Union minister Venkaiah Naidu praised the Madhya Pradesh government for making remarkable progress in the Smart City mission, saying Indore stands out as a perfect example before the country in meeting challenges.

“We will provide all possible help to Madhya Pradesh on priority basis for its urban development mission. Constant efforts are needed to complete infrastructure development in small urban habitats. Madhya Pradesh has now become an important state, and urbanization is the core of development and the need of the hour,” the Union urban development minister said at a special session on urban development in the Global Investors’ Summit. ... School of Planning and Architecture director Chetan Vaidya called for developing a ‘powerful revenue base’ to sustain urban development. The state should draw plans to meet power requirements of smart cities simultaneously along with their development, he said.

Experts in the field of urban development said the urban development department should go for long-term sustainability in Smart City projects.