‘Choice between smart city and decay’: Hardeep Puri after release of Ease of Living Index report | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
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‘Choice between smart city and decay’: Hardeep Puri after release of Ease of Living Index report

By | Written by Kanishka Sarkar, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Mar 04, 2021 10:42 PM IST

The Union minister also hailed the smart cities project as one of the fastest implemented projects anywhere in the world. He, however, said, “there is some kind of perception deficit.”

Hours after Union minister for housing and urban affairs Hardeep Singh Puri released the ranking of Ease of Living Index (EoLI) and Municipal Performance Index (MPI) for the year 2020, he said that the smart city project is aimed at urban rejuvenation, governance, accountability, and ease of living. “The choice is not between a smart city or a not-so-smart city but the choice is between a smart city and 'decay'. A smart city is about urban rejuvenation, governance, accountability, and ease of living,” he was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. 

Urban housing minister Hardeep Puri release ease of living index on Thursday. (Sanjeev Verma/HT File Photo)
Urban housing minister Hardeep Puri release ease of living index on Thursday. (Sanjeev Verma/HT File Photo)

The Union minister also hailed the smart cities project as one of the fastest implemented projects anywhere in the world. He, however, said, “there is some kind of perception deficit.” 

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Also Read| Bengaluru, Shimla best cities to live: See top 10 in Ease of Living Index 2020

Earlier in the day, the minister released the rankings under EoLI 2020 for cities with a population of more than a million and cities with less than a million people. A total of 111 cities participated in the assessment exercise that was conducted in 2020, the housing and urban affairs ministry said in a statement. 

Bengaluru ranked as the top performer followed by Pune, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Surat, and Navi Mumbai. Coimbatore, Vadodara, Indore, and Greater Mumbai were next in line in the more than a million category. Of the 49 cities ranked on the liveability index in this category, Delhi figured at the 13th spot while Srinagar was ranked lowest.

In the less than million category, Shimla was ranked the highest in ease of living, followed by Bhubaneswar, Silvassa, Kakinada, Salem, Vellore, Gandhinagar, Gurugram, Davanagere, and Tiruchirappalli.

According to MPI 2020 ranking, municipalities with a population of over a million, Indore ranked the highest followed Surat and Bhopal. In the less than million category, New Delhi Municipal Council has emerged as the leader, followed by Tirupati and Gandhinagar. 

Puri earlier in the day said, “India’s steady economic growth is reflected in the rapid expansion of her cities. India, today is one of the fastest-growing large economies in the world. With the current urbanisation rate, India is expected to have 50 per cent of the country’s population residing in cities within the next 30 years.”

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