban areas and would continue to suffer with their current plight until supervened by requisite initiatives, especially safe, hygienic and comfortable housing from the government.
The large-scale migration from the rural areas against the correspondingly slower development of urban areas would yield ecological imbalance, not to mention encumbering economy and settlement issues that the urban cities would undergo in future.
The urban population will keep uplifting due to mass-scale migration of people from different cities in search for jobs.
The status-quo will give rise to population density in the cities with lucrative job opportunities and better infrastructure facilities.
This is where urbanization comes in picture.
Urban cities pose crucial role for India's dream to be superpower nation.
At present, country's GDP receives 60% contribution from the urban population.
The same contribution is estimated to expedite up to 70% in 15 years.
However, urban livability is sadly affected.
Though the previous attempts at providing better infrastructure or generating new townships were institutionalized to tackle the issues, but they proved not good enough.
The shortage of social infrastructure even in the developing special economic zones affords the absence of better education, healthcare, sports and arts etc.
When Modi-led NDA government was sworn into power in the year 2014, there was high hope among the common men for the new government to materialize the popular catchphrase - "Acche din ane wale hai (Good days are to come)" That was the day when PM Modi revealed to the nation about his dream vision - 100 SMART CITIES.
The announcement revealed India's vision to deal with increasing urban population.
Mission smart city is the development-centric and distinctive project pioneered by Modi government aiming to develop 100 smart cities equipped with basic infrastructure and other facilities.
Basic infrastructure facilities will include: Assured electricity and water supply, solid waste management, sanitation, tactful urban mobility, solid IT connectivity, efficient public transit, e-governance, and other features, including safety and security for the residents.
There is no denying the fact that smart cities will deliver breakthrough solution in relation with creating urban livability to effectively deal with large scale urban migration.