India’s big push for 100 smart cities

As India moves closer to the United States by working together for economic growth and defense, it is opening up a new set of longer term opportunities for American exporters through a high-tech program that has received less notice so far.

These opportunities come amid a wide consensus among international experts that the Indian economy will continue to grow at 6% to 8% this year and in coming years despite morose economic prospects in the US and Europe which might slide into recession.

Last month, India surpassed the United Kingdom to become the fifth largest economy in the world. The country’s federal Reserve Bank forecasts an annual 7% growth rate in 2022 after first quarter growth of 13.5% year-over-year. It should reach 8% in 2023. In comparison, the Conference Board forecasts a US growth rate of 0.3% year-over-year in 2023.

McKinsey, the global consultancy, is planning large commitments to India because it expects the country to flourish not only in this decade but also for this century. Its global managing partner, Bob Sternfels, thinks India will be world’s talent factory because it will have 20% of the global working population by 2047.

Many sensible policies underpin these positive prospects but one of the most potent is the Smart Cities Mission begun by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015. The government is putting in $26 billion as seed money to leverage private and international investments to create at least 100 smart cities across the nation.

For the first time, an Indian government has envisioned a coordinated and holistic system designed to use India’s growing digital and manufacturing capabilities to improve urban living conditions. This is a boon for the nation’s long-suffering urban dwellers.

The project got off to a slow start because it may have been premature. But Indians now have the necessary skills in both information technologies and manufacturing skills to forge ahead.

In its usual meaning, a smart city is a place where traditional networks and services are made more efficient with the use of digital solutions. In India, planners are trying to move beyond improving efficiency to injecting technology directly into the lives of citizens.

They are using smartphones are the key tool for putting the citizen first by placing instant information about transit, traffic, health services, safety alerts, and community news into millions of hands. This is feasible now because smartphones are ubiquitous and can be bought for as little as $90, data usage is inexpensive and 5G networks are on the way.

The goal is to improve the quality of life of ordinary people, which is a tall order because of the low starting points in almost all of the country’s teeming urban centers. Their populations range from 1 million to over 24 million. But there is real hope that the well thought-out national plan will bring results, especially as there is a worldwide trend towards smart cities.

The challenge is to use data and digital technologies, which are Indian strong points, to deliver results that are relevant and meaningful to residents through better use of resources and lower emissions that may worsen climate change.

Indian planners are trying to provide smarter urban transport networks, upgraded water supply and waste disposal facilities and more efficient ways to light and heat buildings. They are promoting more responsive city administration, safer public spaces and focus on the needs of a young and dynamic population.

The McKinsey Global Institute finds that cities can use smart technologies to improve key quality-of-life indicators by 10 to 30 percent—numbers that translate into lives saved, fewer crime incidents, shorter commutes, a reduced health burden, and carbon emissions averted.