Kingdom of Bahrain

NEWS
US to continue to assist India in
development of ‘Smart Cities’ under Trump
US officials have confirmed that they will
continue to assist India in the development
of ‘smart cities’ in the region under the
administration of president elect Donald
Trump. During the reign of Barack
Obama, India and the US signed a series
of memorandums of understanding which
was aimed at specifically developing three
‘smart cities’ in Allahabad, Ajmer and
Visakhapatnam.
Ashely O’Connor
US officials agreed to help assist the
cities in relation to a number of key areas
such as project planning, infrastructure,
development, feasibility studies and
capacity building. There had been fears
expressed among some leaders involved
in the ‘Smart City’ movement in India, that
the US would withdraw its support for the
initiative – following the election of Donald
Trump.
However, it has been officially confirmed
that the US will continue to work closely
with Indian officials in relation to the ‘smart
cities’ development.
Deputy Assistant Secretary in the US
Department of Commerce, Vinay Vijai Singh
said initial discussions had taken place with
a team of officials formed as part of Trump’s
on-going transition into office – and he
outlined some of the challenges that need
to be urgently addressed in India.
Singh said, “We have held initial discussions
with the transition team (under new
presidency). It is still early stages but we
have shared our plans and they have been
included. Indian cities should be enabled
to have more autonomy. The mechanics
between the centre and states in India
need to be worked out. I know they are
working hard at it, we had this ‘smart cities’
competition and the money has gone to
the states – then we go to the states and
some states say we don’t have the money
because these things haven’t been done.”
Further concerns have been raised by some
businesses who are already heavily involved
in India’s smart cities projects. One of these
companies is Region Business Line Leader,
AECOM. Its vice president, Ashely O’Connor
expressed her concerns and has appealed
for clarification to be offered on the smart
cities project.
She said, “In Visakhapatnam, in particular,
there were talks of a new airport. It would
need significant investment, so clarity
around these, what is in works, and how
they are working moving forward would be
helpful for the business side.”
Singh refuted suggestions that the US’s
involvement in India’s smart cities project
was politically motivated – and that the
agenda was being driven by the US private
sector which sees the region as a huge area
for potential growth.
Singh added, “We will continue to engage
with all stakeholders. We will also work with
multilateral institutions to help eliminate
the initial risk involved in such projects.”
Chief of Staff for the US Trade and
Development Agency echoed the
sentiments of Singh and declared the
primary focus areas for the US in smart
cities are in energy, telecom and the
transportation sector.
16 January 2017