Day 45 – Q 5.How can IT solutions make urban governance more effective and efficient? Illustrate with the help of suitable examples.

5. How can IT solutions make urban governance more effective and efficient? Illustrate with the help of suitable examples. 

आईटी समाधान शहरी शासन को अधिक प्रभावी और कुशल कैसे बना सकते हैं? उपयुक्त उदाहरणों की सहायता से चित्रण करें।

Introduction:

Indian urban population has already reached 31% of the total population in 2011 and is expected to reach 50% by 2040. IT and digital technology provide efficient, effective and sustainable tools for urban governance. 12th five-year plan conceived digital technology to address the urban infrastructure deficit in Indian cities, and to also promote sustainable development.

Body

IT Solutions making urban governance effective and efficient:

• Urban Master planning: One of the major issues in our urban areas is lack of proper planning which is holistic, sustainable. IT tools like GIS, Remote sensing, AI etc., can be used to make it more efficient.
• Citizen participation: IT can provide tools by creating online forums for citizen feedback, e-petitions and so on. E.g. Fund raising for rehabilitation of flood hit citizens in Chennai, citizen vigilance app to report crimes by Delhi police etc.,
• Urban security: E.g. Use of digital tools (CCTV, e-registration of police complaints etc.,) in Rajkot city under smart city mission has reduced crime rate by 18% within 6 months. Suraksha app of Bengaluru police.
• Information dissemination: Digital display boards are efficient tools for communication with the public which can be seen in major metro cities around the world. Projects like video wall, Indian Urban observatory also aim at information dissemination to the public which would help in effective communication, awareness spreading and campaigns. 
• Crisis management: IT can be effectively used in all the stages of crisis management – prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. E.g. Pune has installed flood sensors in the city triggering timely warning and response mechanism, Satellite communication/ Local area network during the floods used in Kerala etc., 
• Fund utilization: e-management of funds address the issue of leakages and pilferages – corruption in the fund management. E.g. e-tendering of road projects etc., 
• Compliance: Bhopal has seen increase in property tax collection after the Revenue department underwent digitization. 
• Smart resource utilization: IT can provide solutions for urban issues like water shortage, electricity shortage and so on by efficient monitoring. E.g. smart electricity grids and smart metering for electricity, water and gas. ICT applications like Intelligent LED Street Lighting and Surveillance, networking of safety and security systems (CCTVs, police, traffic, etc.). 
• Sustaining social infrastructure: A GIS based heritage mapping can be done to conserve and promote the historical monuments located in cities. 
• Transportation efficiency: can be increased by using IT tools which can manage the traffic congestion using technologies like AI. Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) are introduced in several cities all over the world.
• Fund Mobilization: IT provides an interface to raise public funds which can be used for urban development. E.g. issue of municipal bonds over the internet platform.

Conclusion

An Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) would help in comprehensive coverage of all aspects and planning of overall Urban governance. IT tools are a part of Good governance ensuring transparency and accountability in governance and thus make the urban governance efficient and effective.