Odisha Plus Bureau
Smart City Rourkela has been selected among 10 prominent cities in the world to attend the coveted Urban95 Academy Residency Week programme at the London School of Economics (Cohort 2). A team from the Smart City will be attending the leadership programme at the prestigious institute in London from October 10 to 14, this year.
The Smart City has found its place among the top global cities for its proposal on ‘Infant, Toddler& Caregivers’ friendly city for slum & tribal communities. Sometime back, Rourkela had been selected among 10 prominent cities in the country in the ‘Nurturing Neighbourhood Challenge’ programme, under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs of the Govt of India, for implementing a host of child-friendly programmes.
In a tweet, Chief Minister of Odisha, Shri Naveen Patnaik, has congratulated all officials and employees of Smart City Rourkela and the Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) on being invited to participate in the programme.
Sundargarh District Collector Dr. Parag H. Gavali has conveyed his greeting to the entire team for the invitation.
“It’s a matter of great honour and pride that Rourkela has found place among 10 prominent cities in the world. The success in Urban95 Academy Residency Week programme of the London School of Economics (LSE) will encourage all of us to take our work further. Various programmes have been taken up to make Smart City Rourkela clean, beautiful and child friendly. I convey my heartfelt gratitude to everyone for this achievement,” said ADM Rourkela, RMC Commissioner & CEO Smart City Dr. Subhankar Mohapatra.
Prominent cities from around the world had been invited to participate in the 6-week-long ‘Urban95 Residency Week’ programme on virtual mode. Rourkela was among the 30 cities which had participated in the programme and submitted various proposals.
A string of programmes are presently underway to make Rourkela city child-friendly, especially, those aimed at providing protection to the mother and the child. Apart from that, the on-going programmes meant to provide secured and pleasant living condition to residents belonging to tribal and various other communities in Rourkela city had been submitted by Smart City Rourkela for consideration. Those have been endorsed for the Urban95 Academy Residency Week programme.
It is worth mentioning here that under the flagship ‘Nurturing Neighbourhood Challenge’ programme, modern Anganwadi centres are being constructed in Rourkela city. Likewise, Smart Parks are being set up while playgrounds and roads in the city are being developed and made child and senior-citizen friendly. Breast Feeding Pods are being set up at public places for facilitating mothers to breast feed babies in a secured environment. Roads and footpaths in the city are being illuminated for the convenience of the citizens.
Various public welfare programmers with the collaborated efforts of the Govt of India’s Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Housing and Urban Development Department of the Govt of Odisha, Bernard Van Leer Foundation, World Resources Institute and Smart City Mission are currently underway in Rourkela.