BENGALURU: Asserting that a smart city should ensure housing for all, Urban Development Department Secretary Anjum Pervez said on Friday the state government is working on an economically weaker section (EWS) housing policy to help migrants find affordable houses. Incentives will be given to builders under the policy to construct EWS houses. He said it is also being discussed with banks where one of the suggestions is the construction 750-sqft houses at a cost of Rs 4 lakh.
He was speaking at the valedictory of Municipalika, a three-day conference on smart and sustainable cities, in which 2,000 delegates and 5,000 visitors participated. The government has also decided to ensure all 279 urban local bodies in the state have LED street lights on a sustainable basis for a duration for seven years under PPP model to ensure safety of people, especially women, he added. While work on Tumkuru has already started, tenders have been called for Mysuru and Davangere. It is being done in Bengaluru too and the government is striving to show the city is safe and there is a nightlife.
He said Bengaluru is home to technological innovations which are being taken to the next level where GIS is being used to map the city and other urban areas of the state. Tenders were called for it and the exercise will be completed in two years after which citizens can also upload data.
Parag Gupta, advisor to Niti Ayog, said people and parastatal bodies should take ownership of the city and the country. It has been seen many a times that well tarred roads are dug open again and this should not happen. Also when Indians travel to other countries, they become most law abiding citizens, but when they are India, they assume that it is their birthright to litter and deface public property, he said.