Smart City Dharamshala Concept Note

Smart City Dharamshala Concept Note

Concept Note for Smart City Smart City is referred as the safe, secure environmentally green, and efficient urban center of the future with advanced infrastructures such as sensors, electronics and networks to stimulate sustainable economic growth & a high quality of life (Hall, 2000) Rapid growth in small and medium scale urban centers plays an important role in economic and societal progress. However, it also strains a city s infrastructure. Key challenges, such as traffic congestion, energy usage, public safety, and the building of sustainable communities are top of mind. Such challenges need to be addressed through the development and implementation of intelligent solutions. Smart cities are measured by the integration of their infrastructure and the intelligent ways by which they tackle challenges. A smart city puts emphasis on creating a system of networks to allow for a systematic flow of information and effective management of resources. Enabling integration and convergence with organizations and local authorities to provide solutions for the development of a smart city is crucial. A Smart City offers decent living options to every resident. This would mean that it will have to provide a very high quality of life (comparable with any developed European City) i.e. good quality but affordable housing, cost efficient physical infrastructure such as 24 x 7 water supply, sanitation, 24 x 7 electric supply, clean air, quality education, health care, security, entertainment, sports, robust and high speed interconnectivity, fast & efficient urban mobility etc.

Smart City program is one of the prestigious projects of the Government of India. Under this project, the government plans to develop 100 smart Cities. Ministry of Urban Development has planned to develop two smart cities in each state. Dharamshala being a major tourist destination and the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh is also selected in this category. Dharamshala: City Overview Dharamshala is administrative headquarters of Kangra district and is located 18 km North- East of Kangra. Thetown is located on the foothills of Dhauladhar Range. It was founded by the Britishersand used as a cantonment for troops in the year of 1849. Dharamshala is abode of his Holiness of Dalai Lama ever since he left Tibet in 1959. Dharamshala Municipality was one of the oldest Municipality in Himachal Pradesh and established in the year of 1867. Geographically the town is positioned 23 o 13 North latitude and 76 o 19 East longitude. The slope of the town vary from different levels. The upper part of the town is situated on altitude of 2100 meter and the lower part of the town is situated on the elevation of 1250 meter. The total area of Municipal Council is 10.63 s.q.km. Administratively the town is divided into 11 wards but into six major parts Meclodganj, Frysatganj, Kotwali Bazaar, Ram Nagar, Shayam Nagar and Dari Barol. Presently Dari Barol area experienced fast growth. As per 2011 census, total population of Dharamshala is 22586. The table below shows that population of Dharamshala town hasincreased from 10255 in 1961 to 22586 in 2011.

Year Wise Population Dharmshala Town Sr. N. Year Population 1 1961 10255 2 1971 10939 3 1981 14522 4 1991 17493 5 2001 19982 6 2011 22586 Source: MC, Dharamshala USP of Dharamshala Dharamshala is an Administrative Head-Quarter of Kangra district and also a major Administrative Center after Shimla. Dharamshala is Winter Capital of Himachal Pradesh. Due to development of government offices, public institutions and tourism facilities, the town has developed asthe Regional Head Quarter as well as the Regional Educational and Trade Center. Home of Tibetan Guru Dalai Lama and Also Known as Mini Tibet. Dharamshala is coming under Dhauladhar tourist Circuit& is major tourist destination of Himachal Pradesh after Shimla and Kullu. Annually 1503489Lac tourists visit Dharamshala. Being a Seat of the Tibetan Guru Dalai Lama and availability of good infrastructure facilities, the town act as base station for tourist who visit historical temples of Kangra, Chamunda, Jawalaji and other tourist places of Palampur, Baijnath and Nurpur. Need to Develop Dharamshala as a Smart City Due to population increase and being a major tourist destination Dharamshala experienced rapid urban growth which results the haphazard and unplanned development activities specially in Meclodganj, Barol and kotwali Bazar areas. As per the Himachal Tourism Department approximately 15 lac tourist visited every year in Dharamshala. Tourism activities can create great pressure on Infrastructure facilities and land resources such as water supply, sewerage system, solid waste management and road network. Dharamshala is coming under seismic zone- V. The intensity of earthquake is very high and destructive in this category. To cope up the above mentioned problems and Dharamshala being a major tourist, regional administrative educational center there is a need to develop Dharamshala as a smart city. Goals/Objectives Asserting Dharamshala asa major tourist destination by following thegoals and Objectives proposed for Smart City for Dharamshala: Enhancing the Quality of Life by providing Universal Access to Urban Basic Services Improving the Urban Governance and Management by providing Intelligent solutions Provision of ICT Infrastructure to fast service delivery

Promoting Sustainable Tourism Components of Smart City in Dharamshala 1. Water supply 24X7 water supply for Dharamshala Town, 100 percent metered connection, GIS based distribution, monitoring and control system and online water billing will propose as a Smart Initiative. 2. Waste Water 100 percent coverage of sewerage system, GIS based integration and automation of sewage system and 80 percent recycling of waste water proposed in waste water sector. 3. Solid waste management Government of Himachal Pradesh in the process of installation of Underground Mechanized Dustbin in Dharamshala. Apart from this, 100 percent door to door collection, Smart waste collection through Global Positioning System & RFID, Smart waste processing by using sustainable technologies have been proposed. 4. Urban Transport Under the JnNURM schemes of Government of India,hybrid low floor buses have already established in the Dharamshala town. Dharamshala being a Tourist destination, special theme based tourist buses proposal for the tourists. Rope ways also proposed for natural recreation. Synchronized traffic signals have been installed in major locations. 5. Street Lights Energy Efficient street lighting, Maximum usage of Renewal Energy, Energy Monitoring and Control through centralize location has been plan for Dharamshala town. 6. Tourism Supporting Smart Tourism Infrastructure like sensor based toilets in major tourist locations, Provision of dustbins, Digital Display of tourism related information in major locations and Tourism App will plan for tourism sector. 7. Education Virtual and Digital classroomswill propose for state government schools 8. Health Centrally located Emergency Response System, Electronic Health Card and Online Medical Services to be proposed. 9. Disaster management Smart emergency response center with all new equipment will plan for Dharamshala

10. Deployment of Broadband Networks: Plan for easy access to broadband should include a broadband infrastructure that combines cable, optical fibre, and wireless networks. This will offer maximum connectivity (100 Mbps) and bandwidth to citizens and organizations located in the city. The latest broadband service is fibre-optic, which is the fastest Internet connection available. 11. Developing Smart Urban Spaces: Dharamshala being a popular destination for Indian and foreign touristsfree Wi-Fi hotspots and information kiosks will allow people to connect to the Internet on the move. 12. Developing Web-Based E-services: Improving existing ICT infrastructure in the offices with installation of latest software and technology. Deployment of online services for birth registration, Nativity certificates, foreign tourist registration by ULB connected with real time centrally located server of state & country. Grievance tracking and solving mechanism with mobile based services offering real-time data management, alerts, and information processing for the city administration. Installation of CCTVs surveillance system in city bus station, markets, Govt. Places and other busy spaces. 13. Transparency and Governance: Improving government accountability, transparency, responsiveness and democratic control. Putting information into the public domain can benefit society by creating conditions for more social inclusive service delivery and for more participatory democracy. All public services available online. Conclusions The concept of smart cities gained importance, as a means of making ICT enabled services and applications available to citizens, companies and authorities that are part of the city system. It aims at increasing citizens quality of life, and improving the efficiency and quality of services provides by the local authorities. The successful establishment of smart cities needs a realistic approach to technological development and work actively towards the development of cities, using ICT as a tool for sustainable development of all indicators.