'India's Smart Cities Aligned With UN Sustainable Development Goals'

New Delhi: With the announcement of 98 aspirants for India's smart cities and the government incorporating sustainability as a key component of the project, global consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) feels "the pillars of a smart sustainable city" are completely aligned with the proposed UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The SDGs, that will define the global sustainable development agenda post-2015, are a proposed set of global development targets to be adopted by governments around the world.

"The closer the integration of sustainability into India's '100 Smart Cities' initiative, the greater will be the linkages with the SDGs," PwC said in a report titled "Making cities smart and sustainable".

"The pillars of a smart sustainable city are also directly or indirectly aligned with the objectives of the SDGs," the report said.

Under the government's 100 smart cities programme, each selected city will receive central assistance of 100 crore annually for five years, driving economic growth.

Citing good governance, planning and financing as among the key institutional factors for realising sustainable cities, the report said "responsibility and accountability are integral towards making our community more sustainable."

"Good governance serves as a powerful inspiration for promoting reforms in policies and programmes for sustainable development," PwC said.