Govt announces names of 18 cities to receive funds under CITIIS 2.0 scheme

To promote the reuse and recycling of waste generated in urban areas, Union minister of housing and urban affairs Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday announced the names of 18 cities that will get ₹1,496 crore as part of the CITIIS (city investments to innovate, integrate and sustain) 2.0 challenge.

Under CITIIS 2.0, cities will implement projects promoting a circular solid waste management economy for the next four years.

These cities are Agartala, Agra, Bareilly, Belagavi, Bilaspur, Guwahati, Jabalpur, Jaipur, Madurai, Muzzafarpur, New Town Kolkata, Panaji, Rajkot, Srinagar, Thiruvananthapuram, Thanjavur, Udaipur, and Ujjain.

“The urban interventions being implemented will be replicated across the country and studied as ‘lighthouse initiatives’ in the fledgling movements of circular economy in India,” Puri said on social media.

Also Read:Cabinet approves CITIIS 2.0 from 2023 to 2027 with a focus on circular economy

Circular economy refers to a system where waste reuse, refurbishing, and recycling is carried out to decrease the use of natural resources and limit greenhouse gas emissions.

Swati Singh Sambyal, an international circular economy expert said CITIIS 2.0, with its incorporation of circular economy principles in waste management, holds the potential to make a substantial impact on India’s COP28 commitments.

This alignment can yield concrete local benefits by promoting data-driven sustainable urban development and enhancing resource efficiency at the local, state, and national levels.

The ongoing efforts planned in 18 Smart Cities, focusing on diverse facets of Integrated Waste Management and embracing circular interventions, play a pivotal role in creating replicable models.

“These interventions will not only contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gases but also bolster climate governance mechanisms at the local and state levels. The establishment of data observatories in both city and state domains further strengthens these initiatives,” she added.

CITIIS 2.0 was launched in November 2023 and is funded by multilateral agencies through loans and grants.

All 100 cities under the Smart Cities Mission were eligible for the challenge, and the deadline for submission was January 15.

The proposals were evaluated equally on four grounds—sustainable development, innovation and integration, participatory approach and partnership and relevance, and feasibility.

However, to promote regional equity, the ministry said that at least one city from the six zones of the country will be selected.

The bulk of the funds amounting to ₹1,760 crore for this will be made available from loans of equal amounts (100 million euros each) given by the AFD (French Development Agency) and KfW German Development Bank.

The minimum and maximum amount each selected city will be given is ₹20 crore and ₹135 crore, respectively.

As part of the lending arrangement for each of the smart city projects, the loan amount will be repaid by the state government and union government.

Another component of CIITIS 2.0 was a grant of ₹264 crore to state governments to fund climate observatories for cities to make data-driven plans and preparations for disaster management.

An additional ₹106 crore which will be given as a grant by the European Union (EU) will be used as the third component of the scheme for conducting national-level technical assistance training for officials of urban local bodies across the country.

CITIIS 1.0 was implemented in 12 cities following a similar challenge mode in 2018.

Various smart city projects were carried out in four thematic areas: sustainable mobility, public open spaces, e-governance and ICT, and social and organisational innovation in low-income settlements.