India and France signed an implementation agreement on ‘Mobilise Your City (MYC) programme in which three pilot cities will be provided support to reduce their Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions in urban transport. Under the programme, three Indian cities — Nagpur, Kochi and Ahmedabad — will get grant to the tune of 3.5 million Euros as part of the EU’s commitment under the Paris Climate agreement to achieve a “sustainable transport policy”. These cities are the part of the 100 cities selected under the smart city mission in the country.
The MYC agreement was signed by Mukund Kumar Sinha, OSD and ex-officio Joint Secretary in the Urban Affairs Ministry and the Regional Director of Agence Française de Développement (AfD), Nicolas Fornage. It was signed in the presence of Minister of State (I/C), Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri and Alexander Ziegler, Ambassador of France in India. MYC aims to extend help to 100 cities globally to reduce Green House Gas (GHG) emissions by promoting sustainable urban transport and to promote sustainability in urban spaces.
“More funds would be provided to India as loan to take forward the smart city and sustainable transport initiatives in the three cities on pilot basis,” said officials of HUA ministry. According to the ministry, based on a proposal made by AFD in 2015, the EU has agreed to provide 3.5 million euros through the AFD to contribute to specific investments and technical assistance components within the MYC in India.
“The pilot cities selected as well as the MoHUA will benefit from the technical assistance activities The programme includes learning and exchange formats with other cities across India for exchanges on best practices. The details of the project activities will be worked out by AFD in consultation with MoHUA and the three partner cities including institutions such as the respective special purpose vehicles (SPVs) for smart cities, the municipal corporations and any transport authority or transport related SPV,” the Ministry officials said.
According to the MoU, the MYC is an initiative combining urban mobility objectives and climate considerations. It aims at providing solutions in a fully integrated manner, analysing different modes of transportation within the urban fabric, with the objective of providing people long-term, sustainable, adequate, reliable and cost-efficient transportation opportunities.
