Kanpur trails in smart city rank, relegates to B category

Kanpur: Kanpur is lagging behind in district ranking marks of Smart City Mission. During the state government's review meeting, the status of various ongoing projects under Smart City, Kanpur was deemed unsatisfactory, resulting in the city receiving 8 out of 10 marks in September. This relegated it to smart city B category.According to sources, Kanpur's position on the chief minister's dashboard is unfavourable due to projects not meeting completion deadlines. The district magistrate of Kanpur Nagar has instructed the nodal officer of Smart City to complete the projects within stipulated timeframes, warning of potential adverse entries for non-compliance. Smart City Ltd implemented 72 projects under the Smart City Mission in the first phase, with 68 completed. Projects like Chunniganj convention centre and multi level parking remain under construction. These projects faced delays due to pending ‘No Objection Certificate' (NOC) requirements.Nodal officer of Smart City RK Tiwari assured that project obstacles would be addressed and construction would resume promptly. The convention centre and parking development was halted for a year awaiting NOC from Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The completed projects have been transferred to respective Kanpur Municipal Corporation departments.Approximately 20 projects involving engineering department, horticulture, lighting department, traffic department, health department and Jalkal, despite timely completion, await handover to KMC, Tiwari stated. He confirmed ongoing communication with respective departments regarding the handover.The convention centre project, valued at Rs 96.10 crore, encompasses a modern auditorium, two exhibition halls measuring 16000 and 12000 square feet, an auditorium seating 300 persons, three meeting halls accommodating 100 persons each, six guest rooms, two suites, a food court spanning 8000 square feet, covered parking for 68 vehicles, eight commercial shops, business centre and restaurant.The multi level parking facility to cost Rs 35.20 crore, comprises seven stories accommodating 348 cars and 176 bikes. This development aims to alleviate traffic congestion on the VIP Road.
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