Here is all you need to know about it:

Reuters
1.City challenge competition: Each Smart City aspirant will be selected through a 'City
Challenge Competition' intended to link financing with the ability of the cities to perform to
achieve the mission objectives. Each state will shortlist a certain number of smart city aspirants
as per the norms to be indicated and they will prepare smart city proposals for further evaluation
for extending central support. According to a report in the Business Standard, only about 20
cities are likely to be shortlisted in the first phase.
2. Selected city will get Rs 100 crore a year for 5 years from the govt: Each selected city
under the scheme would get Central assistance of Rs 100 crore a year for five years. The
remaining money has to come from the states, urban bodies and the consortium that they form
with corporate entities. The mission aims to release funds depending on multi-pronged progress
of the projects and makes citizen participation an integral part of the planning of these cities.
Central assistance will be to the extent of 50 percent of project cost for cities and towns with a
population of up to 10 lakh and one-third of the project cost for those with a population of above
10 lakh.
3. All states will get at least one smart city: A Special Purpose Vehicle will be created for each
city to implement Smart City action plan. The SPV will be signed with the urban local body,
state government and the Centre for implementation of the project.
4. Smart Cities Council India has been formed to promote development of smart cities in
the country. It is part of the US-based Smart Cities Council, which is a consortium of smart city
practitioners and experts, with a 100-plus member and advisor organizations operating in over
140 countries.

5. Focus on core infra services The Mission of building 100 smart cities intends to promote
adoption of smart solutions for efficient use of available assets, resources and infrastructure with
the objective of enhancing the quality of urban life and providing a clean and sustainable
environment, the government said. Focus will be on core infrastructure services like adequate
and clean water supply, sanitation and solid waste management, efficient urban mobility and
public transportation, affordable housing for poor, power supply and robust IT connectivity, it
added. Also e-governance and citizen participation, safety and security of citizens, health and
education and sustainable urban environment will receive attention. This will be implemented
through an 'area based' approach consisting of retrofitting, redevelopment, pan-city initiatives
and development of new cities.
6. Which cities gain the most? According to Zia, cities like Varanasi, Vizag, Ajmer etc. can
stand to draw huge benefits out of this mission because the Smart City Mission is ambitiously
widespread to include water supply, sanitation, waste management, transportation, housing for
poor, power supply, among others. So for a mid-sized city these aspects can be comfortably
worked upon within the average budgetary allocation of 500 crore per city.
But for a city like Mumbai wherein transportation projects like the Trans Harbour Link or the
Metro Phaze 3 can itself cost upwards of Rs 10,000 crore each, the proposed amount may not
even suffice for a fraction of the interest cost of these projects.
7. AMRUT, which seeks to lay a foundation to enable cities and towns to eventually grow
into smart cities, will be implemented in 500 locations with a population of one lakh and
above. These include cities situated on stems of main rivers, a few capital cities and important
cities located in hilly areas and tourist spots. Under this mission, states will get flexibility of
designing schemes that best suit their needs. Assistance from the centre for AMRUT will amount
to 50 percent of project cost for cities and towns with a population of up to a million and onethird of the project cost for those with a population of above a million. Central assistance will be
released in three instalments in the ratio of 20:40:40 based on achievements.
8. AMRUT will focus on ensuring basic infrastructure services such as water supply,
sewerage, storm water drains, transport and development of green spaces and parks with special
provision for meeting the needs of children. Implementation will be linked to promotion of urban
reforms such as e-governance, setting up of professional municipal cadre, devolving funds and
functions to urban local bodies, review of building bye-laws, improvement in assessment and
collection of municipal taxes, credit rating of urban local bodies, energy and water audit and
citizen-centric urban planning.
9 Smart City Council will release a guide to help urban planners understand the
framework of smart cities : The Smart City Council India will launch a Smart City Readiness
Guide for India in September 2015, according to a report in Business Today, which will serve as
a a vendor neutral framework for smart cities. The guide will reportedly have 100 case studies in
terms of smart practices from various Indian cities across private and government initiatives. The
guide would also enable city leaders and urban planners to understand the comprehensive
framework of a smart city and take actionable steps toward major city infrastructure
improvements.

10. What's the next step? "The next step is identification of the 100 cities and for this a city
challenge competition to be conducted by Bloomberg Philanthropies is envisaged. The current
plan looks to select 20 cities this year followed by 40 each in the next two successive years,"
says Rohan Sharma, Associate Director - Research & Real Estate Intelligence Service, JLL India.
According to Sharma, the focus in the first phase is likely to be on the Tier 1 cities. He believes
emphasis should also be put on creating newer centres of economic growth with physical and
civic infrastructure improvement and hence other cities, especially in the North East and lesserdeveloped parts of the country.