Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) area expressed with the Smart City Proposal (SCP) drafted by the GWMC officials

WARANGAL: Citizens of Warangal and ‘Forum for better Warangal’ have accused officials from Warangal’s civic body of preparing a poor development plan for the city. The inhabitants of the Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) area expressed dissatisfaction with the Smart City Proposal (SCP) drafted by the GWMC officials, which will be reviewed by the Centre.

The Forum’s president Pulluru Sudhakar said the GWMC officials have not mentioned issues like skill development, employment generation and industrialisation in the SCP submitted to the Central government. The GWMC has prepared the SCP through a private consultancy, LEA Associates South Asia Pvt Ltd.

Sudhakar said the officials have prioritised on the ‘retrofitting system’, which aims at developing the existing area to achieve the smart city objectives. As per the Central government guidelines, civic bodies can adopt a plan (proposal) for a smart city that is appropriate to its local context, resources and levels of ambition and choose their smart city model.

“However, ignoring the suggestions, the GWMC officials have prepared proposals which lack a drive for economic prosperity,” Sudhakar added.

Former  mayor and BJP leader T Rajeshwar Rao said, “If the purpose of Smart Cities Mission is to drive economic growth and improve quality of people’s life by enabling local area development and harnessing technology, the GWMC officials have focused on measures to make the city a hub of economic activity.”

He also said that there is a need to stress on the development of textile industry, which was already proposed by the State government and also improve tobacco making industries.

http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/telangana/Warangal-Citizens-Forum-Slams-GWMC-for-Poor-Smart-City-Plan/2015/12/17/article3181997.ece