Home Secretary
Chandigarh UT Administration
Chandigarh Administration is looking at modernising Sector-17 in a big way. Work is on for conservation of Capitol Complex, and also for expanding the Le Corbusier Centre, says Anurag Aggarwal, Home Secretary, Chandigarh UT Administration, in conversation with Priya Yadav of Elets News Network (ENN).
Chandigarh is already ahead of other States in terms of planned infrastructure and civic amenities, what would ‘Smart’ status entail for the residents?
The Smart City project is a scheme for leap-frogging the city from one stage of development to another. We are poised for that. Whatever we are doing under the Smart City project, be it making cycle tracks, smart signage, mobile apps, is in that direction. Facilitating the residents is the prime focus so that their lives become easier and better in terms of living standards. For this, we are ensuring all services are upgraded. For instance, not only are we looking at providing 24×7 water supply across the city and ensuring state-of-the-art technology for sewage treatment is used but also we want to improve the quality of water, make tertiary water better and available to all people.
“Command and Control Centre is the very spirit of smartness. The primary objective of the centre is to bring an improvement in the quality of the life of the citizens.”
What are other plans of the administration under the Smart City project?
We are looking at modernising Sector-17 in a big way. Work is on for conservation of Capitol Complex. We are expanding the Le Corbusier Centre, a new museum is being made. The aim is to not just to look at modernisation but also conserve the heritage buildings. The house of city’s first chief architect Pierre Jeanneret has been converted into a museum dedicated to his works in the city. Similarly the office of Le Corbusier from where he worked has been converted into a museum. Apart from protecting the heritage legacy of the city, we are working big time in modernising all infrastructure. For this Smart City Operations Centre, a project under Smart City Innovation Centre (SCIC) has been inaugurated.
What would be the role of newly inaugurated Command and Control Centre?
The Command and Control Centre is the very spirit of smartness. The primary objective of the centre is to bring improvement in the quality of the life of the citizens. The idea is to establish a living lab, an urban observatory for smart city solutions, skill development and capacity building for Smart Cities, innovation centre and startup hub for Smart Cities. Various systems which are influenced by this project include Solid Waste Management, Smart Traffic, Smart Environment, Smart Lighting and Public Transport. A lot of data will be generated which would be eventually made available to the citizens. This will empower the residents and help them plan better and smartly. For instance, if someone has to take a bus and he has prior information on traffic on a particular route, the bus movement, seat availability, he will be empowered to take a better decision about how to commute.