Bhubaneswar will be first one of its kind in the country to implement the project of Child-Friendly Smart City (CFSC) Centre.
As the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) has presented the proposal to the Bhubaneswar Development authority (BDA) to implement the CFSC Centre in the city, BDA Vice-Chairperson Krishan Kumar has decided to go ahead with the innovative project.
Dr Kumar has detailed discussion with the experts of NIUA, which has received grant from the Bernard Van leer Foundation (BvlF) to develop knowledge and advocacy for Child Friendly Smart Cities in India. Official sources say that the State Government will soon clear the project as Bhubaneswar has been listed in the elite category of 98 Smart Cities in the country.
And this innovative initiative is first step towards scaling up Bhubaneswar in the Top 20 list of Smart Cities, feel Urban experts. With rapid urbanization, the capital city has been subjected to archetypal challenges of chaotic and unsystematic growth in population, leading to the mushrooming of informal settlements or slums and inadequate infrastructure.
According to Census 2011, there are 75,237 children under the age of six living in the city. Yet infrastructural facilities are inadequate to cater to the needs of the children.
Under this backdrop, NIUA will support Bhubaneswar with SFSC Centre at BDA to address the various issues emerging out of rapid urbanization and assist BDA in developing an advanced and effective planning and management framework.
This would be beneficial to the city and their populations at large feel the experts of NIUA.
The project will be implemented in three years time and will be benefitting both directly and indirectly nearly a population of 10 lakh and children over 80,000, said sources.
SFSC Centre will be a key component of the larger Urban Management Centre (UMC) at BDA and will act as an urban planning and development support unit.
This will focus on initiating sustainable transformation of informal settlements in the city into child friendly neighborhoods, converting them from unplanned concrete ghettos and slums planned settlements that have the necessary public facilities and live-able and healthy environments that can contribute to the well-rounded development of each child.
Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu, who is batting for this project, wants the Smart Cities proposed across the country are needed to cater to the needs of children.
The Minister feels that harsh urban realities were adversely affecting the “brain development and perspectives” of young children, particularly those from the economically weaker sections.
Deficient urban planning has resulted in an adverse impact on children in terms of poor behavioural and academic outcomes, high risk of diseases, inadequate early brain development and impaired physical development and skills.
