Seamless, unobstructed connectivity of technology feeding into the fabric of city life; the flow of traffic managed predictively through AI systems to prevent congestion and clear bottlenecks. Buildings become no longer a structure but an intelligent identity with the capacity to manage in real time its energy use as responsive to the needs of its occupants and the environment. These smart cities have cleaner air, safer streets, and enhanced quality of life. In other words, high merit badges for setting new standards in sustainable urban living.
In what is a continued bid to become a $5-trillion economy, India has cleared the Cabinet for setting up 12 new industrial smart cities along the Golden Quadrilateral under the National Industrial Corridor Development Programme. Spanning across 10 states and six major industrial corridors, the cities are: Khurpia in Uttarakhand, Rajpura-Patiala in Punjab, Dighi in Maharashtra, Palakkad in Kerala, Agra and Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, Gaya in Bihar, Zaheerabad in Telangana, Orvakal and Kopparthy in Andhra Pradesh, and Jodhpur-Pali in Rajasthan. The initiative would be led by an investment of INR 28,602 crore to decongest more populated urban cities, boost manufacturing, and create employment. Then, an Industrial Smart City would make up for a shift in India’s industrial and urban landscapes.
What is an Industrial Smart CIty ?
Industrial Smart Cities can be defined as linear zones that join key economic hubs through an integrated network of infrastructure and connectivity like roads,railways,ports and airports. It is drawing inspiration from successful international models aiming to transform the industrial as well as urban landscape of the country.The objective in such hubs is to create an environment where industries can grow. The essential services, reduction in logical costs, and modern facility and utility service are the primary objectives.Modern facilities and utilities are designed to enhance productivity and competitiveness.
Key Highlights of the programme
The National Industrial Corridor Development Programme will create vibrant industrial ecosystems by attracting inward investments from large anchor industries and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises. These industrial nodes will serve as enablers of the ambitious export target of $2 trillion by 2030 in the context of New India: Aatmanirbhar and globally competitive.
Smart Cities and Modern Infrastructure: New Industrial cities would be developed as greenfield smart cities of global standards. The ‘plug-n-play’ and ‘walk-to-work’ concepts would be followed, and built ‘ahead of demand’, ensuring advanced infrastructure to support sustainable and efficient industrial operations.
Area Approach under PM GatiShakti- The PM GatiShakti National Master Plan proposes that in these initiatives, multi-modal connectivity infrastructure will be seamlessly integrated, with the free movement of people, goods, and services. It will act as a growth centre which transforms entire regions into vibrant economic hubs with industrial cities.
Situating India as one of the prime locations in Global Value Chains (GVC), the NICDP sanction would be ready to provide developed land parcels ready to be allotted forthwith so that domestic and international investors can set up their manufacturing units, thus facilitating the self-reliant ‘Atma Nirbhar Bharat’ or self-reliant India to be propelled for economic growth through increased industrial output and employment.
Employment and Economic Impact: NICDP will create a substantial number of direct and indirect employment opportunities. It is expected that the project will directly provide jobs to approximately 1 million people and indirectly will create job opportunities for about 3 million people. These will be living earning sources and will help enhance the socio-economic status of places where these projects will be done.
Commitment to Sustainable Development: The NICDP projects strongly emphasise sustainability, with the goal of minimising environmental footprint through the use of ICT-enabled utilities and green technologies. The vision is to produce industrial cities that are not only engines of economic growth but also examples of environmental stewardship.
Strategic Locations & Seamless Connectivity: Reduced logistics cost in these 12 cities is also targeted with a design that provides seamless connectivity and strategic mapping, the robust infrastructure also aims at efficiency of the supply chain. With this India will become an even more appealing site for international investors.
Balanced Regional Development: One of the primary objectives of the NICDP is balanced regional development through strategic locations of these smart cities in less industrialized regions. This is primarily aimed at reducing regional disparities and ensuring the benefit of industrialization has been significantly distributed.
Conclusively, India’s Industrial smart cities go beyond infrastructure plans. They are an audacious future vision for the country. Indeed, India is building not only new urban centres but also a bridge to global leadership in manufacturing and sustainability by weaving together state-of-art infrastructure with significant investment.
These cities would then promise to drive economic growth, create millions of jobs, and set a new standard for smart, inclusive development, significantly contributing to the realization of India’s vision of becoming a developed nation.
