None of the cities in J&K has qualified to become the beneficiary of Union Government’s scheme of Smart Cities. They did not fulfill the criterion set forth for becoming eligible. However, 19 cities and towns of Jammu and Kashmir have been selected for providing housing facilities under the Centre’s Housing for all (urban) Mission-2015. Two regions of Jammu and Kashmir have 9 cities/towns each and Kargil in Ladakh region is the 19th town selected under the scheme. J&K is not the only State that has not been able to qualify for Smart City scheme; there are many other States as well. Under the Housing for All (Urban) Mission – 2015, a State desiring its identified towns to be covered by this scheme, are required to sign a MoU with the Union Urban Development Ministry within 60 days of the announcement of the scheme. As J&K also wants to be a beneficiary of this scheme, the State has, therefore, signed a MoU and is now all set to implement the scheme. J&K is among 15 States that have signed the MoU and in all 305 cities and towns identified in nine of the 15 States will come under the purview. Signatory States to the MoU are under obligation, to implement six mandatory reforms necessary to ensure success of the housing mission meant for urban areas. These reforms, by and large, mean to ease the improvement schemes that are proposed for launching. For example, doing away with the need of a separate Non Agricultural Permission (NAP) for land falling in residential zone earmarked in the Master Plan of a city/town, preparing or amending Master Plans identifying land for affordable housing; putting in place a single-window-time bound clearance system for layout approvals etc. These reforms are essentially meant to bring about a semblance of uniformity in the towns in regard to various aspects of town planning.
The fact is that these towns were not laid under any well thought township plan and, therefore, are specimens of old construction and old pattern of an Indian town. The purpose is to give them some semblance of modernity by improving physical status of the towns like broadening of streets, underground sewage, modern drainage system, and modern system of disposal of waste material, improved bus stands and railway stations and many more things. We are hopeful that the scheme will be implemented in right spirit in the State and the condition of the nine towns selected in each region and the one of Kargil will get new shape after these are brought under the scheme.
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